Fast-shifting technological, economic, and geopolitical dynamics are reshaping how organisations operate, and making it harder than ever for leaders to plan with certainty. As we move into 2026, businesses are adopting more adaptable, intelligence-driven approaches, especially in finance and travel functions. That means keeping pace with emerging trends, from agentic AI to new forms of expense fraud.
Below are five ways to prepare for what’s ahead in travel and expense (T&E), with insights from SAP Concur executives on how leaders can stay in front of the curve.
Implement AI wherever it can add value
AI continues to transform the travel ecosystem, from biometric verification to predictive maintenance on airport machinery. Organisations are exploring where AI can deliver value across HR, finance, and procurement and T&E is no exception.
Travellers are increasingly comfortable with AI handling entire booking journeys, not just suggesting itineraries. Embedding AI directly into booking workflows will help T&E teams offer faster, more intuitive experiences.
AI also supports real-time flexibility. As Jen Moyse, Vice President of Product and Head of UX at SAP Concur, notes: “[Businesses] will use it to enhance duty of care, predicting risks and personalising safety alerts to individual travellers.”
Build a trust-first approach to AI
AI adoption is accelerating across travel, enabling more personalised, seamless journeys. But AI is only as reliable as the data beneath it, and it introduces new risks, from biased outputs to privacy concerns and fraud.
Building trust requires clear data standards, strong security, and human oversight. It also means reassuring employees that AI augments their work rather than replaces it. Charlie Sultan, President of Concur Travel at SAP Concur, explains: “All eyes will be on companies and how they approach talent and staffing in response to AI adoption. Establishing trust and ensuring transparency will be critical in the year ahead.”
Connect existing applications and data sources to AI systems
Workplace platforms like Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Google Workspace now have AI embedded directly into daily workflows. As a result, tasks such as travel booking and expense reporting are increasingly handled where employees already work.
Christopher Juneau, SVP and Head of Product Marketing at SAP Concur, sees this momentum reshaping the entire T&E process: “In a few short years, the concept of an ‘expense report’ may be obsolete, replaced by agentic AI that audits, reconciles, and reimburses automatically in the background.”
To unlock this potential, organisations should integrate their key data sources such as itineraries, receipts, invoices, paystubs with AI systems. This enables AI to validate information across multiple inputs and creates a more accurate, reliable view of every transaction
Balance innovation with cost control
Market volatility is pressuring organisations to strengthen cash positions while still investing in transformative technologies. Many small and midsize businesses (SMBs) are therefore focusing their resources on a narrow set of high-impact growth bets, including strategic travel and automation.
The challenge for 2026 will be ensuring business travel delivers tangible return on investment. Automation can help by reducing manual work, strengthening policy compliance, and providing real-time analytics to identify savings opportunities.
Other technologies will reinforce this mission. As Kacey Flygare, General Manager and Global Business Head, SMB, at SAP Concur, explains: “Pre-spend controls such as virtual cards and dynamic card controls will be gamechangers in how organisations control spend, lower risk, and reduce the burden of cash outlay for business expenses.”
Take a “failure-forward” mindset
Finance organisations at the forefront of AI adoption recognise that experimentation is essential. As administrative tasks shift to AI, teams must learn, iterate, and refine their approaches, even if that means failing along the way.
This mindset can be uncomfortable for finance professionals, who are traditionally trained to minimise errors. But embracing structured experimentation will be key to unlocking AI’s full impact.
According to Sonja Simon, Chief Financial Officer, SAP Americas: “Leaders must lead by example and create an environment where taking calculated risks is encouraged, mistakes are examined without blame, and learning is celebrated as progress.”
“Only when failure becomes a data point, not a downfall, will the finance function fully unlock AI’s potential to reimagine decision-making, growth, and value creation across the business.”
In the coming year, staying tuned into the trends shaping T&E will help organisations maintain momentum and make smarter use of emerging technologies. By embracing new tools and ways of working as they evolve, businesses can position themselves as agile pacesetters — ready for the next era of travel and expense.
