Business travel firm bets on AI to boost efficiency as Chinese business travel recovers

The effort to adopt and integrate AI into its operations began recently with the opening of the company’s “new AI center of excellence” in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.

The city was the ideal destination thanks to its large talent pool, proximity to Hong Kong and its position in the Greater Bay Area (GBA), according to Calvin Xie, general manager of FCM Travel Greater China.

It’s not as simple as “just doubling the number of employees,” Xie said.

“We want a lean operation,” he added. “We don’t want to end up with a big army. It’s more about how we’re going to transform our workforce to get [employees] equipped with the skills they need for the next decade.”

FCM is the flagship corporate travel arm of Australia’s Flight Center Travel Group. It has offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.

“We do not have a plan to further expand our offices. U.S. too [FCM’s] due to the nature of the business, we don’t need to open offices in all cities, but we want to maintain our presence in tier-one cities,” he said.

The coronavirus pandemic led to a brain drain in Hong Kong, which made it difficult for the group to hire and retain talent. But it’s easier to recruit these days, especially on the continent where many young professionals are eager to join a multinational company, he added.

“But do we need more elite people to join us? I think the answer is yes, especially in the Greater Bay Area,” Xie said.

Business is picking up for the group as corporate and leisure travel recover across China.

The report said that while traditional favorites such as South Korea and Japan remain popular, new destinations are emerging. Australia and Malaysia have entered the top 10 destinations for Chinese travelers, with the former climbing seven places and the latter from 18th to ninth.

There has been an increase in the number of business travelers tagging leisure to the end of their trips – a trend sometimes referred to in the industry as leisure.

FCM has seen an increase of about 40 percent in “leisure” travel, as difficulty in securing visas and sluggish international air capacity compared to pre-pandemic levels has made business travelers more willing to extend trips Theirs.

China’s business travelers stay most often within Asia, with Singapore ranking as the top destination, according to Flight Center data. Tokyo, Bangkok, Seoul and Frankfurt were the other most popular destinations.

Singapore is maintaining its lead as the number one destination for Chinese business travelers in 2024, its appeal boosted by the 30-day visa-free entry deal agreed in January.