Planning a successful business trip can be really stressful. There are all sorts of things that you need to keep in mind from reservations to schedules and making sure that everything aligns. You also need to ensure that you keep people productive and that things are relatively as stress-free as possible. All of this needs careful consideration, clever planning and a detailed itinerary, hence the stressfulness of planning one. But it doesn’t have to be. Here are 6 tips to keep in mind to help you plan a successful business trip to Europe.
A business trip itinerary is a really important piece of planning. It summarises all of the details of the trip in one place and lets everyone know what is going on and when. This saves everyone time and limits frustration levels to a minimum. Everyone has access to what is going on and can find it in one place, rather than having to scroll through endless emails to find information, or to wait for someone else to tell them what’s going on. For example, clearly indicate when and how people will need to transfer from Vienna airport to Bratislava as if people have to plan this themselves it can be extremely stressful. A top tip from us is to organize everything they could need into one place. This should include all of their travel documents such as boarding passes, a copy of their visa if needed, flight departure and arrival times, flight numbers, seat numbers, and anything else you can think of. This makes their travel much smoother. Think of these things in order of when they might be needed. Be sure to supply people with both electronic as well as physical copies of everything to ensure that there aren’t any issues.
Typically, when going on a business trip there are only a few important things that need to get done. It is important that you understand what the goals of the trip are and then organize additional details around this. Free time is really important, so this should also be scheduled into the aforementioned itinerary. This ensures that there are no clashes and that the trip is enjoyable.
When it comes to personal preferences food is a big one. People have dietary requirements, restrictions, and lifestyles that cannot be compromised because they are going on a business trip abroad. Ask individuals to please share their food preferences and then book their meals on flights and in restaurants accordingly. There are also other comfort preferences to take into consideration. Which airlines do people prefer to fly with, do they prefer longer or shorter connections between flights, do they prefer a car service to pick them up, do they want to rent their own car, or do they like taking public transport? Take note of these preferences beforehand as you begin to plan your business trip to Europe in order to avoid having to make amendments all throughout their stay.
If you are planning to travel with multiple people, making use of travel-management software could be just what you need. If you don’t want to use paper for your itinerary, this is another great way for things to stay in one place and it is quite easy to make any adjustments you might need. People like things to be digital these days, so keep this in mind.
Aside from the primary objective of the business trip, important people on the trip, such as your boss, might also have some additional things they would like to do on this trip. They might want to bring a spouse along for the trip, which means you’ll need to allocate free time for them, or plan a romantic day trip. Someone might have a strict exercise regime, so you’ll need to find accommodation that has a gym. Someone might need time to finish up for an important presentation, so the itinerary cannot be packed with unnecessary extras. Find out what people need to do and try to create an itinerary around their needs. Keep things organized, but leave time for individual activities.
This of a business trip as a mobile representation of the workplace. Things need to run smoothly. To avoid hiccups, like delays in work because the plugs are different, buy important supplies before you arrive. Don’t count on being able to find exactly what you need when you get there.
There are a lot of things that you need to keep in mind when planning a business trip to Europe. Keep these simple things in mind and everything will run smoothly.
