travel - Blog - Global Risk Community2024-03-28T21:32:12Zhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/travelNain Holidays | Tour and Travel Company | Travel Agents in Delhihttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/nain-holidays-tour-and-travel-company-travel-agents-in-delhi2019-06-09T15:37:22.000Z2019-06-09T15:37:22.000ZNain Holidayshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/NainHolidays<div><p><a href="https://www.nainholidays.in/">Nain Holidays</a> is a complete Travel Company located at New Delhi having a team who ensures with their knowledge & experience, to make each and every trip memorable for our esteemed guests. We helps you in planning the best holiday & well knowledgeable to customize the program, you would feel very comfortable while be dealing with us. We are located in New Delhi and well connected with all the cities of India through our strong network of associates in different cities.</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028289891,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028289891,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-center" alt="8028289891?profile=original" /></a></p><p>International travel destinations are becoming very popular among tourist in India. Holiday destinations in Asia include Dubai, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Hong Kong, Maldives, Bhutan, Nepal, Singapore and Thailand. Tourist can explore a wide variety of tourist attractions in these destinations from beaches, monuments, wildlife, amusement park, nightlife, hill stations, mountains, and pilgrimage sites. You also get a chance to experience the culture and daily lifestyle of people living in these amazing places. Some of these places offer great shopping experience like Dubai and Singapore. Pick any destination from Southeast Asia to Europe, depending on your reason to travel. Our International tour packages cover the best of travel destinations across the globe. So planning for a vacation abroad, explore this wonderful holiday options.</p><p>We fully understand that your satisfaction is our key to success and thus keep on striving to add up some of the undiscovered destinations that you can head on to and take a break from your monotonous life. Our transparent business policies and fair dealings ensure full customer satisfaction. Furthermore, each of the offered tour packages is 100% reliable and credible and thus ensures your satisfaction at each and every step.</p><p>With us, each of the getaways will be a lifetime experience that you will relish for the rest of the time of your life!!</p><p></p><p><strong>We Offer Following Services: </strong></p><ul><li>Hotel bookings (DOMESTIC AND INTERNATIONAL)</li><li>Flight bookings (Including low cost carriers)</li><li>Family Holiday Packages</li><li>Honeymoon Packages</li><li>High Altitude Trekking & Expeditions</li><li>Corporate & Group Program</li><li>Train Booking</li><li>Tailor made tour package in entire India / Thailand / Malaysia / Singapore / Sri Lanka / Maldives etc</li><li>Visa</li><li>Travel Insurance</li></ul><p></p><p><strong>Value for Time and Money:</strong><br /> We organize your tour by providing correct information and by suggesting the popular destinations you should visit during your trip within India and Abroad. Also, we make sure that you get true value for your time and money because we understand how important vacations are to you.</p><p><strong>Quick Response:</strong><br /> Think of planning your holiday with us and we-the reliable India travel agency will make it possible by responding to your queries promptly. Contact us any time and we will revert back to you with the best possible answer within 24 hours. This will help you to book your flights on time and land in India on desired date.</p><p><strong>Incredible India:</strong><br /> “Atithi Devo Bhava”,is a social awareness campaign that aimed at providing the inbound tourist a greater sense of being welcomed to the country. India attracts millions of tourists each year. Indian states are famous for its unique traditions, culture, festivals, cuisines , architecture etc.<br /> <br /> Our team of adept professionals strives to offer you the best suited tour packages for all your travel needs and requirements. The entire range is also offered in customization with your specifications to make sure each of your travel dreams is accomplished. Moreover, our tour experts keep in touch with you throughout your sojourn to make sure that you bask an experience like never before with us.</p></div>India Tour & Travel Packages 2019-2020 - Trip Inventorhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/india-tour-amp-travel-packages-2019-2020-trip-inventor2019-02-16T15:06:31.000Z2019-02-16T15:06:31.000ZTrip Inventorhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TripInventor<div><p><strong>Experience colours and spice: Highlights of India</strong></p><p>Welcome to a soulful experience of vacationing in India, the cradle of ancient civilization with rich cultural heritage. Experience the sights and sounds of its amazing diversity that is embedded in its geography, people and their cultures. Explore the gifts of nature and the timeless marks of man-kind that dot the landscape of this country.</p><p><br /> <a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028279896,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028279896,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-full" alt="8028279896?profile=original" /></a><br /> Cool hill stations, wild life, adventure spots and beaches provide one of the best vacations that you would have anywhere in the world. Priceless treasures of ancient civilization in the form of ruins and excavations, the tall standing structures of the medieval times reflecting the splendor, art and architecture of times gone by and the achievements of modern India, all beckon you to explore them further and satisfy your curiosity. Notice the changes in elements of culture of its regions such as the folklore, music, dance forms, dress and decoration forms, languages, dialects as well as foods and drinks as you crisscross the length and breadth of the country.</p><p>Dressed down in saffron, white, and orange, flowing with the love of its natives and travelers, there is nothing quite like India. With just one touch on the rich soil, a certain sense of belonging is felt on an <a href="https://www.blogger.com/">India tour</a>.</p><p>While some love the rush of its snake-like lanes, where the aroma of cutting chai, and spices keep on pulling, others fall deep in the ocean of monuments. There are a few who think there is nothing better than the village life others can't survive a day without the luxuries of the modern city. There is no perfect way to relish what the nation holds in its four directions, but an India travel guide can make things easy.</p><p><br /> <a href="https://www.tripinventor.in/">Trip Inventor</a> takes you to this amazing learning, rejuvenating and joyous journey through its varied Holiday Packages. </p><p>India is a land of fascinating culture and diverse landscapes, and hordes of globetrotters come to soak in its majestic charm. Its long history, which dates back to thousands of years, is another thing that draws many people. Tourists looking to explore India are showered with various options, as there are infinite tourist destinations in India that they can visit.</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028280489,original{{/staticFileLink}}" target="_blank"><img src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028280489,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-full" alt="8028280489?profile=original" /></a></p><p><br /> If you are an adventure lover, you can go for <a href="https://www.tripinventor.in/special-interest-tours.html">trekking or mountaineering</a> in the north, and if you fancy <a href="https://www.tripinventor.in/india-beach-tour-packages.html">beaches</a>, then the southern and western part of this country awaits you. Also, you can find tremendous options to spend your honeymoon packages in India. Among all other destinations Goa is always all time favorite for tourists across the globe.</p><p>There are variety of options available for hotels in Goa from luxurious to affordable. India is also praised for its spiritual background, an aspect that people love to explore. To cater to them, Trip Inventor also offers numerous pilgrimage tour packages that take travellers to religious places like Haridwar, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Rishikesh and Tripura.<br /> <br /> If you are a nature or wildlife enthusiast, you can look for tour packages that are centred around dense national parks and sanctuaries. Embark on a tour with Trip Inventor and enjoy an enthralling, exciting journey that will stay in your memory for life.