Business Travel News’ 2023 Travel Manager Salary & Job Satisfaction Report

Any hopes harbored by European tra­vel managers of a ‘quiet’ year in 2023 were dashed by increasing travel costs, geopolitical unrest, resource constraints and content fragmentation – four subjects uppermost on their minds, according to BTN Europe’s inaugural Travel Manager Salary & Job Satisfaction survey. 

Fielded at a time of growing job complexity and increasing living costs, the survey paints a picture of a challenging environment for travel managers in which respondents were almost equally divided between those who feel they are paid fairly for their responsibilities and those who don’t.

With inflation and the cost of living varying significantly across the continent, the fluctuation of exchange rates, and the role of the travel manager defined—and valued—in different ways, the average European travel manager salary should not be seen as a benchmark for all in the role against which to compare themselves.

And as the inaugural such survey, there is no historic data to compare the figure with so, this year, more significant are the country-by-country figures and the not unexpected links between experience, program size and remuneration packages, and the travel managers' biggest challenges and concerns in their role.

*Survey results in this report are based on mean figures to correlate with the methodology of the US Report, whereas the same survey results published in Europe, however, are based on mean figures due to the variety of source material that was used beyond BTN's online survey. More details are available in the methodology and in the BTN Europe version of this report.

The Headline Numbers

The average annual compensation package for European travel managers is €79,601, although three-quarters of respondents were based in the UK, France or Germany, with little representation in Eastern Europe.

Although it is the first survey of its kind conducted by BTN Europe and as such there is no previous data with which to compare, similar research from the Global Business Travel Association published earlier this year arrived at a figure of €70,000 including expected bonuses, albeit based on a smaller survey sample.

According to BTN Europe’s survey, only in the UK and Ireland does the average travel manager salary exceed the overall European average, coming in at €85,235 and €83,500 respectively.

The figure for Ireland, where the big tech scene has helped transform its economy, was bolstered by the highest average bonus as part of overall remuneration packages – 11.3 percent compared to a Europe-wide average of a 7.2 percent bonus.

The average annual salary package of German travel managers, at €77,769, fell only just below the wider European average, while the Netherlands (€73,810) was a little further back.

Of the markets where there was sufficient data to provide reliable figures, the lowest average annual salary package for travel managers, at €55,666, was in Italy. That comes as little surprise, however, for the national average wage in the country is also significantly lower than that of other countries featured in this survey.

Program Size & Management Experience Matters

Irrespective of this survey, it would be safe to assume that the larger the travel program, the larger the reward for the individual overseeing it—and that’s what played out in BTN Europe’s survey.

While European travel managers with a program of less than €2 million in annual spend have an average salary package of €57,487, at the other end of the spectrum, individuals responsible for more than €40 million in yearly travel spend earn on average €105,889.

There was also a direct correlation between travel managers’ experience in the industry and the remuneration package they can expect. At the top end, European travel managers with more than 30 years of experience earn on average €102,447.

However, the salary gap for those with between four and 30 years’ experience was relatively narrow, ranging between €78,190 and €81,342. The figure fell to €71,360 for those with one to three years’ experience, and those with less than one year’s experience averaged €64,500.

The Gender Pay Gap

The survey revealed a considerable discrepancy in the salaries of female and male travel managers across Europe. Accounting for 71 percent of survey responses, female travel managers earn an average annual salary package of €78,213. In contrast, male travel managers, who accounted for 29 percent of respondents, earn €91,691 – 17 percent more than their female counterparts.

Another tell-tale sign of gender inequality is the larger proportion of male respondents managing programs at the top end of the annual travel spend scale.

While males accounted for less than a quarter of respondents in the smallest two spending categories (up to €2 million and €2.1 million to €10 million), this figure rose to more than a third (36 percent) of respondents managing programs with €20 million to €40 million in annual travel spend, and to 38 percent of those in the top bracket in charge of travel programs exceeding €40 million in spend.

Moreover, of the top 20 earners in the survey, 60 percent were male travel managers.

Taking Responsibility

Few in the industry would disagree that the role of the travel manager has expanded and evolved considerably during and since the Covid pandemic, but there remain a number of core responsibilities that our respondents undertake.

The most common responsibility, for 83 percent of survey respondents, is the selection or recommendation of travel suppliers. Four further tasks are undertaken by between 70 and 75 percent of travel managers: selecting technology to manage processes, negotiating rates for transient travel, setting corporate travel policies, and managing business travel cost controls.

Beyond those core responsibilities, 57 percent of travel managers are engaged in enhancing or measuring traveller satisfaction, and around one-third are involved in selecting meeting providers or negotiating rates for meetings.

Neil Woodliffe, global travel and expense manager at Clarivate, has worked as a buyer for five years since moving over from the supplier side, with experience at both an airline and at TMCs.

“The role of the travel manager has undergone substantial evolution,” he said in dialogue with BTN Europe, reporting a significant increase in traveller engagement on topics including supplier capacity, pricing and visa requirements.

“This surge in inquiries provides a positive opportunity for us as travel managers to reinforce policy and demonstrate the value of booking through our channels. Despite the constant pressure to justify prices compared to external options, it allows us to highlight the side benefits such as duty of care, reporting and [having] TMC support in case of changes.” 

