Travel Management Company RFP and Corporate Travel Guide

A travel management company books and manages work travel on behalf of a business. Instead of every employee searching for flights and hotels on their own, one team handles bookings, changes, cancellations and reporting.

For a company, this means less time lost on bookings, one point of contact when plans change, consistent travel rules for every employee, and clear records of what was spent and why. For the traveller, it means support before departure and during the trip.

• One point of contact for all staff travel
• Access to GDS fare options through an IATA-approved agency
• Help with changes, cancellations and reissues
• Clear booking records for finance teams

An RFP (Request for Proposal) is a document a company sends to several travel management companies to compare them fairly. It describes how much the company travels, where it travels and what support it needs, and asks each TMC to explain how it would deliver.

A clear travel management RFP saves time for both sides. It helps you compare like with like, rather than choosing on a single quoted fare.

A good RFP for travel management services is short, specific and honest about your needs. These are the sections most companies include.

• Company profile: number of travellers, offices and main travel routes
• Travel volume: approximate trips per month, domestic and international split
• Services needed: air ticketing, hotels, group travel, MICE events, visa support
• Service expectations: response times, after-hours support, change handling
• Booking and approval process: who books, who approves
• Billing and reporting: invoice format, GST invoicing, monthly reports
• Evaluation: how you will score proposals and your decision timeline

A TMC RFP does not need to be complicated. Most small and mid-sized companies can complete one in a few weeks by following four steps.

1. 1

   Review your current travel

   List recent trips, routes, travellers and the problems you want solved.

2. 2

   Write and send the RFP

   Share your requirements with a shortlist of travel management companies and set a reply date.

3. 3

   Compare proposals

   Score each TMC on service, support, reporting and fit, not just on fares.

4. 4

   Start with a trial

   Begin with a set of trips or one department, then review before rolling out.

These questions help you see how a travel management company actually works day to day.

• Are you IATA approved, and which GDS platforms do you use?
• Who is our point of contact, and how fast do you respond?
• How do you handle urgent changes and cancellations?
• Can you manage group bookings and MICE events?
• What reports and invoices will we receive?
• How do you protect our travellers' personal details?

Sending a team to a conference, or hosting one, means coordinating flights, hotels, transfers and schedules for many people at once. When each attendee books separately, costs vary and arrivals become hard to track.

Travo Birds plans conference travel as one project: group air tickets, hotel blocks near the venue, airport transfers and on-ground coordination, so delegates arrive on time and your team knows where everyone is.

Meeting management covers everything around a corporate meeting, offsite or dealer event: choosing the destination, booking the venue and rooms, arranging travel and running the day itself.

Combining travel and meeting management with one partner avoids gaps between the people booking flights and the people running the event. You share the brief once, and one team plans the rest.

Corporate travel discounts are special fares and booking benefits available to companies rather than individual travellers. They can include special corporate fares, group booking benefits for MICE travel, and flexible ticket options.

What is available depends on the airline, the route, the dates and the number of travellers. Travo Birds checks options through Amadeus and Sabre GDS and shares what applies to your trip. We do not promise a fixed discount, because fares are set by airlines and change with availability.

Business travel procurement is how a company buys travel services: choosing suppliers, agreeing terms and making sure bookings follow company policy. It usually involves finance, HR and the travel decision-maker.

A simple approach works well: write a travel policy, choose one travel management company through an RFP, agree how bookings are approved and invoiced, and review performance every few months.

Most savings come from planning and consistency rather than from chasing the lowest fare on a single trip.

• Book earlier where plans allow
• Combine trips and travel as a group for events
• Set a clear travel policy for cabin class and hotels
• Use one travel partner so bookings and changes are tracked
• Choose flexible fares when plans are likely to change
• Review travel reports to spot repeat routes and patterns

A corporate travel budget sets how much the company expects to spend on travel in a year or quarter. Start with last year's trips, add planned events and conferences, and allow a margin for urgent travel.

Split the budget by department or by trip type (client visits, conferences, incentive tours) so spending is easy to track. Your travel management company can share booking records that make each review quicker.