Companies double down on green business travel

Suppose an employee at Contentsquare, a digital experience analytics platform, travels up to four hours somewhere for work. In that case, they are mandated to take the train instead of a plane because train travel emits up to 80 times less CO2. 

It’s part of multiple initiatives the company has to reduce its overall carbon footprint, which at one time had been driven by the company’s travel costs across offices in 15 countries. 

But Contentsquare isn’t alone in its sustainability efforts. Companies across the globe are incorporating sustainability into business travel, putting a strong emphasis on strategic planning and eco-friendly practices. Integrating sustainability into business travel programs has shifted from a luxury to a critical requirement today.

“When it comes to a certain level of business with clients, when they are doing their own carbon assessment in their Scope 3, the more we are lean in terms of CO2, the better we are categorized when we want to get a new contract,” said Guilhem Isaac Georges, vp of sustainability at Contentsquare. “With some significant companies in Europe, it’s beginning to be a real criteria of selection. That’s very important for business.”

Not only do clients want to work with sustainable companies, but employees do too. Research indicates that 53% of employees would prefer to work for companies that actively support sustainable travel initiatives over those who do not.

It can require a heavy lift between sustainability leaders and HR at a company to navigate the best way to approach green business travel. 

For example, at Contentsquare, employees are encouraged to select accommodations with sustainable labels, like Green Globe, Green Key, and EU Ecolabel. That can require more time and effort to seek out. 

“It’s having the right tools that enable travelers to make choices when they’re booking their travel that help support their companies and their travel program’s sustainability efforts,” said Jen Bankard, senior director, content solutions and conferences at travel publisher BTN Group. “It’s still hard to get all of the really important and needed information integrated into the point of booking.”

Bankard says that for some companies that might involve curating a list of what hotels will be prioritized, but ensuring to include the why.

“What does it mean if I book at this hotel versus this hotel in terms of my own carbon footprint?,” said Bankard. “If I don’t have that information in a clear and meaningful way, it’s just not going to make as much of a difference if I book at this property versus this property. There’s still quite a ways to go.”

She says another thing that is really weighing on people is wading through what is greenwashing and what is authentic when it comes to sustainability practices. For instance, is that airline really making a change or is it a giant marketing scheme?

With Contentsquare’s ambition to be net-zero in its operations by 2040, that additional work of recommending the most sustainable way to travel is necessary. It joined the Climate Pledge in 2023 to help trace its path to net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, a decade ahead of the Paris Agreement’s target. 

“When it comes to really reducing your carbon footprint, at some point you need to tackle your main sources,” said Isaac Georges. “Travel is the main one for us.”

HR leaders looking to better understand their company’s business travel and its impact on their carbon footprint might start by working with a company like Good Travel Management, a purpose-led travel management company.

“I think it’s talking to an expert,” said Andy Sison, consulting manager at Good Travel Management. “On our end, it’s engaging with their stakeholders to understand their sustainability practices and what they’re trying to achieve when working with a partner.”

One of the biggest changes Good Travel Management has recommended to businesses lately is swapping several visits to the same country throughout the year for one elongated trip, to avoid additional flying time. 

“A company’s travel output can be their number one emissions driver,” said Sison. “Some of our client partners may have traveled seven or eight times a year between New York and the U.K. just for one traveler. Practicing elongated trips means they’re just traveling once to that destination and they save from a cost point of view but also help the environment.”

Sison warns that sustainable business travel isn’t always easy to implement right away. 

“There’s a lot of education and buy-in needed around the subject matter to get people on board,” said Sison. “It’s getting them to understand the actual benefits.”

Bankard’s employer, The BTN Group, publisher of Business Travel News, Travel Procurement, and The Beat, has focused on green business travel increasingly over the last few years as a global source of business travel and meeting information and intelligence. At almost every event the company hosts, sustainable business travel comes up, so much so that four years ago it launched an event dedicated to sustainability. 

“Travel managers who work in an organization where it’s not just a directive, but they truly have the support of the C-suite, they are in a much better place than travel managers who might be working for companies where it’s not as big of a piece for them,” said Jen Bankard, senior director, content solutions and conferences at the BTN Group.  

And that matters especially when some companies still have conflicting priorities around sustainable travel. Bankard says that while most people understand the importance of it, it still requires a hefty cost to travel in a more meaningful way sometimes. She’s found that the U.S. is significantly farther behind than the folks they work with from the U.K. and European Union when it comes to sustainable travel practices. And there are generational differences too, with younger employees holding sustainability as a top priority, but older generations not as much. Between each of these things, there is still work to do. 

“A message I commonly hear stressed is that you don’t need to strive for perfection,” said Bankard. “Making little incremental steps can make a difference and try to focus on that.”