Business travel has always been a delicate balance between opportunity and obligation. Today, that balance is being redefined. As hybrid work, global mobility and complex risk environments become the norm, so too does companies’ responsibility to protect their people wherever they may be.
According to the ISO 31030 Travel Risk Management guidelines, duty of care is “the moral responsibility or legal requirement of an organisation to protect the traveller from hazards and threats.” While the concept of duty of care has always applied to all employees, it was traditionally interpreted through the lens of short-term business travel in the corporate travel world. Today, that scope has expanded to include remote workers, regional commuters and long-term international assignees. In this new landscape, duty of care is not static. It evolved alongside how, where and why people travel.
From Travel Risk to People Risk
The conversation around employee safety has moved beyond travel alone. Organisations are now adopting a broader People Risk Management (PRM) framework, which encompasses not only physical safety but also health, behaviour, compliance, digital security and overall well-being.
Within this framework, Travel Risk Management (TRM) plays a specialised role, focusing on the specific risks associated with mobility. Together, PRM and TRM provide the structure companies need to meet their moral and legal responsibilities while ensuring operational continuity. In a world where remote and hybrid work blur the lines between business and travel, these systems are increasingly intertwined.
Knowing Where Your People Are
An effective duty of care framework relies on one simple but vital capability: knowing where your people are. When an incident occurs, whether a natural disaster, a security emergency or a sudden transport disruption, speed matters. The ability to locate employees instantly and communicate clear guidance demonstrates both preparedness and genuine concern for their well-being.
Today’s responsiveness is about smarter orchestration. It’s no longer about new tools, but about connecting the right information at the right time, bringing together traveller locations, risk intelligence and communication workflows to act faster when it matters most. One example is the integration of our risk assessments into a customer’s workflow systems. According to their feedback, this has helped to avoid disruptions and better prepare their travellers, particularly when visiting developing countries.
Recognising Excellence in Duty of Care
Riskline’s expertise in the Duty of Care field has been formally recognised. In October 2025, we won the inaugural Duty of Care Provider Award at the Business Travel Awards Europe. The award highlights the critical role real-time travel risk intelligence plays in keeping people safe wherever they travel. We are proud that this recognition reflects not only our work but also the dedication of all our partners who rely on our intelligence to protect their travellers.
Our winning case study with CESVI, a humanitarian NGO operating in high-risk regions such as Libya, Gaza and Haiti, demonstrated the real-world impact of actionable intelligence. CESVI relies on Riskline’s alerts, pre-travel briefs and destination reports to plan missions, protect staff, evacuate teams from dangerous areas and maintain full audit traceability for every decision. The judges praised our combination of human expertise and AI-backed intelligence, the clarity of our real-time data and our innovative tools, including TripReady and tailored guidance for diverse traveller groups.
Duty of Care in a Decentralised World
In the Travel Risk Management Conference 2025, organised by the TRIP group, in London, industry experts echoed a growing sentiment: duty of care is no longer a one-size-fits-all model. Many organisations are moving away from the traditional “one-stop shop” approach to travel risk management. Instead, they are curating their own ecosystems of specialist providers to achieve a more tailored, high-quality solution.
Our Intelligence Manager, Samir Brahimi, who has been with the company for almost one decade, observes some shifts in the market: “Instead of relying on a single supplier to ‘do everything,’ businesses are now more often combining best-in-class solutions. For example, integrating Riskline’s real-time intelligence with Restrata’s technology for location awareness and incident response. This move toward modular, technology-driven systems reflects a growing demand for flexibility, accuracy and solutions tailored to each company’s unique culture.”
Building a Tailored Framework
This shift toward modular, customised solutions is more than a trend. It reflects the reality that no two organisations face identical risks profiles. For instance, CESVI operates in environments with life-threatening risks, whereas other European clients typically manage travel within Europe, where risks are generally lower but still present. In fact, approximately 30.5% of our Travel Safety and Disruption Alerts (2,961) in 2024 were related to the European region, highlighting that even in perceived “safe” areas, vigilance remains essential.
Effective duty of care today relies on bespoke frameworks tailored to a company’s operational footprint, culture and workforce diversity. By integrating intelligent data sources, organisations can close visibility gaps and embed duty of care across HR, travel and security policies. A flexible, customisable model allows companies to balance consistency with personalisation, ensuring that every traveller is protected according to their specific risk environment.
Redefining Duty of Care for Today
In today’s complex travel landscape, organisations cannot afford to treat duty of care as a compliance exercise. With shifting workplace models, global mobility and unpredictable risks, protecting travellers demands more than policies. It requires actionable intelligence, integrated technology and a people-centred mindset. When these elements come together, companies can anticipate threats, respond in real time and make every journey safer and more efficient.
Effective duty of care is measurable in lives safeguarded, crises avoided and decisions made with confidence. It builds trust between employers and employees, strengthens operational resilience and ensures business continuity in an unpredictable world. By embedding duty of care into every stage of the travel experience, from planning and pre-travel preparation to on-the-ground support, companies can create a culture that prioritises safety without sacrificing agility or performance. In short, modern duty of care turns travel from a liability into a strategic advantage, empowering every traveller and strengthening the organisation as a whole.