If there was one unmistakable message from the GBTA Business Travel Forums held in Brisbane on 11 March and Perth on 18 March, it was this. Risk is no longer an edge case in corporate travel. It is the operating context.
Across two cities, more than 160 attendees and over 60 senior travel and expense leaders came together at a moment when geopolitical instability is actively shaping travel decisions in real time. The result was a series of conversations grounded not in theory or policy design but in operational reality.
Festive Road’s GM for APAC and Global Operations attended both forums. What he heard repeatedly was not anxiety, but recalibration.
”“What stood out was the clarity in the room. Travel leaders were not debating whether duty of care matters. They were asking whether their current setups are genuinely fit for what they are dealing with now.”
- Mike Orchard
Geopolitical pressure tests programmes not principles
Geopolitical crisis and duty of care surfaced in every session at both forums. Not as an abstract risk category, but as lived experience.
Travel managers spoke about relocating employees at short notice, managing rapidly shifting airspace constraints, and coordinating across multiple suppliers often outside standard operating hours. Travel management companies shared how they have had to scale crisis response teams quickly, reroute travellers across unfamiliar corridors, and operate with incomplete information.
The subtext was consistent. Many programmes were built for disruption as an event, not as a condition.
The numbers that changed the tone of the room
Data played a decisive role in anchoring these conversations, particularly in Perth where Solomon Patha, Procurement Manager at BCI Minerals, delivered a keynote that cut through with precision rather than hype.
Two figures in particular stayed with the audience.
87% of corporate travellers say they are comfortable with AI booking travel on their behalf. Yet only 46% of corporate travel programmes have adopted AI enabled booking capabilities.
The data was presented as global industry research. While some in the room questioned the adoption figure, the gap itself was the point. Traveller readiness is outpacing programme evolution.
A second statistic sharpened that message further.
93% of travellers say their travel management company must innovate with technology or they will seek one that does.
In the context of geopolitical volatility, innovation was not framed as convenience. It was framed as responsiveness, speed, and better judgement under pressure.
Visibility remains the weak point
That theme was reinforced by early findings from a Deloitte commissioned study, presented by Joe De Fazio, Head of Corporate Sales at American Express, based on responses from 1,000+ APAC corporate travel programmes.
Up to 35% of employees are operating non compliantly. At the same time, more than 60% of respondents say corporate travel is a strategic priority for business growth.
The contradiction was not lost on the room. Travel is increasingly critical, yet opacity persists precisely where clarity is most needed. In periods of instability, that gap is not just administrative. It is operational.
What else is shaping the APAC agenda
While geopolitical risk dominated the forums, several adjacent themes added texture to the discussion.
Predictive travel and proactive booking models are gaining traction as organisations look to anticipate disruption rather than react to it. Payments and expense visibility are increasingly being reframed as risk tools, not just cost controls. Sustainability remains firmly on the agenda, particularly in Brisbane. Workforce mobility and FIFO travel continue to define the conversation in Perth, reflecting the realities of the resources sector.
Taken together, these themes point to a shift that is less about transformation and more about resilience.
An industry in quiet recalibration
The tone across both Brisbane and Perth was notable for what it was not. There was little appetite for sweeping promises or future casting. What emerged instead was a methodical reassessment of what holds up when assumptions fail.
”“There is a recalibration underway. Travel is firmly recognised as business critical. The question now is whether the systems, partnerships and data supporting it are robust enough for the environment organisations are operating in.”
- Mike Orchard
As geopolitical uncertainty continues to shape travel patterns, the message from APAC was clear. Duty of care can no longer sit alongside the programme. It must sit at its centre, informing technology choices, supplier strategy, policy design, and how organisations protect their people when certainty is in short supply.
