AMSTERDAM — Business travellers carry on average 4 different types of technology – including mobile phone, tablet and laptop – with the smartphone being the one “travel tool they can’t live without,” according to the new CWT Connected Traveler Study by Carlson Wagonlit Travel. More than 80% of travellers across the globe rely on their phone to conduct business.

The CWT survey looked at travel habits of corporate travellers around the globe. Survey data was collected from more than 1,900 business travellers who made more than four business trips within the past 12 months. Respondents hailed from Canada and the U.S. as well as select markets in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) South America and Asia/Pacific (APAC).

Drilling down specifically to the Canadian data, Canadian respondents said they’re committed to business trips for several main reasons: to attend conferences or industry events (57%); to do presentations or meetings that need to be done in person (48%); and to meet and work with clients (47%).
Here are some of the study’s findings:

• Close to 9 out of 10 business travellers (88%) say they believe travel is easier to navigate today. This has led a significant majority (78%) to seek opportunities to travel for work and nearly as many find business travel to be stimulating (72%).
• More than half (55%) of travellers rely on prior travel experience while planning trips, in addition to hotel websites (54%) and airline websites (50%). Airline and hotel apps make up the bulk of app usage for travellers (45%) while map apps also see heavy use (41%).
• Nearly 9 in 10 business travelers (86%) said travel helped them build new knowledge and perspective, while 80% said business travel boosted their productivity. More than 9 out of 10 (93%) also said that travel positives outweighed negatives when it comes to building and maintaining relationships at work, while nearly 8 in 10 (77%) say the same about their home lives.

“The business traveller can be so much more productive than even five years ago thanks to technology,” said Simon Nowroz, Chief Marketing Officer, Carlson Wagonlit Travel. “Think about the advances where a business traveller used to have so much down time between a flight, taxi and hotel. Now they can login and work while on the plane or wherever they happen to be. With the continued emergence of the tablet, as well as numerous apps, travellers don’t feel out of touch as they carry out business.”

Business travelers did have two key areas of concern. Two-thirds (67%) of travellers said they believe travel is safer today. However nearly half (46%) remain concerned about their safety. This has led more travelers (68%) to “sometimes or always” purchase travel insurance.

Business travellers say they also have difficulties maintaining routines and wellness. More than half of travellers (54%) say that their exercise and wellness habits are disrupted when they travel.

According to the study, as travelers connect with co-workers or family, they often use different methods. With family or friends, travelers chose calling (44%), Skype (24%) and text (17%) as their preferred communication methods. However, they connect with co-workers differently: email (44%), calling (24%) and texting (14%).

When it comes to personal relationships, around a quarter of travellers from the Americas felt that travel strained their relationship with their spouse or significant other (27%), more than their EMEA and APAC counterparts (22%). This is likely the reason that travelers in the Americas tried significantly harder to stay connected with family (50%) than APAC (31%) and EMEA (27%) travelers.

APAC travelers were more likely to miss important events – with more than half (51%) missing at least two social events or occasions within the past 12 months compared to EMEA (44%) or Americas (42%) travellers.

“There are many variables that can make a business trip a success or a failure in the eyes of the traveler,” said Nowroz. “The easier we can make it for travellers to be organized, the more we help them have a better overall experience.”