Travel Manager

Key Responsibilities

• Own the corporate travel and expense program end-to-end, including policy design, governance, and ongoing optimization.
• Define and track program KPIs — including cost per trip, policy compliance rates, traveler satisfaction, and savings — and report results to various stakeholders on a regular cadence.
• Review, update and maintain the company’s T&E policy, ensuring it reflects current business needs, market norms, and risk considerations; lead change management when policy is updated.
• Proactively identify cost-reduction opportunities through data analysis, benchmarking, and industry best practices.
• Own all travel vendor relationships, including TMC (travel management company), airlines, hotel programs, ground transportation, and expense platform providers. Lead negotiations for preferred vendor agreements, group rates, and volume-based pricing; accountable for delivering against annual savings targets.
• Conduct regular vendor reviews, evaluating performance against SLAs and contract terms; make recommendations for renewals, renegotiations, or transitions.
• Stay current on market trends, new entrants, and pricing dynamics to ensure the company’s vendor portfolio remains competitive.
• Serve as the business owner for the company’s travel booking and expense management platforms, including configuration, policy enforcement, and integration with ERP. Lead any platform evaluation, selection, or implementation initiatives; manage the relationship with the platform provider.
• Identify and implement platform enhancements that improve adoption, compliance, or efficiency; drive employee enablement and training.
• Ensure the travel program complies with applicable regulations, including international travel requirements, duty of care obligations, and government travel restrictions.
• Partner with Legal and People teams on traveler safety protocols and emergency response procedures; serve as an escalation point for complex or high-risk travel situations.
• Provide a high-quality traveler support experience, including support for urgent changes or emergencies outside normal business hours.
• Maintain documentation and audit trails to support internal controls and expense reporting accuracy.

Qualifications

• 12+ years of experience working in a corporate travel program, ideally in a company with 1,000+ employees and significant international travel volume.
• 5+ years owning or leading a corporate travel program.
• Demonstrated success negotiating vendor contracts and managing preferred supplier programs, with measurable savings outcomes.
• Hands-on experience managing or implementing travel booking platforms and/or expense management systems (e.g., Concur, Navan, TripActions, Egencia, Coupa).
• Strong analytical skills; comfortable building reports, interpreting travel data, and presenting program performance to stakeholders and leadership.
• Deep knowledge of international travel requirements, duty of care frameworks, and visa/documentation processes.
• Excellent cross-functional communication and stakeholder management skills; able to influence without authority at multiple levels of the organization.
• A calm, solutions-oriented presence under pressure — travelers will count on you when things go sideways.

Benefits

• Medical Insurance: Comprehensive health insurance plans covering a range of services. Saronic pays 100% of the premium for employees and 80% for dependents.
• Dental and Vision Insurance: Coverage for routine dental check-ups, orthodontics, and vision care. Saronic pays 99% of the premium for employees and 80% for dependents.
• Time Off: Generous PTO and Holidays.
• Parental Leave: Paid maternity and paternity leave to support new parents.
• Competitive Salary: Industry-standard salaries with opportunities for performance-based bonuses.
• Retirement Plan: 401(k) plan.
• Stock Options: Equity options to give employees a stake in the company’s success.
• Additional Perks: Free lunch benefit and unlimited free drinks and snacks.