2023 U.S.-Booked Air Volume: $220 million
Primary U.S. Air Suppliers: American, Delta, Southwest, United
Primary U.S. Car Rental Suppliers: AvisBudget Group, EAN Holdings
Primary U.S. Online Booking Tool: Kayak for Business Enterprise
Primary Global Payment Supplier: American Express
Primary U.S. Expense Supplier: SAP Concur
Consolidated U.S. TMC: Kayak BTX
BTN estimates PwC spent $220 million in U.S.-booked air volume in 2023. The PwC U.S. firm recently overhauled its travel program to implement a new direct-connect and direct-pay configuration, supported by blockchain travel startup BlockSkye and the Kayak for Business Enterprise tool, which was built in collaboration with PwC.
The firm’s new sourcing strategy prioritizes suppliers in the booking tool according to the value of their negotiated deals combined with each suppliers’ ability to participate in PwC’s direct-connect strategy. Connected suppliers include airline partners such as United, American and Southwest. Avis Budget Group is on deck as the first car rental company to participate. The distribution and payment savings gained via this new approach will be reinvested into the firm’s travel program.
PwC is headquartered in London; the activities described above currently are specific to the U.S. firm, based in New York.
Innovation across the firm’s wider travel program has seen the development of specific tools to enhance climate impact awareness among travelers. PwC U.S. has implemented an air travel decision support tool that integrates CO2 emissions calculations into the OBT. The team is also developing an updated version of an air travel dashboard for emissions reporting, according to the firm’s 2023 Network Environment Report.
Meanwhile, PwC Canada has embedded carbon budgets into each of its service lines to encourage behavioural change and, along with PwC France, has deployed an app that allows teams to measure the carbon footprint of a business trip in real time.
The consulting giant has a goal to reduce 50 percent of its Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions from business travel by 2030, against a 2019 baseline. In FY23, the company had already achieved a 49 percent reduction these emissions, which include air travel, hotel stays, car rental, taxi and train travel.