Global

Worldwide deployment of CWT Discovery to be completed in early 2005, now available in Europe

Enhanced worldwide data warehouse also unveiled

STOCKHOLM – October 18, 2004 – Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) today announced the roll out of CWT Discovery in Europe, nearly completing the worldwide deployment of its global Web-based reporting product for corporate travel clients. CWT Discovery offers a comprehensive array of reporting and analysis capabilities to provide corporate travel managers with consistent, high-quality data to better manage their travel programs. With CWT Discovery, clients around the world will use the same product for local, regional and global reporting. The announcement was made at the annual global conference of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) held in Stockholm, Sweden.

The deployment of CWT Discovery in Europe is part of a phased approach to implement the product globally. It was first introduced to the corporate travel market in North America in 2001, the Asia-Pacific region in early 2002 and will conclude with Latin America in early 2005. CWT Discovery has been continually enhanced, adapted and primed for release worldwide and is already deployed to more than 1,800 clients.

“We’ve been impressed with the capabilities of CWT Discovery thus far,” stated Lisa Jacobsen, global director, Corporate Travel Services of Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. “Now with the worldwide roll out of a common platform, it will move us to the next level – ensuring consistent global reporting for BMS, ultimately empowering us to best optimize our travel program.”

CWT Discovery reporting has been continually improved upon with the input of CWT clients and its account management teams, and includes industry best practices from around the world. It is fully intuitive, available around the clock through secure Web access, and is completely scaleable to accommodate all client profiles – from users who want basic, snapshot reporting to those who need the ability to manipulate data in a variety of ways for custom reporting and ad hoc research and analysis.
Through CWT Discovery, clients are able to access detailed transaction data and track costs by their desired metrics.

The most powerful element, however, is combining this reporting data with the consulting expertise of CWT. This enables CWT to proactively identify cost saving opportunities and deliver actionable intelligence to its clients. From this information, clients can drive travel policy compliance and measure the fulfillment of supplier contracts, allowing them to be better prepared for negotiating fares and new supplier agreements. Ultimately, CWT clients can use this intelligence to make data driven decisions and manage business travel expenditures.

“The value of CWT Discovery is its ability to offer our multinational clients a global approach to gathering meaningful data,” said Martin Warner, executive vice president CWT Global Sales and Marketing. “When combined with our consulting expertise, clients are armed with meaningful analysis and intelligence to optimize their travel programs.”

Worldwide Data Warehouse  
CWT also announced today the completion of its single worldwide data warehouse, providing a reinforced, consolidated foundation for the CWT Discovery product. Although the company previously had the ability to globally consolidate data from numerous sources for clients, CWT is implementing a single worldwide data warehouse, the most comprehensive and robust in the travel management industry. Via this single data warehouse environment, CWT will now capture client data that is identical around the world. CWT clients are benefiting from even more consistent data worldwide, with the same functionality and quality assurance processes from region to region, around the world.

Unique to CWT Discovery are the industry-defining business rules written by CWT. Although transparent to clients, these superior data processing rules apply common definitions and calculations to the data and translate that data for clients in the same, consistent manner locally, regionally and globally. In other words, CWT has examined every important detail and subtle nuance in the data collection process, ensuring all data calculations are the same around the world. The benefit to CWT clients is consistent, integrity-rich data for all CWT clients and their offices worldwide.

As the largest wholly-owned network in the world, CWT has more control over client data than its competitors. CWT can consistently collect data in a timely manner and consolidate all data on behalf of its global clients. This ensures rich and comprehensive reporting with a common user experience for all CWT clients.

About Carlson Wagonlit Travel

Carlson Wagonlit Travel is a world leader in business travel management with locations in more than 140 countries. Its core business is to assist companies of all sizes in optimizing their corporate travel expenditure and processes. CWT designs and implements superior travel management programs for clients based upon its recognized consulting expertise, strong purchasing power, technological knowhow, and high-quality service. CWT deploys the right people, processes, skills and technologies to consistently deliver unparelled service and bottom-line results to its corporate clients. The company generates over $11.5 billion USD in annual sales and is co-owned by Paris-based Accor group and Minneapolis-based Carlson Companies. For more information, visit www.carlsonwagonlit.com.

 
Press Contacts

Pascale Dumon
Carlson Wagonlit Travel
+33 (1) 41 33 65 19
pdumon@cwtfrance.com

Laurie Alexander
Carlson Wagonlit Travel
763-212-2079
llalexander@carlson.com

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