Feedback to the two open-ended survey questions showed a degree of discontent around the pressure – or necessity – to pick up new areas of responsibility as well as a lack of resources to support travel managers in their role. 

One respondent said their biggest personal challenge is simply the “lack of time to do everything” and that there was “not enough resources for the scope of the role.” Another said they had lost their administrative resource and had to take on additional work themselves, while one travel manager said a fellow teammate had been made redundant. “I’ve been on my own and now even struggle to take annual leave,” they explained.

“There’s not enough capacity in the department,” said another respondent, adding “It’s difficult to find people with the right skillset since the pandemic.”

Several others bemoaned having to take on wider procurement responsibilities beyond the travel program. “More responsibilities but no more pay,” said one respondent. “The expectations have become unachievable for the available resource,” said another.

New Focus

When asked about areas in which their focus had increased in the last year, sustainability emerged as the hot topic, selected by 62 percent of travel managers. The only other areas where more than half of respondents reported a sharpened interest were travel data analysis and reporting (57 percent), travel technology (53 percent), travel supplier sourcing (52 percent), and traveler wellbeing and safety (51 percent). 

Sustainability also featured strongly in the survey’s open-ended questions, with many travel managers expressing concerns about CO2 emissions reporting and getting travelers to carefully consider the necessity of trips and the mode of travel. “The alternatives to flying are not good enough to shift internal mentalities,” said one respondent.

A handful of buyers raised concerns about ‘greenwashing’ and the validity of suppliers’ claims, and one respondent complained that there are not enough electric vehicles available to support their transition.

Nicole Häußlein, global travel manager at Würth, told BTN Europe that in a large organization it’s critical that everyone is aligned: “If you don’t have a shared booking tool and travel policy then it’s hard to work on topics like sustainability.”

Given all the talk of ‘bleisure’ or ‘blended’ across the industry, it was perhaps surprising that only 12 percent of travel managers said they are more focused on the topic now than in the past. In fact, a quarter reported less focus now, and one-third said they have never tackled the area nor have plans to do so.

Nevertheless, one survey respondent identified an increase in bleisure requests and generally more demanding travellers as a notable challenge.

Another issue for Häußlein is the growing number of suppliers entering the travel management ecosystem. “We have to be able to have every new supplier [working] together in a harmonized system and we rely on good processes and information exchanges between suppliers more than in the past—otherwise you not able to handle the workload,” she said.

Self-Assessment

Analysis of the answers to two questions—about recognition and fair pay—suggest that four in 10 travel managers are more or less content in their role. Specifically, 43 percent said they feel adequately recognised and 44 percent believe their salary relative to their responsibilities is equitable or a fair exchange. 

Looking at pay alone, however, a similar number (43 percent) believe their salary is low for their responsibilities. And only 13 percent said they are paid well for their responsibilities—the majority of whom were among the higher-earning respondents.

Despite some ambivalence regarding recognition from their employers, a clear majority (77 percent) of travel managers have a long-term focus in their current role and more than half (54 percent) expect to be with their existing employer in the same or a more advanced position in two years’ time.

Demonstrating value

Survey comments also demonstrated abundant concerns about employers not understanding the role or value of the travel manager and of the travel program itself, with NDC and content fragmentation exacerbating the issue.

One travel manager said their biggest challenge was “changing the leadership’s perspective on travel” and “not being able to implement [a] responsible travel [program] because it is still only considered as a cost center”.

Another travel manager said they spend too much time “convincing the board and the traveler of the benefits of having a corporate travel program.” Others complained about “incompetent management who know little about travel” and of executives who “only see the subject in relation to their personal objectives.”

“The [travel manager] role isn’t valued and distribution landscape disruptions don’t help us demonstrate our value to management,” noted one survey respondent. Others complained about the reduction of airline content through GDS channels, changes in airline retailing and distribution, and deteriorating access to content via TMCs.

“NDC servicing is not ready, yet airlines are removing further content,” one travel manager observed, while another reported an “increase in the volume of queries related to fare inconsistencies across different channels.”

Clarivate’s Woodliffe agrees that supplier relationships have shifted post-Covid. “The surge in the leisure market… has redirected vendor focus, often overshadowing the corporate segment. We have had to work harder to engage with vendors and proactively remind them of our continued presence and value.”

Cost concerns

The challenges of rising travel costs on the one hand, and the need to drive down costs on the other, drew more commentary from survey respondents than any other area.

Travel managers reported “drastic price increases”, “soaring hotel rates” and a “surge in ticket prices” while others obliquely pointed to the impact of inflation. One respondent noted their company had adjusted its travel policy—by removing certain allowances—in the face of spiralling costs.

Several travel managers also complained of difficulties negotiating rates with suppliers and of lingering service issues. “I’m constantly pulled into operational matters due to poor TMC performance,” noted one respondent.

One travel manager said their role was in jeopardy such was the increased scrutiny on cost reduction, while another said their company’s “open check book honeymoon is over.”

“My company does not focus on long-term strategies,” reported another travel manager. “They only care about cutting costs and getting a cheap service. There's no interest in staff retention or comfort for our travelers.”

Looking ahead, Woodliffe said his primary challenge—a broad one—remains navigating the “evolving landscape of travel uncertainties,” he said. “Striking the right balance between providing essential support [for travellers] and maintaining operational efficiency in this ever-changing environment is key to the success of our travel program.”