The editors of Business Travel News are building an industry glossary to help decode industry terms that may be new – or at least new to you. If there are acronyms or other industry terms you’d like to see on this list, email us. Watch this space for future developments.

ADR – Average Daily Rate. ADR is a hotel performance metric that is calculated by taking the room revenue over number of rooms sold. ADR is impacted by factors like the hotel location, seasonal period, competitor pricing, hotel type and reputation, events, and booking channels.

CRS – Central Reservation System. CRS could be used in reference to any supplier, but as technology has evolved it mostly has been replaced with terminology like GDS (global distribution system) or PMS (property management system). An advanced CRS houses information supplier inventory, availability and rates. It shares this data across all distribution channels, and then syncs incoming online and offline bookings in real time. Specifically with hotels, it also integrates with other modules in a hotel’s PMS, such as front desk operations, revenue management, payment processing and data collection and reporting.

CSR – Corporate Social Responsibility. CSR is a business strategy that includes accountability for how its operations and policies impact such issues as environment, human rights, philanthropy, local economics, diversity and employee wellbeing. Travel managers might consider their company’s commitment to CSR as a factor in designing a travel policy or deciding among suppliers that may – or may not – align with their company’s CSR culture.

CTD – Corporate Travel Department. A CTD is a unit of an organisation that acts as an in-house travel agency. It is responsible for purchasing travel services and distributing them to the organization’s employees. In the US, the Airlines Reporting Corporation can accredit CTDs; in Europe, IATA does so. A CTD can outsource most, some, or none of its travel functions, usually to a travel management company.

ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning. ERP software enables companies to manage day-to-day business operations. This could include tasks like accounting, project management, procurement, and more. Expense management platforms, which are often under a travel manager’s remit, may need to integrate with a larger ERP system.

GDPR – General Data Protection Regulation. GDPR is a crucial component of privacy and human rights laws for European Union citizens. It governs the transfer of personal data outside the EU and European Economic Area. GDPR’s purpose is to enhance individuals’ control and rights over their personal data. All travel or transportation providers that collect or process data about an EU citizen are subject to GDPR compliance.

GDS – Global Distribution System. A GDS is a worldwide computerised reservation system. It serves as a conduit between travel bookers and suppliers, like hotels and other travel-related businesses. A GDS shows product, price, and availability data to travel agents and online booking engines for automated transactions. It is commonly used to tap into the corporate travel market as it’s able to present hotels, flights, and car rentals in one simple interface, offering user convenience.

IATA – International Air Transport Association. IATA is a trade organisation of the world’s airlines that focuses on industry safety, business simplification, environment, consulting and training services, and publication of industry standards.

LCC – Low-Cost Carrier. LCCs are airlines that focus on efficiencies and minimal operating costs that enable less expensive fares. Such carriers may forgo traditional airline amenities such as snacks, earphones and additional leg room. They may also charge extra fees for seat selection, priority boarding, carry-on baggage and other in-flight service attributes. Some examples of LCCs are easyJet, JetBlue, Ryanair, Southwest Airlines and Spirit. Some are divisions of mainline carriers.

LRA – Last room availability. This is a pre-negotiated contract between a business and a hotel the means that as long as a hotel has a room for sale, then a traveller from that company has the right to buy it at the contracted rate.

MICE – Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Exhibitions. MICE is a tourism category that focuses on group travel and events professionals, schools, trade organisations or special interest groups. MICE significantly contribute to the global economy, since they drive demand for hospitality services, transportation, and local attractions.

NDC – New Distribution Capability. NDC is a data standard created by IATA in 2012 to modernise how airlines distribute and sell flight content. It enables carriers to share richer content and more customised offerings compared to what the established data standard now allows for.

OBT – Online Booking Tool. An OBT for business travel is a designated platform that enables users to make flight, hotel, and car rental bookings in one place, and the data is captured for management reporting. Using an OBT saves time and administrative efforts. OBTs may also drive savings, increase compliance and help meet wider company goals like sustainability, if they are configured to do so.