</p><p>India is the land of vibrant colours, life and culture. The diversity of the country is portrayed in every human, land and also its cuisine. It is aptly said that, everything we really wanted was always there right in front of our eyes and we failed to see it. That is exactly the case for most travellers in India. We at, Trip Inventor, handcraft our India travel packages with most remarkable locations that lie in every corner of India. And if you are looking for tips on where to start, explore our India tour packages for best options! </p><p>Traverse through the country and know the land’s true and raw nature; be surprised with the inherent, divine beauty of the realm. With the perfect match for your choices among the holiday packages in India, breathe the beauty of untapped incredible India! India’s lavish natural beauties are dramatically the ones which carved its history. A country with ample of UNESCO world heritage sites, eloquent coastlines & beaches, royal palaces, ancient caves and temples, glaring deserts, the land of Himalayas and the list goes on. For a country so huge and with so much to offer we have passion in abundance and unrivalled knowledge to present you the perfect Indian vacation.</p><p style="font-weight:400;"><strong>Trip Inventor - Tour and Travel Company</strong></p><p style="font-weight:400;"><strong>Phone No</strong>: +91-73038-37333 | <strong>E-mail</strong>: <a href="mailto:info@tripinventor.in">info@tripinventor.in</a> </p><p style="font-weight:400;">2/12, Mall Road, Tilak Nagar, Near Singlas Restuarant, New Delhi - 110018 (INDIA)</p><p>Website : <a href="https://www.tripinventor.in/">www.tripinventor.in</a></p></div>Personal Journey Risk Assessmentshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/personal-journey-risk-assessments2014-05-22T04:32:35.000Z2014-05-22T04:32:35.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p>The new personal, tailored Journey Risk Assessments and Travel Risk Assessments are live</p><p><a href="http://http//intelligenttravel.com.au/services-and-solutions/journey-travel-risk-assessments" target="_blank">Journey and Travel Risk Assessments.</a></p><p><iframe width="640" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/OHBDh83hByo?wmode=opaque" frameborder="0"></iframe></p></div>70 Travel Risk Management Safety and Security Tips [Video]https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video2013-01-17T20:30:00.000Z2013-01-17T20:30:00.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p style="text-align:center;"><span style="color:#000080;"><strong>70 Travel Risk Management Safety and Security Tips [Video]</strong></span></p><p><a href="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/videos/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video" target="_blank"><img src="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Travel-Risk-Management-Safety-and-Security-Tips.Image_.Tony-Ridley.95.png?width=400" width="400" class="align-center" alt="Travel-Risk-Management-Safety-and-Security-Tips.Image_.Tony-Ridley.95.png?width=400" /></a></p><p></p><p>All travel should be considered hazardous, until proven otherwise. This <a href="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/videos/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video" target="_blank">70 travel risk management video</a> set provides professional tips and advice on how to manage the threats and hazards of travel.</p><p>Ranging from the administrative processes to extreme events such as natural disasters each video is a short 2-5 minute education tutorial that will assist in reducing the risk of travel, anywhere you travel.</p><p>You will receive a unique, informative video each day in your inbox. Just like having a professional chat or mentoring session each day over coffee.</p><p><strong><a href="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/videos/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video" target="_blank">Click Here</a></strong></p><p>The education tips and tutorials will include:</p><div style="margin-left:2em;" class="custom blue-check-4"><ul><li>Health and safety advice</li><li>Security and risk management strategies</li><li>Personal travel tips</li><li>Systems and procedures</li><li>Executive protection</li><li>Cost efficiencies</li><li>Emergencies and priority travel incidents</li><li>Travel management enhancements</li><li>Business and leisure travel threats and hazards</li><li>Human resources optimisation</li><li>Hotels, airlines and public transport</li><li>Travel insurance</li><li>Location information and intelligence</li><li>Membership and subscription services</li><li>Hazard identification and countermeasures</li></ul></div><p><strong><a href="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/videos/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video" target="_blank">Click Here</a></strong></p><p><a href="http://travelriskmanagementsolutions.com/videos/70-travel-risk-management-safety-and-security-tips-video" target="_blank"> </a></p></div>Why the London riots created a greater business travel threat than a terrorist attackhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/why-the-london-riots-created-a-greater-business-travel-threat2011-08-11T14:57:07.000Z2011-08-11T14:57:07.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p><b>Why the London riots created a greater business travel threat than a terrorist attack</b></p><p> </p><p><b>Introduction to the London riots business travel threat</b></p><p>If you have business travel to London, you need to read this article. In this article you will discover why the London riots created a greater business travel threat than a terrorist attack. We will examine the threat posed by the London riots and demonstrations, terrorist attacks and resulting travel delays, disruptions and changes. At the end of this article, you will have a specific understanding of the required business travel management response and awareness as to why this will happen again.</p><p>The <b>London riots</b> and demonstrations has resulted in one of the largest business travel disruptions of 2011.</p><p><b>London Riots and Demonstrations</b></p><p> </p><p>The London riots and demonstrations have come as a complete surprise to many. It is not a unique event and certainly not unique to the UK. The scale, violence, fire and failure of the authorities is often something expected in other countries but the lack of preparedness for destinations like the UK is common and widespread. Therefore, the lack of preparedness and last minute scramble to respond and the inability to avoid major business travel disruptions are widespread as a result.</p><p>Due to the footprint of disruption, many routes and modes of transport have been negatively affected. Simple commute from the airport, trains and ports to planned accommodation options have been altered and continuous review of hazard or threat assessment are required. Furthermore, travel support providers such as taxis, hotels, restaurants, emergency services an other basic amenities have also been affected, to varying degrees.</p><p><b>Travel and risk managers need to immediately identify:</b></p><p> </p><p>London Riots Business Travel Threat</p><ul><li>Affected areas,</li><li>Degree of threat,</li><li>Affected and exposed (inbound and outbound) business travellers,</li><li>Arrival/departure points,</li><li>Safe and non-affected areas,</li><li>Mitigation or eradication options,</li><li>Cost of implementation,</li><li>Funds available,</li><li>Emergency support,</li><li>Accommodation options,</li><li>On-going or developing events,</li><li>Social or non-business activity,</li><li>Insurance claims and compliance requirements,</li><li>Cancellation criteria,</li><li>Resumption of travel criteria,</li><li>Extended event plans,</li><li>Travel alternatives (domestic and international)</li></ul><p> <a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/London-riots.travel-risk-management.Tony-Ridley.jpg"><img class="align-right" src="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/London-riots.travel-risk-management.Tony-Ridley.jpg" alt="London-riots.travel-risk-management.Tony-Ridley.jpg" /></a></p><p>The London riots have affected multiple support systems related to business and leisure travel. Any leisure travel disruptions will further compound business travel threats such as decreased accommodation options, airport congestion and increased public transport demand. Even simple actions like withdrawing money from an ATM will prove a challenge and compound the hazard/s.</p><p>The London riots have had a prolonged affect on UK business travel sector, far greater than the majority of terrorist attacks. Further affects such as planning and preparation for the 2012 Olympics will also contribute to the lingering affects.</p><p>A lack of planning and subsequent response capability by businesses could constitute a failure of duty of care, due diligence, corporate social responsibility, workplace health and safety or other related legislation.