GetThere Solution Helps Mid-Sized Companies Save Time and Money
SOUTHLAKE, TX – (Feb. 24, 2010) – GetThere(R) (http://www.getthere.com), the world’s leading travel and collaboration management solution, today formally launched a new packaged offering of collaboration options for growing North American companies with 500 to 5,000 employees and less than $5 million in annual travel expenses. In this fresh approach, GetThere combines travel, meeting and networking solutions – with options for expense management and consulting services – to meet the collaboration needs of mid-sized companies in a fast, easy and affordable way.
A Sabre Travel Network(R) business, GetThere is the recognized leader among large corporations, providing online solutions for the majority of America’s 100 largest corporate travel programs. Now GetThere has turned its leading software-as-a-service travel and collaboration solution into a package for growing mid-sized companies, with innovative pricing that facilitates a payback period of less than six months for a typical business in this category.
GetThere’s Solution for the Growing Business
With this new corporate travel and collaboration package, GetThere combines travel, meeting and networking solutions to help corporations connect in a more cost-effective manner. The package is simple to implement and easy to use, and the straightforward “per employee per month” pricing structure allows for growing companies to proactively manage costs and see an immediate return on their investment.
The offering is a package of GetThere’s key collaboration tools, including:
– Easy-to-use interface, modeled after Travelocity’s award-winning travel shopping experience
– 24/7 online access to air, car, hotel and rail reservations with best in class service and support
– Travel policy that guides the correct travel shopping behavior, including clearly marked “company-preferred” and “out-of-policy” options
– Connectivity technologies that ensure seamless fulfillment with a company’s travel agency of choice
– Collaboration policy to facilitate use of non-travel alternatives like webcasts and video conferencing
– Easy, online attendee registration and management that saves meeting planners valuable time
– Property and site searches that follow corporate policy
– Air fare and guest room cost estimators and comparisons to help drive savings
· Social Networking: Corporate Community –
– Social networking tools – securely behind the firewall – via proven Sabre technology used by 120,000 professionals today in more than 30 organizations
– 24/7 knowledge-sharing among geographically-dispersed employees
– Access to business information, resources and answers
– Integrated travel itinerary information
In addition, companies can choose to add on three additional services:
· Expense Management –
– Seamless, online expense reporting for easy tracking
– Automated cost code and policy validation, and payment to card providers and employees
– Comprehensive data analytics and reporting based on expense data
· Control Management –
– A set of travel program control and optimization tools, including:
§ Dynamic messaging for corporations to educate travelers about policy in the booking process
§ Automated pre-trip approval, allowing managers to approve travel before it is ticketed
§ Unused ticket messaging that alerts travelers of available unused tickets as they shop for trips, driving savings for the travel budget
· Consulting Services –
– Expert, objective assessments of travel program performance
– Unique recommendations and roadmaps to cost savings for individual companies
– Jointly developed project plans and collaborative working partnerships
Corporations, travel management companies and media can learn more about GetThere’s new offering at http://www.getthere.com/collaborate/.
Collaboration Today
The recent recession drew a brighter spotlight on business travel spend, with corporations increasingly implementing more restrictive travel policies and openly promoting the use of collaboration tools such as conference calls, webcasts, video conferencing and social networking solutions for internal meetings and other non-essential travel. With last year’s savings on the books, companies are now under pressure to drive new revenues while effectively managing any increases in their travel budgets.
“In 2009, travel management became “travel decision management,” as businesses determined not just how often they travel, but if they will make the trip at all,” said Chris Kroeger, president of GetThere. “And with the collaboration options available to an employee today, “travel decision management” has become “travel and collaboration management.” This package neatly leverages the lessons we’ve learned with clients in recent years, and gives mid-sized companies a toolkit that will help them grow business and facilitate smart choices when it comes to travel and collaboration purchases.”
About GetThere
GetThere is the world’s leading online business travel collaboration solution, surpassing $9 billion in annual bookings. GetThere’s proven technology and unparalleled global service infrastructure helps corporations collectively save millions in air and hotel costs. Through its unique relationship with Travelocity(R), GetThere provides a familiar online booking experience for travelers of more than 3,000 companies, including a majority of multi-national Fortune 200 firms that deploy online booking. GetThere works with all major global distribution systems (GDS). Companies using GetThere and the Sabre GDS together can optimize efficiency and cost savings across the entire travel procurement process. More information is available at http://www.getthere.com.
Sabre Holdings connects people with the world’s greatest travel possibilities by retailing travel products and providing distribution and technology solutions for the travel industry. More information is available at http://www.sabre-holdings.com.
