The Jules Verne classic, “Around the World in 80 Days” is the story of a British gentleman, Phileas Fogg, who accepts a bet where he can complete a journey around the earth in 80 days. He ends up travelling through India, Hong Kong, Japan, the U.S. and finally back home to London. He wins the bet by a day. If Mr. Fogg decided to take the same trip now, it might only take him 18 days or less from airport to airport.
The speed of travel has increased and the speed of business is even further ahead. With the touch of a button, goods and services can be traded with the tap of a screen. If commerce is so simple to manage virtually, then why would employees have to travel around the world on business?
No matter how easy it is to do business through computers and phones, much of commerce still runs on face-to-face relationships and networking and international meeting security. Manufacturing companies expect executives to meet vendors and personally review production lines abroad for quality control. The sharing of knowledge and ideas among groups, such as medical experts, works best when they meet in person at conferences. HR managers understand this. They also know it’s their job to help support a secure and safe executive business trip.
Business Travel of Yesteryear and Overseas Meeting Security
In the “Olden Days,” travelling by ship was the only way to handle overseas business. Merchants spent weeks just preparing for a journey from the US to Europe. Goods had to be tallied and organized while food and water was stockpiled. The trip alone could stretch from six to twelve weeks depending on the weather. Also, there was no such thing as overseas meeting security. If merchants survived the trip (maybe with a bit of scurvy) they had the privilege of living. Today, it takes less than 8 hours to fly from the US to Europe. Planning for a trip only requires few minutes of packing and putting the mail on hold.
Modern business travel doesn’t mean executives have to risk their lives to take the trip. In fact, there is more concern about safety risks once arriving to a foreign land. That’s why overseas meeting security is a priority for today’s world travelling VIP. While Phileas Fogg had a team of people to help him, IMG has a team of security professionals available at the tap of a screen. If a VIP needs secure transport to an overseas seminar, a quick use of the FoneTrac app can help make arrangements. If there is a terrorist threat nearby, GlobalSecur will assist with the best route to executive protection.
Global travel no longer takes eighty days and a bad case of scurvy to complete a trip. IMG, International Management Group can access today’s risks to support a smooth overseas meeting security plan in only a few hours.
Photo credit: Cydcor via Foter.com / CC BY