</p><p><b>Terrorist attacks less of a business travel threat than London riots</b></p><p>With the exception of the Mumbai terrorist attacks, most have limited business travel disruption and only affect a narrow band of business travellers. Inclusive of the Mumbai terror attack, terrorist attacks typically have clearly defined threat elements (terrorist, bombings, gunfire, etc) whereas the London riots is a constantly changing and unclear threat. Most business travellers will be unprepared for such decision making demands and lack sufficient experience to make consistent and safe decisions.</p><p>Most contemporary business travel risk management systems focus on location and plausible event threats, then seek to inform or prepare travellers for the best results to mitigate or eliminate the hazards and threats. Therefore, the bulk of business travellers will not be prepared or educated on how to respond in London, with such wide spread disruption and threats. Few will have residual knowledge from information and preparation for such events in other locations, considered more likely to be medium to high risk. Many of the supporting business travel management departments and managers will be equally unprepared and resourced.</p><p>A terrorist attack and other similar violent crimes would have a much smaller footprint of disruption, not affected such a wide business travel demographic, not affect business travel support providers so comprehensively or have such a prolonged impact on all exposed.</p><p>Routine travel delays, disruptions and changes represent one of the most persistent and probable travel risk management issues.</p><p><b>Travel delay, disruption and changes</b></p><p>Change management and the decision making involved is one of the most commonly accepted workplace hazard concerns. This is equally relevant to business travel and business travel threats.</p><p>The instinctive and guided response of business travellers to any delay, disruption or change can significantly affect the outcome of any spontaneous or new hazard as it presents. Particularly when this is the first level of response, before support options and resources can be activated or come into affect.</p><p>Travel delays have been triggered due to airport and airline workers unable to get to work, taxi drivers not able to refuel vehicles, hotels and staff overwhelmed, business travellers unprepared and convergence of business and leisure travellers upon all available exit travel nodes.</p><p>Access to information, at all levels, the ability to consume and process all the options and explore alternatives is imperative in this and similar travel disruption events. Crisis leadership will succeed more frequently than simple crisis management, to which are dependent upon timely and accurate information from all available resources.</p><p>Unfortunately, many will fail to fully understand the gravity of the events, the threats posed and respond or prepare accordingly. While many others exposed will chalk it up to another force majeure or random act that is just part of the rich experience of international travel. Courts, business travellers and peer review increasingly do not share this flippant view.</p><p>This scenario and lack of preparedness has been played out numerous times in recent history. Volcanos, volcanic ash affects, Japan’s tsunami, airport closures, airline failure and many others have caught business travellers and managers alike unprepared. This disturbing trend will continue.</p><p><b>Conclusion: London riots business travel threat</b></p><p> </p><p>You should now see why the London riots have a far greater impact and threat to business travellers than you may have originally thought. We have examined the business travel threat posed by the London riots, terrorist attacks and resulting travel delays. You now have a specific plan for this and similar events and the required business travel management and response. This will happen again. Perhaps not in London, perhaps not a city wide demonstration but this kind and scale of business travel disruption event will happen more than once before the end of 2011. Review your plan and make the necessary enhancements now.</p><p>Why the London riots created a greater business travel threat than a terrorist attack</p><p><a href="http://tony-ridley.com/">Tony Ridley</a></p></div>How the killing of Osama Bin Laden will affect business travelhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/how-the-killing-of-osama-bin2011-06-02T14:33:20.000Z2011-06-02T14:33:20.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p><b>Introduction</b></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>The death of Osama Bin Laden does not conclude the global threat of terrorism but in many instances it will trigger a new wave or business travel threats. If you want to know more on how the killing of Osama Bin Laden will affect business travel then you need to read this article. This article will identify the major delays, disruptions, risks and threats to business travel as a result of this high profile leader’s death. By the end of the article you will know the key issues affecting business travel as a result and be able to identify the primary areas for travel planning and risk management focus. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>Bin Laden’s Death</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>The death of Osama will no more signal the collapse and conclusion of global terrorist events than if the CEO or chairman of a major multi-national were to die also. Global and local terrorism threats are made up of networks, many redundant and independent of any one single point of leadership. Standing Armies, Air Forces and Navies are also constructed along such lines. Would the death of a General bring an Army to a halt? Not likely. Therefore, while being a major news and emotional event for many it will have little to no effect on the command and control of sympathetic terrorist groups. It will embolden some to act, rally to the cause and even further elevate Bin Laden as an icon for their actions, much the same as Che Guevara has evolved as the face of freedom fighters the world over. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>Terrorism</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>Terrorism remains a minor threat to business travel based on the volume of travel and those affected. The responsibility and duty to combat such a threat still remains within the government realm and not that of corporate entities although they do need to be aware of developments and capabilities for local governments to combat or prevent attacks to ensure their travellers do not become targets or affected. Business travellers will still be more likely to be affected by delays, disruptions and threats from more routine and frequent issues such as motor vehicle accidents, illness, airline disputes and bad weather. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>The Real Threat to Business Travel</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>The real threat to business travellers in the wake of the death of Bin Laden will be the subsequent response by the global aviation security and government intelligence agencies. Most will view this result as a success but also be immediately focused on the potential for reprisal. Many individuals and groups are already in the advanced stages of planned attacks but others may rush to action and attack in support of Al Qaeda or Islamic extremists. Their single-minded attention on these issues will result in greater inconsistencies, delays and threats to business travellers. </span></p><p> </p><p><span><br /></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>Airport Security</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>Airports will become even more unpredictable as to what and how security measures are implemented and changes are all but guaranteed. These changes will further disrupt the efficiency and flow of check-in, boarding, screening, arrivals and departures. However, the effects and approach will not be universal nor predictable to the average traveller and delays, disruptions and missed flights will results and further impact the effectiveness and efficiency of business travel. Company risk and security managers may also be on a hair-trigger and cease, suspend or defer business travel until they get “more information” on the situation, further compounding the issue. If history is any indication, any minor or major incident in the coming weeks and months will result in knee-jerk security treatment solutions that impact more travellers than it prevents terrorists. