Festive Road, the independent travel, meetings and expense consultancy, is gifting a free AI readiness check for travel and expense (T&E) buyers.
Called AI Illuminatorthe self-check tool was launched this week to over 1,000 delegates at the GBTA Europe | VDR Conference in Vienna.
In around nine minutes, buyers will receive a readiness profile, a view of their strengths and gaps, practical next steps and a personalised report sent to their inbox.
Developed independently by Festive Road, the check looks beneath the technology, measuring readiness across the four areas that most often decide whether AI succeeds in a T&E programme:
- Data: whether AI tools can see and reach the data they need, which Festive Road believes is the prerequisite for everything else.
- Governance: the policies, controls and approvals that allow AI to be used safely and with confidence.
- Process: the processes and ways of working that AI would need to fit into.
- People: the people, skills and decision-makers needed to move from interest to action.
- In Festive Road’s Pulse 2.0 benchmark report of more than 50 T&E buyers, 70% said they are prioritising AI and automation, but only one in five said their programme is ready for it.
Steve Clagg, AI Architecture and Delivery Lead at Festive Road, said: “When we talk to buyers about AI, the conversation quickly moves from tools to data, governance and who makes the decisions. That’s where readiness is won or lost.
“AI Illuminator gives buyers a clear, independent starting point in under 10 minutes. The aim is simple: better-informed conversations about AI across the buyer community, starting from an honest view of where programmes are today.”
Caroline Strachan, CEO at Festive Road, said: “Over 10 years on the road, we’ve had the privilege of creating better T&E programmes alongside some of the most ambitious buyers in the industry.
“AI Illuminator is our way of saying thank you to the whole T&E buyer community, client or not. Everyone is talking about AI, but very few programmes know where they actually stand. Before you decide where to go, you need to know where you are.”
While individual responses to the self-check remain confidential and are never shared, Festive Road will publish results to show trends and insights.
Source: thebusinesstravelmag.com
