6 Ways to Get the most Out of Your Account Manager
top tips from Dan Fido, Enterprise Account Manager at Gray DawesAre You Getting The Maximum Benefit From Your Account Manager?
Your travel management company (TMC) Account Manager is more than just a point of contact – they’re a strategic partner dedicated to helping you achieve your corporate travel management goals. Whether navigating complex services, optimising your budget, or looking for tailored solutions, a strong relationship with your account manager can be the key to success.
In this article, Dan Fido (pictured right), Enterprise Account Manager at Gray Dawes, explores the top 6 ways you can make the most of your account manager.
1️⃣
Think Strategically
Account Managers are essential for handling day-to-day operations, but to truly maximise their value, you need to think strategically.
By shifting the Account Manager’s primary focus from routine tasks to high-level planning, you can unlock deeper insights and more impactful results. With unprecedented access to data and ever-evolving market trends, account managers can provide invaluable guidance to optimise your travel programme. By dedicating your joint time to strategic discussions – such as cost-saving opportunities, policy enhancements, and emerging industry trends – you can ensure that your travel program is not only efficient but also future-ready.
2️⃣
Set Joint Goals
Account Managers are invested in making their clients shine, ensuring their programs run smoothly, efficiently, and strategically.
However, to truly harness their expertise, it’s important to take a proactive approach. Start by defining your key objectives – whether it’s improving cost savings, enhancing traveller satisfaction, streamlining processes, or leveraging data insights to optimise decision-making.
Once you have a clear vision, engage in open discussions with your Account Manager about your goals and challenges. They have access to industry benchmarks, supplier relationships, and emerging trends that can help you craft a smarter travel program. By collaborating closely and aligning on strategic priorities, you can turn your Account Manager into a valuable extension of your own team – one that actively contributes to your success and helps you demonstrate tangible results within your organisation.
3️⃣
Introduce Your Account Manager to Other Departments
Travel impacts multiple areas of your business, making cross-departmental collaboration essential for a successful programme.
From finance and procurement, to HR and risk management, various teams play a role in shaping travel policies, controlling budgets, and ensuring traveller safety. This is why your Account Manager must have strong connections across different departments of your business or organisation.
Additionally, your Account Manager’s network within their own company can provide access to subject matter experts, specialised insights, and tailored solutions that align with your business goals. By leveraging these connections, you can unlock new opportunities and drive greater value from your travel programme.
Our "High Touch" Promise
At Gray Dawes we’re not just here to deliver the best fares, the most innovative itineraries or the most experienced consultants. We take the time to get to know our clients inside and out – giving us the chance to understand their culture and objectives and craft truly personalised travel solutions.
4️⃣
Take Suggestions On Board When Making Decisions
Account Managers often bring a wealth of industry experience, making them invaluable partners in problem-solving and decision-making.
Their role puts them in the thick of the action and allows them to offer fresh perspectives on business travel that you might not have considered. It’s important to stay open to these suggestions – they can often lead to solutions that build on the original plan for the better.
Additionally, Account Managers often have access to industry benchmarks and case studies from similar organisations, giving them a unique vantage point from which to identify what works best. Remember, a great Account Manager doesn’t just execute plans – they help shape them into something even more impactful.
5️⃣
Share Your Vision of the Future
Sharing your vision for the future with your Account Manager is essential for driving innovation and ensuring the future of your travel programme is bright.
The best ideas often come from those who are directly engaged with the day-to-day challenges of business travel. TMC Account Managers spend most of their working hours talking about and dealing with business travel and are perfectly placed to set you up for the future.
It works both ways. Your feedback helps Account Managers anticipate trends, push for improvements and work with their teams to develop tailored solutions that add value to your travel programme.
When Account Managers understand what truly matters to you, they can proactively bring forward new ideas, highlight emerging technologies, and propose strategic recommendations that align with your business objectives.
6️⃣
Consult With Your Account Manager on Travel Data & Reports
Account Managers are crucial in transforming travel data into actionable insights that inform business decisions and drive down costs.
While access to travel data reports is essential – such as those found in our YourData platform – additional value lies in the Account Manager’s ability to analyse, interpret, and provide strategic recommendations based on data trends. This expertise is particularly critical in developing company policies on things such as sustainability asnd corporate social responsibility, where the depth of data reporting, and the ability to make sense of it, can take your travel programme to new heights.
Account Managers are skilled at using data to analyse route efficiency, suggest negotiated rates, or identify opportunities for increased policy compliance. This personal, consultative approach to data ensures that travel managers can make smarter decisions for your company, right across the board.
In Conclusion
By making the most of your TMC Account Manager, you’re not just streamlining your travel programme, you’re ensuring that your company stays ahead of the game.
Account Managers are more than just operational support; they are partners in your success. By thinking strategically, setting clear goals, and welcoming their expertise, you can elevate your travel programme from a routine necessity to a well-oiled and high-performing part of your business.
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