TMCs Raise Value Of Expertise In Response To Recession
BY DAVID MEYER
No one could have looked at he financial meltdown of 2008 and expected 2009
to be anything but a tough year
for travel management companies. Yet, while there were certainly moments when it appeared
that any sign of recovery could be
years away, it seems remarkable
now how well travel management
companies adapted to their customers’ needs and how quickly
the business now appears to be
recovering.
While it was horrendously
tough going, and many people lost
their jobs, the intense cost scru-
tiny of the past year-and-a-half
by senior management was an
opportunity for travel managers
and travel management compa-
nies to show the value of manag-
ing business travel. Reductions in
force by most businesses created
an environment in which more
companies outsourced
travel management op-
erations and took ad-
vantage of negotiating
expertise.
“Transactional volume was not
down that much compared to
dollar volume.”
enue and an 8. 6 percent drop in
transactions, many travel man-
agement companies reduced
headcount. Those reductions in
force largely were focused on the
point-of-sale agent, however, be-
cause account management and
The altering of the financial
foundation of the industry that
had almost every travel buyer re-
considering their contracts and
bid activity was greater and more
competitive than the industry has
Company
Ranking
2009 ARC
Air
Transactions
2009 U.S.
Non-ARC Air
Transactions
2009 ARC Air
Sales ($)
2009 U.S.
Non-ARC Air
Sales ($)
2008 ARC Air
Transactions
AAA Allied Group
Cincinnati, Ohio
Adelman Travel
Group
Milwaukee, Wis.
Adtrav Travel
Management
Birmingham, Ala.
American &
International
Travel Services
Memphis, Tenn.
Atlas Travel
Milford, Mass.
Azumano Travel
Portland, Ore.
Balboa Travel
San Diego, Calif.
19
125,386
11,180 53,522,888
3,319,913
134,441
8
289,597
53,000 150,513,137 22,000,000
346,223
7
215,614
ND 115,491,938
ND
290,918
31
47,532
7,652 22,491,640
2,690,528
49,387
16
132,195 12,981,916 70,614,411 12,981,916
122,980
15
134,843
11,770 60,548,270
3,816,082
185,226
23
83,302
46,801 60,131,262 14,970,241
2008 U.S
Non-ARC Air
Transactions
2008 ARC Air
Sales ($)
2008 U.S.
Non-ARC Air
Sales ($)
Primary GDS
And Of ’09
Worldwide
Transactions
3,479,886 Worldspan, 86
Affiliations
8,908 75,470,738
55,714 211,408,579 23,600,000 Sabre, 100
BCD Travel,
Virtuoso, AAA
Radius, Virtuoso
ND 115,015,338
ND ND
Radius, Signature
8,383 28,420,782
2,228,692 Worldspan, 100 BCD Travel, CBTG
8,082,744 77,502,105
7,964,857 Sabre, 100
BCD Travel
17,409 91,172,385
4,580,438 Galileo, 100
American Express
55,345 87,111,983 17,373,638
Amadeus/Sabre,
50
BCD Travel
