Organizing a group tour as a company tour in Malaysia is easy, if the Corporation knows some good tour operators who provide full tour services. Otherwise, it could be a nightmare for the HR Department to organize a good event to satisfy the majority of the employees making the tour as seamless as possible. In Malaysia, most of the HR department tends to do everything by themselves like booking hotels, renting tour buses, finding licensed Malaysian tour guides, itinerary planning, conducting activities such as tele-match and treasure hunt, etc. us. During the tour, if there are any hiccups or problems, HR has to deal with it immediately, even though they are not hired and are experts in running tours. HR staff are hired to increase productivity within the workforce, so let the expert tour operator/tour company plan and execute the company tour.
In Malaysia, some companies and factories are very kind and organize annual company tours, but not all! For those companies that have never organized a business trip, the most important thing for the HR Department to start is to request a budget from management, so that the HR Department knows the perimeters within which to work. Make management understand that giving bonuses to employees may or may not make most employees happy because many would expect higher bonuses all the time. However, providing a company trip can motivate employees and make them happy (travel is a happy event, after all), broaden their horizon outside the workplace, relieve their stress after working so hard all year for the company and foster a better relationship between employees to reduce communication problems between employees!
Then the Human Resources Department will need to canvass the interest of the employees. Brainstorm some tourist destinations that have not been organized before. Nobody likes to travel to the same place over and over again. It is to make sure that the majority of the staff sign up and participate in the company trip. In Malaysia, more than 50% of the populations are perpetual or emotional. They are looking for a work environment that has a ‘home’ atmosphere. Therefore, the company tour provides everyone with good opportunities to foster relationship with each other.
After that, get quotes from your travel company. Do not ask for rates from travel agencies that have luxurious offices in prime locations. They sell tour packages from different tour operators and hotels, but are rarely able to make and operate custom tours, they may not have the ground handling experience themselves. You need to find a well-rounded tour operator who can help you plan and execute your company trip and handle all your travel needs for such a large group.
Evaluating and selecting a suitable tour operator is not an easy task. A good and reliable travel company should be able to handle all activities and needs outside of the client’s office, such as bus rental; plane or ferry ticket; hotel reservation; activities such as meetings, trainings, remote matches, team building, scavenger hunts (also known as event management) for the HR Department to minimize dealing with too many tour service providers to coordinate a successful group tour. Often the Human Resources Department will choose the nearest travel company for convenience or the cheapest package ever offered. In group trips such as business trips, experiences in handling large groups of people are very important. Otherwise, the HR Department will receive all the headaches before, during and even after the company tour has been done.
It is then advisable that the Human Resources Department convene a pre-tour briefing for all trip participants. Most of the time, the setbacks occurred due to communication problems between the Human Resources Department and the participating employees, as well as between the Client and the Travel Company. The selected tour operator will be able to professionally present all necessary reminders and information to all participants so that hiccups and low expectations are minimized!
Of course, don’t forget to plan, negotiate, confirm and pay early and on time. Confirmation in advance will allow the travel company to secure all reservations and get an even cheaper hotel or a better deal for you. Sometimes HR may have the misperception that it will be easier to get better discounts for large groups due to high volume and most hotels will want your business even if it is late or last minute planning and booking . The fact is that the larger the tour group, the more difficult it is to get a hotel reservation, not to mention the discount.
A happy group tour starts with a happy reason and should end with a happy memory. Always remember that.
