From Chaos to Clarity: The real value of a TMC

Let’s face it – unmanaged business travel and meetings can feel like trying to herd cats - and the same goes for working with the wrong Travel Management Company (TMC). Booking systems that don’t talk to each other. Policies buried in inboxes. Teams heading to the same meeting on three different trains. It’s chaos.

That’s why working with a TMC is more than just finding someone to help book your travel – it’s about bringing order, visibility and strategy to something that can easily spiral - and at the heart of it all? Meetings.

The majority of business trips start with one simple thing: a meeting. Whether it’s pitching to a customer, getting the team together or hosting a training day, meetings are the reason your people pack a bag in the first place. So, if your travel management isn’t working in sync with your meetings management, you’re missing half the picture.

Whether you're a global enterprise or a growing start-up, partnering with a TMC brings people, technology and process together to create a smarter, more joined-up experience – from the initial meeting invite to the insights that flow from the monthly reports.

People: Expertise that makes the difference

Without a TMC: You’re the travel booker, PA, policy enforcer and emergency contact. You Google, you guess, you hope for the best.

With a TMC: You’ve got a team of travel experts who’ve seen it all and planned for it.

Here’s how our people bring the calm to your travel storm:

• Personalised service: Your account manager isn’t just a name on a call list. They’re a trusted advisor who knows your company’s travel needs, preferences and policies, ensuring that what and how your people book aligns with your goals.
• Risk and duty of care: In an unpredictable world, it’s vital to have people who understand safety protocols, policy compliance and traveller wellbeing. From understanding country-specific risks to advising on traveller safety measures, our people help you stay compliant and prepared – before issues arise.
• Disruption happens – but your TMC should be your safety net: From rail strikes to weather chaos and global events, we’ve seen it all. Our real-time alerts, expert rerouting and always-on support keep your people safe and your plans moving – even when the unexpected hits.
• Consultative approach and strategic advice: We’re leaders in the field of understanding markets and making improvements. From helping you benchmark spend across departments to suggesting smarter payment methods, we’re here to help you shape a more effective travel and meetings programme.

When you partner with a TMC, you’re not just outsourcing travel management – you’re gaining access to a wealth of industry knowledge and a team committed to making your travel experience as efficient and stress-free as possible.

Technology: Less faff, more function

Without a TMC: Booking travel feels like using a 2005 website on a dial-up connection. Clunky, confusing and not built for business.

With a TMC: You’ve got tech that’s built for people who travel for a reason – often a meeting – and need things to just work.

With ClarityGo and MeetingsPro, our corporate travel and meetings management platforms, you get:

• Seamless booking experiences: Whether it’s air, rail, hotel or venue space for that all-hands session, your people can book it all in one place, with content tailored to your policy and preferences.
• Mobile-first tools: Real-time updates, check-in reminders, trip changes – all in the palm of your hand. Travellers stay informed and in control, wherever they are.
• Personalisation and automation: From onscreen policy messages to HR feed integration, our tech adapts to your world, making travel simpler and meetings planning smoother.
• Accessibility by design: ClarityGo meets WCAG 2.2 AA standards, ensuring our platform is usable by everyone, including people with a wide range of disabilities. We’ve worked with the Digital Accessibility Centre to test and refine our tools for mobile and desktop.
• Traveller tracking that combines people and tech: With Clarity Track, you can monitor traveller locations and get real-time updates when disruption hits. Whether it’s a major delay or a global incident, our platform helps you locate and support your people quickly – working hand-in-hand with our travel alerts team.
• Insights that go beyond just spend: Our Clarity Insights tool brings powerful, intuitive reporting that covers everything from booking behaviour and policy compliance to cost breakdowns and carbon reporting. So whether you’re tracking CO₂ or cost centres, the data’s there – and it’s actionable.
• Optimise the meeting journey: From venue sourcing to instant book options and live availability, it’s never been easier to get the right people in the right room at the right time.

Then, when travel and meetings are managed from one TMC, the whole experience gets smarter. You can track who’s going where and why – turning noise into insights, spotting unnecessary trips, identifying more sustainable alternatives, and ensuring your people are always supported.

Process: The glue that holds it all together

Without a TMC: Your policy is more like a suggestion, and every department has their own way of booking.

With a TMC: You’ve got structure, consistency and a clear view of what’s happening across your travel and meetings activity, with booking tools, hotel programmes and messaging all aligned with your goals.

Here’s where good process makes a big impact:

• Stronger policy compliance: Travel policy rules are built into the booking journey, reducing out of policy spend, adding automated approvals and giving you greater visibility.
• Automated reports and insights: With detailed reporting and benchmarking, you can spot trends, flag outliers and see how meetings are driving travel demand across teams, regions or cost centres.
• Consolidated services: Air, hotel, rail, venue sourcing, ground transport - it’s all managed under one roof, with joined-up reporting and one point of contact.

Process shouldn’t mean red tape. It should mean clarity, and when your travel and meetings follow the same path, you get more control and far fewer ‘who booked this?’ moments.

Travel and meetings management: Built in, not bolted on

Let’s be honest – meetings are often the why behind the where. So, we believe meetings management shouldn’t be a bolt-on. It should be baked into your travel programme.

It’s really important not to overlook the impact meetings have on business travel. As travel decisions increasingly integrate meeting logistics, great TMCs like us are beginning to offer joined-up solutions.

Take one example of the many advantages of combining travel and meetings – data. The sky’s the limit with what can be done. Spot trends, reduce unnecessary travel, and create a meetings policy that actually works with your travel one, not against it. Or combine your data to offer enhanced traveller tracking, sustainability reporting or smarter risk monitoring.

Whether you’re in public sector, marine, media or academia, our people understand the pressures of your world – and tailor the support to match.

But hey, we don’t want to give all of our secrets away here. Needless to say, by bringing meetings management into the conversation, you save time, reduce friction and make better decisions across both meetings and travel.

The big picture: From chaos to Clarity

A good TMC doesn’t just book stuff. It brings people, process and technology together in a way that makes your business travel and meetings more strategic, more streamlined – and a lot less stressful.

It’s about creating one, connected experience – from meeting planning to traveller support – so your people can focus on what really matters.

If your current setup feels a bit chaotic, we’re here to bring the Clarity.

Want to see how it all fits together?

Book a demo or get in touch and let’s turn your travel and meetings chaos into a seamless, strategic programme that supports your business goals.