OTA – Online Travel Agency. An OTA is a website that serves as a travel search engine; some also facilitate bookings and some do not. OTAs aggregate providers across the travel industry so users may plan and book trips in one place, whether in package deals or a la carte. Some popular examples of OTAs are Expedia, Kayak, TripAdvisor, Airbnb, and Booking.com. Primarily for leisure travel, OTAs may also have “for business” divisions that cater to managed travel at different levels.

RFI – Request for Information. In business travel, RFIs are usually the first part of the travel procurement process and can help make buyers aware of the solutions that suppliers have to offer. Travel buyers can use an RFI to narrow their supplier targets prior to issuing an RFP (see below).

RFP – Request for Proposal. An RFP is the foundation of a formal business travel supplier sourcing process. It's used to learn details about and invite bids from airlines, hotel, car rental companies, travel management companies, meetings management firms and tech suppliers. Not every sourcing project includes an RFP, but some companies require it on a regular basis. A cottage industry of consultants and third-party suppliers has arisen to help buyers develop, refine, send and analyse RFPs.

RFQ – Request for Quotation. An RFQ happens when a business asks suppliers for the pricing details on specific goods or services. RFQs are typically used for cost comparisons, when a company already knows what they want from a supplier. For corporate travel managers, evaluating and negotiating prices is key in the vendor selection process.

SAF – Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Sustainable Aviation Fuel is an alternative fuel made from non-petroleum feedstock. In the European Union the word “sustainable” has been questioned and is sometimes replaced by “alternative.” Using SAF reduces emissions from air transportation over the lifecycle of the fuel. Most of those savings come in the fuel production process, not from cleaner burning. Travel managers often need to know how SAF is utilised by existing or potential carriers, if they are aligning their travel programmes with emissions reductions efforts.

SABA – Sustainable Aviation Fuel Buyers Alliance. The Sustainable Aviation Fuel Buyers Alliance, or SABA, is a nonprofit group that aims to accelerate the path to net-zero aviation by driving investment in and adoption of high-integrity SAF. In April 2024, SABA committed to investing close to $200 million into the SAF market by agreeing to buy SAF certificates for almost 50 million gallons of SAF.

SLA – Service Level Agreement. A Service Level Agreement is a negotiated agreement between two parties where the level of service required is officially defined. Each specific area of the service scope should be under the same degree of scrutiny. For managed travel, service level agreements are regularly negotiated into travel management company contracts in terms of efficiency required. They may also be integrated into travel supplier contracts and, commonly, meetings contracts.

SME – Small & Midsize Enterprise. SME stands for Small and Midsize Enterprise, also known as Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise or Small and Midsize Business (SMB). An SME has a total employee count, assets, and revenue below a certain threshold. However, those thresholds aren't always the same across industries. For instance, Business Travel News categorises SMEs in the US as companies that have $20 million or less in annual travel spend. In Europe, BTN considers those with €12 million or less in annual travel spend as SMEs.

TMC – Travel Management Company.Travel management companies traditionally handle all the details of business travel like arranging flights, hotel and car rental reservations, but they also support duty of care and business intelligence efforts. Today, TMCs also are among a travel manager’s key technology partners, offering booking tools, payment tools and other key tech components in managed travel. Because of their volume, they many also assist clients in getting better pricing for travel.

TRM – Travel Risk Management. TRM is a way to identify, assess, and reduce risks to employees traveling on behalf of their companies. TRM leaders need to understand the laws and regulations on their employers’ duty of care responsibility in order to develop a response programme for individual or broader crisis situations. Ideally, a TRM programme will have a well-communicated and comprehensive policy, consistent employee training and support from senior leadership.

VAT – Value Added Tax. VAT is a broadly based consumption tax assessed on the value added to goods and services. Specific goods and services are usually exempt from VAT in different jurisdictions, and some VAT can ultimately be reclaimed via VAT reclaim service providers.