Top ways TMCs support women on business travel

June 5, 2025

What you’ll learn in this article:

How TMCs can provide in-depth travel advice on business trip destinations
Why updating traveller profiles with key information can enhance the experience for women on business travel
Why it’s important to work with partners on risk management

Are female employees receiving the support they need when travelling for business?

Women continue to be a growing demographic in the workplace. They also play a crucial role as business travellers, according to the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), shaping key trends and driving growth in important areas. Encouragingly, working with your travel management company (TMC) can add significant support to how your female employees experience business travel.

Here’s how:

Advice from experienced consultants

Part of working with an experienced TMC is that, during accommodation recces, they look beyond a hotel itself and consider the safety of the area in which it’s located. Furthermore, TMC teams are likely to have vetted accommodation for safety features, from double-locking doors to safe parking.

Reed & Mackay Managing Director Operations North America Isabel Torres believes that where a TMC can also add significant value is with its destination advice; from local dress code and whether women can move freely in that destination to whether it’s safe to take public transport.

“Our consultants are very proactive,” Torres says. “They’re trained to understand the nuances of both the geographic location and the demographic travelling there. We task our people to be accountable and entrepreneurial in their approaches with our clients. And, if they have to do more research about a destination, we give them that time and the tools to be able to do that.”

Clients have access to real-time traveller tracking, for added peace of mind

Traveller tracking adds a level of security

“Business traveller tracking is pivotal,” Reed & Mackay CEO UK, Europe & Global Events Julie Oliver says. “Clients have access to this in our technology, plus our in-house, 24/7 global Incident Management Unit provides an added layer of protection as it monitors incidents across numerous sources. We encourage all our travellers to sign up for these alerts.”

In addition, clients can find all the latest travel and health restrictions from around the world in our platform. For further peace of mind while on the move, clients can access all our systems to book, amend and approve travel plans, plus access real-time live schedules, via our mobile app.

“And our partnerships with risk management companies demonstrate our commitment to providing a supported, secure travel experience,” Oliver adds. “Duty of care is not gender specific but it’s about making sure all travellers – including females travelling alone – have access to 24-hour support and know who to call in an emergency.”

Trusted relationships with clients

Strong relationships between clients and TMCs can contribute to better support of female travellers, such as sharing updates on travellers’ preferences with consultants. If, for example, women on business travel trips now feel less tolerant of noise and chatter, they may want to request a quiet room away from hotel lifts. If wellness is crucial to the traveller, TMCs can look at whether the hotel has its own gym, are there routes females can go for a run safely, are hotels well educated on making women feel safe, with female-only floors and discreet check-in at reception etc.

“Client profiles can be updated with information that provides our consultants with the tools to support female travellers,” Reed & Mackay CEO Asia Pacific Jane Warren says. “Yet to provide our consultants with additional information this has to come from the client, to ensure duty of care. Then, we can work in partnership with suppliers to provide that extra layer of support.”

The education element

Reed & Mackay Spain Managing Director Paula Fuster agrees TMCs have long been key players in sharing knowledge of destination safety information to clients. There can be so much information online – which can, paradoxically, lead to misinformation – that having a TMC’s specialist knowledge available is an advantage, particularly to women on business travel trips.

Trip pre-planning can also make a lot of difference, Fuster adds. “Draw up a schedule of what you need to do from the moment you arrive at your destination to more easily plan your requirements,” Fuster advises. “Share your agenda and itinerary with people both at home and in your company and always leave an emergency contact number.”