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Healthy Traveler Report - Balance your employees' personal wellness with business travel

Supportive strategies and flexible policies can combat burnout and increase employee satisfaction. Despite the continued popularity of remote and hybrid work, business travelers are taking an average of 1.8 business trips per month, according to recent data from U.S. Travel Association. And in Europe, nearly half (48.9%) of travelers said they'd take six or more business trips in the next 12 months, according to data from Skift and TripActions. 
 
For many, traveling for business means more than just getting work done in a different location. It's an opportunity to build relationships, gain insights, and discover the world. Exploring a new location, tasting new foods, and taking in new sights and sounds provide a break from the monotony of the daily grind. Radisson promotes this equilibrium between work and leisure by providing accommodations in proximity to prominent city landmarks and equipped with contemporary meeting and conference facilities.

21 May 2023 4 min to read

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Business travelers often gain experience as well as confidence, and they may come back more productive and cognitively stronger because stepping out of one's comfort zone promotes neuroplasticity—meaning the brain rewires itself in response to novel experiences.  
 
While workers may relish the opportunity to make in-person connections across the country and the globe, there's little doubt that frequent travel can take a physical and mental toll. Travel is practically synonymous with disruptions to typical dietary, exercise, and sleep patterns. These interruptions to daily life—coupled with time away from family, travel delays and flight cancellations, and scrambling to stay on top of regular work while away from the office—all have the potential to contribute to burnout.
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Download the 'Healthy Traveler Report'

Employers who want to retain valued workers are understandably concerned. Fortunately, there is a growing recognition that companies are not powerless, as there are numerous strategies they can take to promote holistic health and reduce stress among business travelers.

Flexibility rules

Even the most seasoned business travelers may find travel stressful and disorienting, especially if they aren't given adequate time to prepare, are forced to travel at inconvenient times, or are relegated to lackluster lodging that doesn't suit their needs. 
 
Letting travelers make some decisions regarding the specifics of their schedule and where they stay can go a long way. Some might need an extra day before their departure to make childcare arrangements; others might prioritize staying in a hotel with a top-notch fitness center. 
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Blog images - How to help your employees to balance personal wellness with business travel

Meanwhile, more companies are giving employees the flexibility to decide whether to tack on a few vacation days to their trip and turn it into a combined business/leisure experience. The 2023 Traveler Value Index found that 76% of business travelers planned to extend a work trip for leisure purposes. Some employees, however, might prefer to rush home for a family event or simply to get back into their regular routine as quickly as possible. Bottom line: It's all about choice.

Nix the juggling act

Expecting employees to keep up with their typical daily duties despite being out of the office is a surefire way to overburden them. Employers should consider redistributing duties so that someone who is in the office covers for the person who's traveling, or readjust project deadlines in light of travel.

Build in recovery time

Giving employees comp days when they've been traveling is a nice gesture (and may be legally mandated depending on someone's employment status and state laws, notes Price). Required or not, it's wise to realize that few people can step off a plane and be their best selves at work the next day—especially if they've been away for a while or have traversed time zones. Such travelers need adequate time to overcome jet lag as well as reconnect with family and friends they missed during their trip.  
 
Though there's no standard amount of time everyone needs between returning from a trip and heading back to the office, employers should be mindful of the need for a restorative pause and factor in the duration of the trip taken. 
Blog images - How to help your employees to balance personal wellness with business travel
Blog images - How to help your employees to balance personal wellness with business travel
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