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>Affected Demographics</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>Profiling and heightened security measures will be applied to specific ethnic groups, nationalities and those traveling through identified travel corridors. Once again this will be inaccurate, inconsistent and opaque to the majority of travellers who will suffer the wider effects and possibly even personal effects of such changes. Those traveling from the Middle East, of Pakistani ethnicity, Muslims, single males, those with beards, women in burkas, travellers with no check-in luggage, those paying by cash or even those that “act funny” at the airport will all draw the attention of someone who is looking at reasons why someone poses a threat or could jeopardize air safety and security, therefore requires interception. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span><b>Conclusion</b></span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>The world is no safer or riskier than it was the day before Osama Bin Laden was killed. The subsequent actions and reactions following his death however will impact the landscape in which business travellers journey through. Hopefully it will be short-term but should we see the slightest hint of threat or reports from the government agencies then we are all likely to be subjected to greater delay, disruption and risk due to this relatively low level threat. Osama’s death will not signify the end of terrorism, business travellers need to remember there is continued and greater threat from the more routine, airport security will have it’s ups and down in the coming weeks/months and the color of your skin, accent, religion and point of origin will all play a role on how you are viewed by the various security agencies. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><p><span>While this event should not have had any major impact upon business travel, in reality it will. Now you know what the real threats are, you should prepare yourself and your travellers for the road ahead to ensure they continue to remain productive, efficient and safe during the course of their various business travel demands. </span></p><p><span> </span></p><a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/">Tony Ridley</a></div>Travel Risk Management: How Accurate Are Travel Risk Ratings and Levels?https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/travel-risk-management-how2011-03-27T08:39:46.000Z2011-03-27T08:39:46.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><h1>Beware the Fine Print</h1><p><strong>Introduction</strong></p><p>If like most, you base your overall assessment of a country or city based on some-kind of threat rating then you need to read this article before blindly basing all your business decisions upon such tools.</p><p>This article will address the development and reporting of security or travel safety threats and how they are communicated. Specifically, the collection of data, affected audience demographics, aggregated indicators, qualifiers and the real threats revealed.</p><p>By the end of this article you will have immediate knowledge that can be applied to your current risk analysis methods, tools and services to ensure a more accurate and relevant approach for your business needs.</p><p><strong>Data</strong></p><p>True analysis is based upon and supported by demonstrable facts. While a derived assessment may be a combination of multiple factors, the baseline factors remain constant.<a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Pattaya-travel-threat-elements.png"><img class="align-right" width="505" src="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Pattaya-travel-threat-elements.png?width=505" alt="Pattaya-travel-threat-elements.png?width=505" /></a></p><p>These facts must be relevant to the business and the affected assets and not a standardized collection of threat topics representing the mean average of the world’s problems.</p><p>This data must also be reported in support of the final threat/risk analysis. Rarely do end users ever see or are offered these facts but they provide greater insight into the effectiveness of the final number or score and often highlight weaknesses with the assessment process. Possibly the reason they are rarely released.</p><p>Data such as accidents per capita, delays per route, illnesses per demographics, victims of localized crime, total loss per event and time loss per disruption are all key requirements to any travel threat spectrum.</p><p>The data alone is insufficient unless related directly to the audience in which the analysis is created for or those directly affected. Local inhabitants and their risk categories are seldom shared by that of travellers, expats and other visitors to a location.</p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong> </strong></p><p><strong>Audience</strong></p><p>If your intention or requirement is to present an accurate index of threats or risks for travellers, then your data must show an index or scale as to how/how much they are affected.</p><p>While these groups may have further diversify, it must exclusively show the threat and impact as it relates to that demographic and that demographic alone, in all sectors.</p><p>High cholesterol may be a national issue but will it have any great affect on travellers to that location? Hotel incidents may not make local newspapers but have a significant impact upon travellers and visitors to the area. Terrorism kills thousands of people every year but only a handful of travellers are ever affected, often indirectly. The Mumbai attack was far less successful than many other terrorist attacks in the country but because so many foreigners were affected, it had a far greater audience and “news worthiness” to the event.</p><p>Natural disasters have a much greater impact on local residents but the loss or disruption to airports, roads, accommodation and public utilities affects everyone, with the potential for greater threat to visitors and travellers.</p><p>Final risk levels are only useful as a final comparison between multiple locations. Risk levels can only be really effective if displayed in conjunction with the key element/factors that created the final assessment/index.</p><p><strong>Aggregated Indicators</strong></p><p>Indicators will always need to be collated or compared, or the task and reporting would become too onerous and lengthy with the end result that no one would bother to read them.<a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Chiang-Mai.png"><img class="align-right" width="442" src="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Chiang-Mai.png?width=442" alt="Chiang-Mai.png?width=442" /></a></p><p>Final aggregated indicators are tolerable in measured doses to mass audiences that have little decision making power. However, businesses and business leaders need more than just a final “score”.</p><p>The indicators must be based on fact (even if used in conjunction with “experience based evaluations”) and specific to the primary audience. Anything less is next to useless. If you have system or a service that can’t or won’t display/disclose such indicators, you need to reconsider the contribution and service immediately.</p><p><strong>Real threats</strong></p><p>Most “travel threat ratings” fail to demonstrate greatest areas of risk and only display the final tally.</p><p>The most effective and useful systems mirror mainstream business assessments with measurements/results focused on plausible outage times or percentages.</p><p>Most threats result in loss of productivity, delays, disruptions or other efficiencies surrounding travel. Because analysis rarely has the capacity to understand or measure this niche, coupled with the fact that few companies are really aware of the cost of such events on a regular basis, much of the value associated with travel risk ratings is lost.</p><p>Events and incidents that exclusively affect travellers, expats and visitors such as motor vehicle accidents, illness, sickness, bad water, petty crimes, loss, damage and life safety and security issues constitute a far greater threat to business, even if their ratings don’t indicate it.</p><p>The frequency of updates and the replaceable methodologies employed create a threat in their own right. Traveller threats may be cyclic, annual, persistent or isolated in duration but the systems and processes in which they are measured or reviewed are often lengthy and bureaucratic which may only be updated periodically.</p><p><strong>Conclusion</strong></p><p>Any type of rating or threat analysis is immensely helpful but any “black box” calculation should be questioned. The data that went into the final analysis and rating can be just as important, if not more so, than just the final index, percentage or level.</p><p>Now that you understand the differences and weaknesses in many systems, in particular issues around data, audience, indicators and threats you can immediately review or assess your current methods.</p><p>Look at the information you have collected or the services you are provided and question whether the results are really relevant to travellers, are they updated very frequently, are the pertinent to your business or are they even pertinent to your location of travel?