A new mix of partnerships, AI tools and traveler expectations is reshaping how companies book, manage and evaluate business travel
Dec 2, 2025
Key takeaways
- Corporate travel strategies are shifting fast: Companies are redesigning travel programs to balance cost control with employee experience and productivity.
- Flexibility is the new currency: Buyers expect adaptable partnerships, dynamic pricing and rapid onboarding — not rigid contracts.
- AI-driven booking is becoming mainstream: Travel copilots and enterprise AI tools are influencing which hotels appear, and how quickly.
- GDS distribution gains renewed relevance: TMCs and buyers still rely heavily on GDS-connected hotels with clean, structured content and corporate-ready rates.
- Traveler expectations matter more than ever: Comfort, wellness, and work-supporting amenities now shape corporate hotel choices.
- Hotels that don’t modernize risk losing share: Slow content updates, static rates, or missing GDS visibility mean falling off corporate buyers’ radar.
The corporate travel reset nobody can ignore
Corporate travel executives at the Phocuswright Conference 2025 didn’t mince words: the business travel landscape is changing faster than most suppliers can keep up. What used to be a predictable, contract-heavy world has become a shifting ecosystem of AI copilots, hybrid booking tools, flexible policies and rising employee expectations.
This isn’t a minor adjustment. It’s a strategic reset — one that will determine which hotels remain relevant to corporate buyers, and which quietly fall off preferred lists.
And the message from the panel was clear: travel suppliers, especially hotels, must rethink how they show up in this new environment.
Partnerships are replacing rigid contracts
One of the strongest signals from corporate buyers is the move away from “set-and-forget” agreements. Companies want solutions that evolve with them — not static annual contracts built around last year’s assumptions.
For hotels, this shift creates an opening. The properties that respond quickly, adjust inventory intelligently, and collaborate with TMCs and tech vendors will be first in line when companies update their travel programs.
AI is quietly becoming the new travel manager
AI may not have replaced travel managers, but it has already reshaped how business travel gets planned.
Enterprise copilots can evaluate travel policies in seconds, suggest compliant hotels, route bookings through preferred channels, and enforce negotiated rates automatically. Consumer tools — from Google Gemini to ChatGPT to OTA assistants — are pushing even more corporate travelers toward AI-influenced journeys.
Hotels that want to remain visible must ensure their content is complete, structured, and machine-readable across GDS, direct, and OTA channels.
If AI can’t understand you, it won’t recommend you.
Traveler expectations have permanently changed
Business travelers now carry their leisure expectations with them — expecting fast Wi-Fi, quiet rooms, flexible check-in, seamless digital experiences, and wellness-supporting amenities. Companies have taken notice, because employee comfort is tied directly to productivity and retention.
For hotels, this means the corporate RFP is no longer just about rates. It’s about the experience.
Properties that highlight sleep quality, workspaces, connectivity, and well-being will stand out in an increasingly competitive corporate landscape.
Why GDS distribution matters even more now
Despite years of debate, the corporate travel world still runs on the GDS. TMCs rely on it. AI tools ingest it. Buyers trust it.
At Phocuswright 2025, several executives emphasized that truly corporate-ready hotels are the ones with:
- clean, complete room and rate content
- fast and reliable ARI updates
- clear negotiated rate structures
- consistent availability across channels
Independent hotels that skip the GDS — or treat it as an afterthought — are effectively removing themselves from global corporate visibility.
The bottom line for hoteliers
The corporate travel ecosystem is evolving into a fluid mix of AI tools, hybrid booking flows, flexible sourcing models, and traveler-centric policies. Hotels that modernize their distribution, strengthen their partnerships, and present compelling traveler experiences will gain share in this new environment.
Those that wait will slowly slip out of view — not because demand isn’t there, but because they are no longer where travelers, AI systems, and travel buyers look.
by Markus Busch, Editor Hospitality.today
