Keeping duty of care on the radar

AFRICA’S increasing
signicance as an
important business
destination means that
numerous companies are
investing in operations across
continent. From a duty-ofcare
point of view, however,
it is not easy to enforce a
consistent programme in
Africa, where many countries
rank as high-security risks.
Differing legislation from
country to country further
challenges a uniform travel risk
management (TRM) strategy.
Collin Austen, business
development executive for
Club Travel, points out that
in essence it is a company’s
responsibility to ensure
employees’ safety while
travelling on business. “For
multinational companies,
the duty-of-care legislation
applied will be according to the
country where the head ofce
is situated and then pushed
down to the other regions. This
said, should the legislation be
stronger in another country,
the company will adhere to
the strictest policy, provided
that policy is in line throughout
their branch network.”
In the view of Melissa
McMahon, director of product
strategy for travel management
group, Radius Travel, the best
way for companies to enforce
a consistent and adequate
duty-of-care programme is to
rely on outside experts, such
as a global TMC. “Unless
multinational companies
(MNCs) are able to signicantly
invest in their own in-house
security teams, they need
to rely on third parties to
meet at least their minimum
duty-of-care commitment to
their employees. One way
MNCs can achieve this is
by leveraging their travel
management company.”
Melissa says, with all the
varying – and evolving –
regulations and legislation
around corporate duty of care,
a global TMC can bring in
critical local knowledge and
synthesise a consistent TRM
strategy in partnership with
the MNC.
Radius Travel, for example,
has teamed up with XL
Oceanair to contribute local
expertise to the global
Radius TRM strategy for each
MNC client. “They provide
corporate travel managers with
actionable data and support,
travellers with relevant and
timely information and tools,
and the organisation with
a process by which TRM is
regularly tested and improved.”
Collin agrees: “Companies
should, in consultation
with their TMC, appoint a
duty-of-care company and
have their TMC hand over
all travellers’ data to the
company. Partnering with
a TMC with an African and
global presence, such as
GlobalStar (a worldwide TMC
owned and managed by local
entrepreneurs) means that
their travellers have access
to in-country TMC assistance
when required.”
He warns that often
companies turn to their TMC to
provide duty-of-care solutions
but the TMC is not geared up
for this role. “TMCs are agents
for scheduled carriers and
are not equipped to respond
to emergencies as effectively
as companies that specialise
in this area. What a TMC can
provide is handover of data to
these specialist companies,
basic traveller tracking (as per
the traveller’s itinerary) and
limited communication with
affected travellers.”
Collin emphasises that the
role of the TMC in a TRM
strategy mostly boils down
to travel tracking. “As a TMC,
we know where the traveller
is but are not best placed
to help in an emergency.”
But even tracking has its
challenges. “The best way
to track travellers would be
electronically – i.e. track their
cellphone or laptop. The
problem is, however, that with
high roaming costs and poor
network infrastructure, these
devices are not always on and
therefore cannot be used as a
reliable solution. We are left to
rely on the travellers’ itinerary
to try and identify their
whereabouts,” he says.
When designing a
comprehensive TRM strategy
that will keep employees safe
across African borders, travel
managers should take into
consideration many aspects
associated with a duty-of-care
programme. John Rose, ceo of
iJET, a provider of operational
risk management solutions,
says the single largest point
of failure he sees with travel
managers is that they’ve
been led to believe that travel
tracking is risk management.
“That’s like knowing your
house is on re and not
knowing how to call 911.”
Beryl Kolb, md of XL
Oceanair, says pre-travel advice
is another aspect that can’t
be ignored. “In Nigeria, for
instance, travellers require
bodyguards as a safety
precaution. There are also
many cultural distinctions,
such as business ethics and
dress code. We provide our
customers with this kind of
information so that they are
prepared for travel.” Beryl says
it is essential for companies to
team up with local businesses
to secure a partner that
understands the market,
including protocol, taxation,
culture, language, and pricing,
along with custom tariffs.
Melissa adds that a TRM
strategy must always begin
with an assessment of the
company’s unique business
needs, culture and geographic
scope. “Traveller tracking is,
in many ways, the nal piece
of the risk management
puzzle. Following an in-depth
client consultation, we provide
tailored advice and solutions
to ensure the right processes
and technological tools are in
place, to optimise the safety
and security of travelling
employees.