Business travelers to countries such as Angola are often subject to serious health and safety risks.
60% of business travelers visit “high risk” destinations each year, according to a survey from travel, medical and security assistance firm International SOS. 16% travel to high risk destinations five or more times in a single year.
By conducting the survey the company was able to identify the information travelers wanted most from their employers and medical care providers:
- Specific city and local-level information on the quality of medical services
- Disease risks
- Vaccination advice
- Medication Availability
The survey sample consisted of 4,746 respondents working in various industries, including technology, manufacturing, oil/gas/mining, financial services and telecommunication.
Tim Daniel, Group Executive Vice President, commented:
The survey confirmed that international business travelers place a high level of importance on the ability to stay informed, on a city and local level, on travel, health and security risks while on the road, but it also revealed some unexpected twists. One of them is that international business travelers traveling in what they consider to be high-risk destinations seem to care far less about the types of ‘privacy’ issues related to location tracking than is typically seen in other sectors.
Still, while 80% of respondents said they typically use a smart phone while traveling, a further 73% indicated they did not use any travel-related applications.
Said Daniel:
It’s striking how few international business travelers use any kind of travel-related information applications. It underscores the need for corporate travel managers and corporate security professionals to either educate their travelers on ways they can use their mobile devices more effectively, and, to the extent possible, for them to provide travelers with access to critical information before they embark.