</p><p>Removing the veil associated with much of the analysis is the only way to improve the final results and add greater value to your company with an effective, targeted travel risk management strategy supported by effective and reliable tools.</p><p><a href="http://tony-ridley.com/">Tony Ridley</a></p></div>Travel Risk Management: Are you ready for a crisis?https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/travel-risk-management-are-you2011-03-11T20:27:58.000Z2011-03-11T20:27:58.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><h1><span class="font-size-7"><strong><span style="font-size:13px;">Managing Business Travel Risks and Crisis</span></strong></span></h1><h2>Introduction</h2><p>If you know that business travel is not without its risk and the potential for crisis, then you need to read this article.<a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/build_puzzle_bridge_pc_400_clr-300x182.png"><img class="align-right" width="300" src="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/build_puzzle_bridge_pc_400_clr-300x182.png?width=300" alt="build_puzzle_bridge_pc_400_clr-300x182.png?width=300" /></a></p><p><br />In this article we are going to talk about the management and containment of crisis as it relates to travellers and travel managers.<br />The objective of this article is to share with you the collective knowledge on managing crisis and significantly improve your ability to identify and manage a crisis but also improve your business travel efficiency.<br />The first thing we should cover, who is Tony Ridley?<br />Well I have directed and managed numerous critical events for companies such as the Bali bombings, Mumbai terror attacks, Sichuan quake and Thailand airport closure. I have multiple articles published on the subject of travel risk management and I’m a regular presenter on the issue.</p><p> </p><p>During this article I am going to discuss travel risk myths, crisis management, plans and options so you can immediately compare or improve your own travel risk management system for your travellers or travel management department.</p><p>Crisis by definition is something you didn’t have a plan for or something in which you are unprepared. Additionally, it can be a series of events that in concert create a crisis.</p><p>Events or issues that occur, to which you have a plan and strategy, is merely an incident.</p><h2>Crisis Management/Leadership</h2><p>The first thing is to clarify what is the difference between crisis management and leadership. More importantly, which one is the more important?<br />Crisis management relates to the response to event/s that threaten your business, travellers or travel activity. The event leads and you follow with plans, decisions and actions.<br />Crisis leadership, on the other hand, is more about getting ahead of the events and issues to prevent, management and even contain the impact to your business or business travel activities. While management is a portion of the leadership demand, your actions and involvement lead the outcomes rather than a more passive wait and act approach with pure crisis management.<br />Crisis leadership is the less practiced of the two, but the most significant in terms of results and reduction in risk and impact.<br />If you take nothing else away from this session, it should be that your focus should always be on Crisis Leadership, not crisis management.</p><p><br /><span class="font-size-6"><strong>Myths</strong></span></p><p><br />There are many myths and half-truths about crisis, disruption and threats within the travel management sector. Much of this misinformation has originated from travellers themselves, media, travel managers, friends and family or so called “experts”.</p><p><br />For example, many travellers and planners are focused on terrorism. The reality is, you have a very, very small chance of being exposed or affected directly by a terrorist act. It doesn’t mean you should discount it as a threat altogether but it shouldn’t dominate your plans or processes if not a proportional threat to you and your travellers. Conversely, almost everyone overlooks motor vehicle accidents. Yet, they happen far more frequently, can have devastating affect on travellers and are the least common plan contained within company travel management departments.</p><p><br />Travellers and travel managers must be prepared, educated and have supporting plans for any event that has the potential to delay, disrupt or harm the traveller or the business.<br />The most common events include:</p><ul><li>Motor vehicle accidents</li><li>Airline delays or cancellations</li><li>Airport closures or disruptions</li><li>Transport delays</li><li>Bad weather</li><li>Sickness and illness</li><li>Petty crimes</li><li>Hotel fires</li><li>Political disputes</li><li>Demonstrations and gatherings</li></ul><p><strong>Motor vehicle accidents</strong> within your own country can be stressful and dangerous but on an overseas business trip they can be 100 times more challenging and dangerous. Consider language, local authorities, first responder, standard of healthcare, families and support in your plans and initial response.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Airline delays and cancelations.</strong> They happen all the time but they are not just an administrative response. You may need to consider safety, transport, quarantines, security threats, government response and wide spread suspension of services to overcome the issue and maintain safety of your travellers.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Airport closures or disruptions</strong>. Failed systems, electrical problems, threats, weather, construction and so on can prevent you even getting to your flight. Consider the impact this has on your plans and how your traveller will need to possibly extend stay, move to alternate airport or find accommodation.<br />All other <strong>transport delays and disruptions</strong> can create crisis when everyone no longer has access to trains, buses, key roads or even water transport. Have a plan and add it to your immediate decision making process.</p><p> </p><p>2010 and the commencement of 2011 has seen travel of all kind affected by <strong>natural disasters and weather</strong>. Weather and natural forces have and always will impact travellers. It does and will continue to occur. It is highly concerning how unprepared travellers and companies are for volcanic eruptions, typhoons, floods, earthquakes and general bad weather.</p><p><br /><strong>People</strong> get sick or feel unwell all the time. This is compounded significantly when travelling. Standard of care, language, access, cost, complications, choice and numerous other location based concerns will determine just how at risk your traveller will be. A single, “one-size-fits-all” plan or solution will fail and you need to be aware of these issues immediately with the onset of an affected traveller.</p><p><br /><strong>Crimes</strong> are a reality of any city in the world. However, travellers seldom know the risks and may be preyed upon by thieves and criminals. The loss of phones, money, and other items may seem less likely to constitute a crisis but when overseas, injured or not able to speak the local language, all these simple events can create a major concern for your business travellers. This can be amplified if you have a senior executive or a group of executives affected.</p><p><br /><strong>Hotel fires</strong> and emergencies are more common than most people think. The immediate threat to an individual is fairly obvious but the impact that the lack of accommodation choices can create from the temporary or permanent closure of a hotel is a much bigger concern. This was graphically displayed during the Mumbai terror attacks (as extra ordinary as the event was) when most of the best/preferred hotels were now unavailable in a key part of the city. This removed thousands of rooms for business travellers and forced many to cancel or significantly alter travel plans just because there were a lack of suitable accommodation options, whether affected by the events or not.</p><p><br />Any event that alters the <strong>political stability</strong> of a location or region or results in thousands of people out on the streets constitutes a risk to your business travel plans and travellers. They can happen spontaneously or take time to develop. The immediate dangers and the ongoing disruption can have a major impact on your business or traveller. Again, plans, preparation and thought to these issues will greatly reduce the impact and improve your business too.</p><p><br />Now that we have removed the most common misconceptions, let’s focus on the management and containment of a crisis.</p><h2><strong>Crisis management</strong></h2><p>The key to successful crisis management is planning, training, plans, decision-making and adaptability.