The world is moving fast and is getting more complex continuously. This also applies to the daily life of business travellers. The Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have added to the challenges how to travel safely. Being on top of the relevant information proves to be very challenging at times given the myriad of sources and data. This challenge is highly relevant when planning business travels too. The employer has an obligation to protect its employees on their business trips. This obligation results from both a statutory duty of care which applies to all employers as well applicable standards such as ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) for stock-listed organisations.
Consequently, the importance of «travel security» and «travel risk management» (TRM) has increased continuously - not only for globally active large corporations but also for smaller and medium-sized companies. It does not matter whether the company has to manage 10 or 10,000 trips per year - if only one employee is affected, this can have a lasting negative impact on the organisation.
In the meantime, the International Standards Organisation (ISO) have taken up the topic too. The new ISO 31030 certification, published in September 2021, provides companies with information how to integrate a travel risk management system into their organisation and offers a standardised certification process as well as corresponding framework conditions and principles. As any ISO certification, the process requires a certain effort. However, for companies which are already familiar with the ISO methodology, the certification process should be achievable in an efficient manner.
With this series of articles, we would like to show you the way to integrate a TRM system along the ISO 31030 standard and complement this with our more than 10 years of experience on the topic of TRM. Over the coming months, we will introduce you to the topic of ISO 31030 in subsequent 6 chapters giving you a comprehensive overview of this new standard.
The storyline of the 6 topic chapters is as follows:
Who is Lexxton?
As a specialist in security and safety, Lexxton has been advising and training national and international companies on the subject of travel risk management for more than 10 years and, in addition to certification support, also offers digital solutions in the area of travel security.
Introduction to ISO 31030
Travel Risk Management (TRM) - ISO 31030 a new standard
Why the new ISO standard 31030?
The ISO standard for integrated travel risk management is about protecting the most valuable asset of your organisation: your employees.
Of course, you could procure and implement any TRM system with its own proprietary approach. However, in view of overall consistency and best practice benchmarks, it is advisable to work along the proven ISO methodology from a content point of view. This way, a subsequent ISO certification is a relatively small step.
What is it about?
Managing travel risk is part of any organisation's travel-related activities and should involve interaction with all stakeholders (travellers, supervisors, HR etc.). Travellers, whether at home or abroad, may be confronted with stressful situations with unfamiliar risk profiles.
Risk management, when travelling to a country where your organisation has no local base, requires more comprehensive controls than in places where risk profiles are well known and measures are already in place. A key success factor is to have timely and accurate information, analysis and advice in order to trigger immediate and effective travel alerts supporting your travellers pragmatically.
With the implementation of a TRM system according to ISO standard 31030, organisations can demonstrate that travel decisions are based on the organisation's ability to manage risks in a structured way with internal resources or with external support. To a large extent, this process can be automated with digital solutions.
How much effort does it take to implement a TRM?
If an organisation is contemplating to implement a TRM, the first step is to conduct an analysis of the organisation's risk profile so that the efforts are proportionate to the risk exposure.
The introduction of a TRM system can be realised in a very short time based on existing processes and documents. The detailed timeline is subject to the size and complexity of the organisation. Typically, a TRM can be established within 4-8 weeks once the decision to implement a TRM has been taken.
After the analysis and clarification of the target state, the following 3 steps should be addressed:
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Setting up of a Travel (Risk) Policy and process integration: The Travel (Risk) policy sets forth the applicable rules and principles in a clear and systematic manner. The process integration aims at putting these rules into the organisation's daily practice in a pragmatic way.
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Evaluating a digital mobility risk platform: Such platforms typcially encompass both situational awareness (what is happening where and where are my employees) as well as communication (alert my employees) functionalities.
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Defining and implementing the internal communication and training: Appropriate internal communication and training ensure that the organisation and its employees know the applicable rules as well as the platform as a supporting tool.
Outlook to Chapter 2:
Which factors can influence an organisations TRM programme objectives and stakeholders?
