Business Travel and the Routine Practices of Mutual Theft

In general terms, theft is the taking of another person's property or services without that person's permission or consent with the intent to deprive the rightful owner of it.

The word theft is also used as an informal shorthand term for some crimes against property, such as burglary, embezzlement, larceny, looting, robbery, shoplifting, library theft or fraud.

In some jurisdictions, theft is considered to be synonymous with larceny; in others, theft has replaced larceny. 

Someone who carries out an act of or makes a career out of theft is known as a thief.

In short, something tangible or intangible is taken from another party. 

Tangible elements include money, property or goods. 

Intangible elements include time, services, health, information or knowledge. 

This includes 'social contracts' which constitute many modern working or employment agreements.

Business travel is laden with theft and perpetrated by a variety of actors, often mutually constructed. 

These thefts may breach specific criminal codification or morally and socially accepted standards. 

Theft may be singular, systemic or chronic. 

More insidiously is when one actor not only steals from another party, but they also derive a commercial gain or advantage of this 'free carry'. 

Many are invisible or have become the normative behaviours of multiple actors, all in the name of free-markets, tourism, travel and 'benefit'. 

So how does it work precisely?

A business may impose after hour demands or expectations upon an individual in the name of or promise of reward in the form of travel. 

The individual is not commensurately compensated, paid or remunerated for the additional work or contributions but expected to treat travel as a suitable substitute or reward for being exploited. 

The greater the exploitation, the higher the enticement or promise or reward. 

Business class, reward points, luxury hotels and the like. 

Nonetheless, it is still a quantifiable theft of one party's resources carried out by another. 

There is no informed consent. 

Actual value and costs are concealed, and there is no bill of sale, invoices or accurate records maintained. 

This qualifies as a fraud in many jurisdictions. 

The practice may be modified or less blatant. 

Individuals are forced to take on additional management tasks and functions beyond their specific skills and contracted agreements for similar travel and reward benefits. 

Highly mobile 'business travellers' now become travel agents, logistic managers, technology support, security analysts and cost efficiency experts on behalf of the company simultaneously juggling multiple roles, demands and skills for the 'reward' of travel, which in itself may be taxing, demanding and required a vast array of additional skills outside of just getting there and back. 

Individuals become conditioned to think it is a 'rights of passage', 'part of the job' or even orientate themselves to the rewards by becoming proud and aloof because of their 'status', rewards and entitlements. 

Entire employee populations and professions may be systematically exploited without ever giving a thought to their loss and the company's significant gain. 

To question, resist or question such practices is considered rebellious, lacking loyalty, 'not a team player' or many other neutralising statements aimed at shaming and quieting the victim or justifying the act. 

Health, wellness, family time, private life and standard of care are a growing list of sacrifices made by individuals that are tantamount to theft. 

However, as stated earlier, theft is a mutual construct. 

Individuals seek compensation, offset or invoke an array of entitlements on behalf of the actual or perceived injustice. 

Business trips have inbuilt wastage, inefficiencies, variance, complexity and opportunity. 

Business travel now becomes extended, and terms such as 'bleisure' become normative terms the conceal industry practices of theft, fraud and misappropriation of resources without consent or knowledge. 

Providers and representatives now become implicit in enabling deviant, criminalistic or questionable practices…for a fee. 

Business travellers introduce wastage, extravagance, excuses or economic trade-offs without clear declarations or documentation. 

Complex, systematic wastage, inefficiencies or theft are often endorsed or go undetected by 'travel managers' who are measured by simple performance or financial metrics often suspended when 'talent' rebel or demand specific travel compensations for their level of talent or 'worth'. 

Highly skilled, knowledgable and mobile managers and executives become adept at 'gaming the system' or deriving enhanced benefits. 

Business rewards become personal rewards, families and partners travel on repurposed company resources and efficient business practices become drawn out inefficient trips for leisure, networking, socialising, sightseeing and numerous other personal benefits. 

Providers become enablers for both parties, acting as a seemingly legitimate broker of mutual theft. 

Encouragement and facilitation of change, inefficiencies and wastage generates fees and conceal revenue channels for providers. 

Each interaction, no matter how small, exacts a fee. 

Small transactional costs mount up and dispersed across a large enough client base, make millions in revenue. 

Coupling private and personal travel affords double-dipping and double the revenue. 

Companies and individuals become tethered to the system that facilitates rewards and kickbacks via mutual thefts and brokerage. 

Technology conceals activities and reduces the threshold for detection. 

Integrations and connections with other travel and tourism networks amplify and conceals theft. 

Illegitimate transactions are presented as valid fees and commissions apportioned to third-parties and 'cost of business' required to access the network. 

Data and technology become isolated metrics from business and financial accountabilities. 

In a thieves market, everyone is invisible, and accountability for the market is no linked to any one individual or entity. 

Thieves markets attract both predators and prey. 

Many don't realise which role they fulfil.

Junkets, conferences, associations, cohorts, fixed and trailing commissions and incentives further contribute and conceal the market, which can simultaneously exist physical and virtually. 

Profitability may result in public listing and shareholding. 

Shareholders, institutions and investors flock to profitability and returns without disclosure or understanding that increasing numbers within the industry are replicants of transnational organised crime. 

Ethical sourcing, human rights, labour exploitation and data/financial governance become standards for 'other markets' and industries. 

Tax avoidance, labour exploitation, intellectual property theft, data mismanagement, financial transaction violations, human trafficking, profiteering, materiality declaration, conflicts of interest, bribery/corruption, collusion, oligopoly, monopsony, ex-post ransom, insolvency and price-fixing become milestones and practices of multinational representatives on a scale that surpasses individuals and corporate consumers. 

Governments lobbying for local economic rewards associated with the broad, unspecified banner of 'tourism' draw in public spending and interests. 

Practices and providers become normalised and legitimised. 

Local providers and individuals are forced to comply, and a levy is imposed for inclusion to 'the network' is imposed. 

Transnational organised crime has become syndicated, and everyone loves it. 

Or do they? 

Who is 'looking' at it and who is 'looking the other away'? 

When the music stops, who will have a chair and who will be left holding the blame? 

"Bad apples, bad barrels and bad barrel makers" is possibly a more insightful and appropriate guidebook for business travel and the associated industry or markets. 

Not listed will be those that struggle against the system, victims, transparency or declared interests. 

"Long live self-organising free markets"? 

Tony Ridley

Enterprise Security Risk Management & Security Science