</p><h2>Planning</h2><p>Given the issues previously covered, you now have a better insight into how and why planning is important to remove the more emotive issues from the realities of real business threats and events.</p><p><br />Planning needs to include multiple departments and perspectives to be truly effective. One of the greatest weaknesses I see regularly is that departments continue to manage the risk of travel through multiple departments with multiple plans. The input and plan needs to be unified. Depending on the company, it may include travel managers, security, HR, finance, marketing, C-suite and operations.</p><p><br />All plans need to be continuously updated, location specific, aide in the decision-making process and modular enough have elements extracted quickly and effectively.</p><p><br />Modern, effective plans embrace technology. Rapid, efficient access to information, along with running updates is the hallmarks of a modern sustainable plan, regardless of the size of the issue or the company.</p><h2>Training</h2><p>No plan is effective without training and rehearsal. Training, whether through simulations, drills or live, full-scale exercises are vital to the success of any crisis situation. Such sessions don’t need to be boring or overly complicated but must include travel managers and planners along with the more common crisis and emergency managers.</p><p><br />Increasingly, training is becoming a mandatory requirement for key positions and roles. It can be linked to internal HR processes but must support the business objectives and measurable on how it reduces the risk to people, business, brand and travel demands.</p><p><br />While the plan creates the framework for crisis decision-making, teams can learn a lot from training on how and when to adapt their plans. How the team interacts, strength, weakness, leaders, followers, limitations, tools and many more planned and surprise outcomes are possible with effective training.</p><h2>Adaptations</h2><p>No plan will completely script all the events, issues and options available for every plausible travel delay, disruption or crisis. You need to be able to adapt and evolve from the original plan and intention. This can only be achieved with planning, plans and training.</p><h2>Solutions</h2><p>So what do I need in my plan? Here is the best travel risk management content for your plan:</p><p> </p><ul><li>Objective(the single most important part of any travel policy)</li><li>References</li><li>Scope</li><li>Legal</li><li>Insurance</li><li>Finance</li><li>Reimbursements</li><li>Limits</li><li>Priority/precedence</li><li>Management Authority/ies</li><li>Situations</li><li>Procedure will likely cover:</li><li>Planning Resources</li><li>Tools</li><li>Authority</li><li>Executive</li><li>Decision making</li><li>Limits</li><li>Budgets</li><li>Training</li><li>Compliance</li><li>Pre-trip admin</li><li>Providers</li><li>Booking</li><li>Accommodation</li><li>Airlines</li><li>Ground Transport</li><li>Safety and Security</li><li>Health and wellness</li><li>Emergency</li><li>SOP/Actions on</li><li>Insurance</li><li>Travel Monitoring /tracking</li><li>Reporting</li><li>HR</li><li>Entitlements</li><li>Threat/risk levels</li><li>Shelter in Place</li><li>Relocations/evacuations</li><li>Management Authority Review</li><li>Don’t forget your risk assessment will need to include the key elements:</li><li>Traveller Location</li><li>Activity</li><li>Support/Resources</li><li>Response</li></ul><h2>Conclusion</h2><p>There you have it. Now you know what is required, how do you rate your current plans and preparedness?<br />You now have the most relevant issues and areas to focus upon that will reduce or contain the majority of incidents you may face your travellers will be safer, your business more profitable and your costs will be contained by reducing your exposure to expensive crisis events.</p><p><br />We have debunked popular travel threat myths, identified the difference between crisis management and leadership, outlined plans and options so you can immediately compare or improve your own travel risk management system for your travellers or travel management department.<br />Review your plans and make the immediate improvements.</p><p><br />You will know when you have an effective crisis management system for your travel risk management strategy when you have little to no crisis. You may have numerous events or incidents but you have a plan, you’re prepared and your decision making is fast and consistent. If not, you have failed and you will run from crisis to crisis on a regular basis.</p><a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/">Tony Ridley</a></div>The truth about government travel advisories, warnings and alertshttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/the-truth-about-government2011-02-07T07:37:00.000Z2011-02-07T07:37:00.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><h1>The truth about government travel advisories, warnings and alerts</h1><p>If you’re like most people and you believe that government travel advisories, warning and alerts represent the most accurate advice for business travellers then you are terribly mistaken.</p><p> </p><p>Here are the key elements that all business travellers and travel managers need to know regarding the validity and application of government travel alerts and travel related advice. Knowing and understanding these few simple issues will save your company unnecessary travel delays and disruptions under almost any circumstance. The main points to always consider in the wake of a renewed or updated advisory, warning or alert is the target audience, specific government resources, commercial relevance and the avoidance of evacuation scenarios.<a href="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/travel_alert_red_button_800_clr-11.png"><img class="alignright size-medium wp-image-1474" title="Travel Alert, Travel Safe" src="http://tony-ridley.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/travel_alert_red_button_800_clr-11-300x262.png" width="300" height="262" alt="travel_alert_red_button_800_clr-11-300x262.png" /></a></p><p>The primary demographic for government advisories are first time travellers, backpackers, families and anyone else with little to no prior travelling experience and preparation or the lowest possible denominator. It is this group that governments aim their advice and analysis towards with the belief that if this group is adequately informed, then all remaining demographics will be covered. Unfortunately this results in an artificially low benchmark for all travellers not within this group.These other groups depend upon travel for business productivity, management and administration and the more likely to have their travel plans altered unnessesarily due to many government alerts. This is in part due to corporate risk avoidance (in the belief the government travel advisories are adequate) and insurance companies benchmarking many of their travel policy exclusions on that of government travel advice (again, in the belief the government are catering to their needs too). Unless you are a first time traveller, significantly inexperienced or lack appropriate business support while travelling, then the majority of government travel advice does not apply to you.</p><p> </p><p>Detailed examination of dedicated resources aimed at travel related advice and content typically reveals little more than a handful of “specific” resources. That is, someone or department dedicated solely to the collection, analysis and dissemination of commercially relevant travel advice. Most government resources are “shared” services when it comes to travel intelligence and advice with general non-government travel a very small increment of their overall mandate. Smaller countries have no dedicated resources and simply “share” the advice from coalition partners or more populace countries, further diluting the relevance to their citizens. Most continuous travel advisory services, provided by a government, are little more than a chronology of publicly available media updates. While resources are limited in the first instance, it is the lack of commercial experience that constitutes the greatest flaw to government travel advisories.</p><p> </p><p>What little resources there are that are aimed at travel intelligence typically lack any direct commercial experience. Therefore, all their apparent advice is predicated more on the interests of the government (resulting in censorship, omissions and politically correct publications) than that of any business sector or commercial demographic. When you have soldiers, government agents and police officers commenting on matters relating to commerce and business travel, you get little actionable advice due to their inability to put into commercial context the impact events may have from a purely commercial perspective rather than a transnational or political viewpoint.</p><p> </p><p>Behind closed doors, most governments admit they do not maintain nor posses the resources (assumed by most of their citizens) for large scale evacuations from any corner of the globe. Regrettably many travellers have grown to assume that complete failure to take responsibility for their own safety and security while travelling will always be compensated by the government’s ability to swoop in and save then if they should so choose. This is wrong and very dangerous for those with such a belief. For those governments that would even consider an evacuation of their nationals (not very many) they will often go to great lengths to advise their citizens to leave or make personal arrangements long before any government is forced into acting. Landing troops or foreign government elements in someone else’s country is always the choice of last resort and highly prone to complications, even if it were possible.</p><p> </p><p>Anything published by a government will always have the country’s national interests such as economy, trade and diplomatic relationships carefully considered before release. Anything that may threaten such strategic goals is likely to be withheld, including government travel advisories, warnings and alerts. Now that you understand the importance of being self sufficient and discerning when it comes to government travel advice you will waste less time placing priority on such updates and focus on more commercially relevant inputs. As a result, your company travel risk management process will be far more resilient and less impacted by the stop/start affect created by government updates, warnings and alerts. You may also now identify gaps that need to be filled by insufficient commercial content from government sources.</p><p> </p><p>Government travel advisories, warnings and alerts focus on the wrong target demographic, lack the appropriate resources, have little commercial relevance and seek to avoid last minute acts such as evacuations. Now that you too are aware of these limitations you should be better positioned to make business decisions in the wake of crisis, emergency and dynamic events that affect a location and your business travellers. Business travel risk management is a commercial process and can only be achieved with appropriate commercial products and services.</p><p> </p><p><a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/">Tony Ridley's Website</a></p></div>Is it safe to travel to Thailand in 2011? New annual reporthttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/is-it-safe-to-travel-to2011-01-26T08:13:04.000Z2011-01-26T08:13:04.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p>Are you wondering “<strong>How safe is it to travel to Thailand in 2011?</strong>“. So are many others. Find out here what the main travel safety and security issues will be for Thailand in 2011. You may be surprised as to what the <strong><span><span>REAL</span></span></strong>threats and issues are.</p><p> </p><p><a target="_blank" href="http://travelsafeadvicetothailand.com/reports/2011-2">Thailand Travel Safety and Security Report</a></p><p> </p><p></p><p> </p><h2><span>Remove the guess work or hesitation when considering travel to Thailand</span></h2><ul><li>No more fear and exaggerated reporting</li><li>No more waiting for the main news broadcasts</li><li>No more worried or confused managers and travellers</li><li>No more concerned family members</li><li>No more cancelled flights or delays because of what you “think” is going on</li><li>Ensure safe and effective travel to Thailand, all year around</li></ul><h2><span>Information on all the things that you need to know to make an informed decision</span></h2><ul><li>A single location to get or check the facts</li><li>Qualified and experienced experts to compare your opinion or ask advice</li><li>Continuous flow of information when about or currently travelling in Thailand</li><li>A range of choices to receive and contribute information with other travellers</li></ul><p> </p></div>Travel Alert-Travel Safe: 2011 Business Travel Threats (Online Seminar)https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/travel-alerttravel-safe-20112011-01-19T01:46:43.000Z2011-01-19T01:46:43.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p><i><b>"Travel Alert-Travel Safe"</b></i></p><p><br /></p><p>Click link below for information/access:</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://guestlistapp.com/events/42051" target="_blank">Travel Alert-Travel Safe: 2011 Business Travel Threats</a><br /></p><p>2010 was an eventful year for business travellers with new and varied events that caused delay, disruption and life safety concerns.<br /></p><p>Join our global travel safety and security expert as he discusses:</p><p><a href="{{#staticFileLink}}8028219486,original{{/staticFileLink}}"><img width="750" src="{{#staticFileLink}}8028219486,original{{/staticFileLink}}" class="align-left" alt="8028219486?profile=original" /></a></p><ul><li>Key travel threats for 2011</li><li>Industry and company trends</li><li>Tips for the year ahead</li><li>Questions from attendees</li></ul><p> </p><p><i><b>"Travel Alert-Travel Safe"</b></i></p><p><br /></p><p>Click link below for information/access:</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://guestlistapp.com/events/42051" target="_blank">Travel Alert-Travel Safe: 2011 Business Travel Threats</a><br /></p></div>Human Capital Risk Management-What’s Missing?https://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/human-capital-risk2010-12-28T22:34:05.000Z2010-12-28T22:34:05.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p><a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/category/articles/">Tony Ridley</a></p><p> </p><p></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">In spite of the considerable investment and development around the preservation of assets and the mitigation of risks across conventional corporate assets such as facilities, information, equipment and products, the same methodology and motivation remains far less advanced in regards to human capital.</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">Before any organization even explores risk management strategies for their human capital it is fundamentally important that they first determine the value at risk. Not only is it a case of valuing the contributions of the individual or groups of personnel but differentiating the value in which they contribute to the company, whether it be through the provision of specific skills and services or the commercial value they present the company. These distinctions also need to be made between job functions or management/executive levels. No two individuals are contributing to the company in the same manner, much less two diverse business functions. How many companies even know this definitive financial value of their people?</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">Following the basics of valuation, and any other unique considerations that the company may have (mobile work force, fixed laborers, knowledge capital, research and development) a unit cost can then be applied for prioritizing strategies or expenditure. For example, an individual that reflects a unit cost/investment per hour of $1 will be less likely to addressed as a priority when compared to an individually that presents a unit cost/investment per hour of $100. However, if there are significant numbers of the basic unit cost of $1 at risk, that group as a whole may be a greater priority than that of a single or limited $100 per unit cost individual.</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">Threats and residual risks associated with human capital are many and varied. Over time a detailed and thorough analysis can be conducted to determine the probability, velocity of onset and other governing factors that will provide a single or annual loss expectancy to the company. A single loss expectancy, such as death, may cost the company significantly more than just the forecast value identified in the first stages. Conversely, an annual loss expectancy, especially in light of the fact many companies are unable to even quantify this loss, may equate to millions of dollars in lost productivity, administrative burden or opportune costs.</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">To truly understand or appreciate the current or potential losses to a company through their human capital it is imperative to model the disruptions and time loss (inclusive of management and departmental support) to a cellular and group level. If someone falls ill, how long are they unproductive? What does it cost the company? Should the become a victim of crime or their business activity disrupted due to a natural disaster, what is the cost to the company? When applied to our entire human capital asset base, what is our single and annual loss expectancy?</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">“You can’t improve what you can’t measure” If you are making a truly informed decision on where your assets are distributed, you can then make informed decisions around strategies to preserve their value. You also enjoy the benefits of comparative investment/management. Most companies are surprised to discover that despite their commitment to their people, they actually devalue their contribution by not acknowledging them as an asset and preserving it accordingly. Are you one of those companies?</span></p><p style="padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:10px;padding-left:0px;margin:0px;"><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">Companies that have undertaken to approach the management of their human capital consistent with other corporate assets have found the process highly rewarding and very confronting. Conversely, those adverse to such strategies or behind the curve continue to loose more money than the cost of such preparation and mitigation. They too find over time that penny wise turned out to be pound foolish.</span></p><p></p></div>Ashes in our mouths-How a volcano shed light on the true state of affairs in corporate travel risk managementhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/profiles/blogs/ashes-in-our-mouthshow-a2010-12-28T22:28:01.000Z2010-12-28T22:28:01.000ZTony Ridleyhttps://globalriskcommunity.com/members/TonyRidley<div><p><a target="_blank" href="http://tony-ridley.com/2010/04/20/ashes-in-our-mouths-how-a-volcano-shed-light-on-the-true-state-of-affairs-in-corporate-travel-risk-management/">Tony Ridley</a></p><p> </p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;">Volcanos that erupt and disrupt the world’s travel plans don’t happen every day but travel disruptions and threats to travelers do. It often takes a dynamic or amplified event to display just how much planning and oversight goes into day-to-day risk management, in order to reveal just how ineffective the process may be overall.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Travel buyers have admitted that the volcano eruption in Iceland has taken a substantial bite out of their 2010 travel budget, if a new survey is to be believed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Polling its international members, the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) found that some 71% of global travel buyers said the disruption in Europe has resulted in a “substantial” economic hit on their travel spend for the year. Of this 71%, 36% percent described the unanticipated expenses as “severe”. An additional 21% indicated the hit was slight, while 8% reported being unaffected.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />“It is important to note that the financial factors of this crisis have a special significance in the light of the fragile global economic recovery for business in general and business travel in particular,” said ACTE president Richard Crum. “If even just 1% of the industry’s financial contribution to the global economy were affected, that would equate to roughly 4 billion euros.”<br />Crum added that travel managers have been preparing for contagion, pandemic, conflict, war, and earthquakes for years. For many travelers, that level of preparedness was reflected in their corporate response to the eruptions in Iceland. Forty-seven percent of companies responding to the ACTE survey had a plan in place to accommodate stranded travelers. Twenty-nine percent did not have a specific program for this crisis, but moved forward with implementing one cobbled from other crisis programs. Twenty-five percent believe this crisis is so extraordinary and rare, that no preparation could have dealt with these developments and have no immediate intentions to change their policies.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />The unanticipated expense of the crisis has already taken a big bite out of existing travel budgets for 2010, but survey respondents believe the crisis would not force the company to travel less in 2010 (76%). Twenty-two percent were unsure as the crisis is ongoing and 2% said yes.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Stories continue to emerge of how travelers and companies have been forced to sleep in airport terminals, pay thousands of dollars for taxi rides across countries or cancel major business activities, all the while suffering substantial productivity losses of some of their company’s most valuable human resource group. It is not acceptable that company travelers be subjected to the same limited response or emergency interventions as your everyday tourists, in the event of such wide spread disruptions. If you have been significantly affected, you have failed and your system just doesn’t work.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Poor surveillance of developing events, superficial plans and even less effective decision making methodologies reduce workable response options; if any exist after such systemic failure. Failure to identify and plan for whole-of-journey risk management leads to situations where your traveler/s is stranded in transit without a valid visa forcing them to sleep en mass in terminals with limited solutions. Similar oversights lead to false hopes that the situation will correct itself and “anytime soon” everything will be okay. After all this, if you believe that the overall situation will return to normal and you and your travelers will be on their way immediately after the airspace ban has been lifted, again; you’re in for a nasty shock.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Numerous managers and travelers now understand the various roles required to achieve productive, efficient and safe travel management. Your insurance company is more than capable, and perhaps willing, to process your claim for losses and expenditure incurred but you are still stuck at the airport without a workable solution and suffering a major loss in productivity for those that are typically within the top 20% of your human capital earning (compensation and business contribution) demographic. Your cheque will arrive in the mail and tangible loss/expenditure compensated. It still doesn’t get you from A to B or even via D. Your local office or contacts don’t possess the network or experience to manage your requirements, especially when the rest of the world is scrambling for the same resources. Those without wild stories of adventure to relate after this event are not inclusive of a well thought out plan and capacity to act. Those with a more boring story to tell but maintained productivity and contained costs, all the while preserving the safety of their people, have in their team brokers, insurance, travel management companies and assistance. Which is the smarter business option?</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />Total failure resulting in numerous stranded people are the result of high walled departments without collaboration. Lack of unification and leadership/ownership in the practice of travel risk management has lead to wide spread helplessness and stranding. If you have key executives traveling for leisure also affected that will prevent them returning to work as scheduled, you have yourself to blame and your appreciation has proven to be too shallow.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />This is not over. Hotels are likely to default on bookings for pending travel as they still haven’t been able to clear the backlog of stranded travelers. Ground transport will be stretched and prices will rise even further. Government departments will debate the options but essentially there is nothing you can do to influence their inconsistent influence. Airlines will be pressured into economic decisions long before safety data is consolidated or examined under normal parameters. The thousands of inbound and outbound travellers will take much longer than a few days to clear, not forgetting those adding to the mele than need/want to travel this week. Overtime payments, supplies of food and water to airports, cash reserves and transnational collaboration will all act upon the solutions and choices. It is one thing to read about this in the media but do you really have a handle on what is happening and how it affects you? Failure to do so will compound past mistakes too.</span></p><p><span style="font-family:Arial, Tahoma, Verdana;font-size:12px;color:#333333;line-height:16px;"><br />There was adequate warning that this event would have far reaching implications. The impact could be calculated. There was opportunity to implement plans or develop an effective solution to support the objective and effective, rehearsed management teams would have had sufficient time to assess the impact and act accordingly. The final impact was not fate but determined by everything you have done to date. You have been weighed, you have been measured; have you been found wanting?</span></p></div>