Merge pull request #4925 from FlowFuse/zj-travel-prefs

handbook: CEO travel preferences

Author: ZJvandeWeg

src/handbook/marketing/events.md

@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ Make sure to update the video loop for the screens, check the taglines, customer
 
 The team should confirm their availability around six months before the event, when they're invited to the trade show.
 
-As part of the logistics planning, a booth schedule will be created and accommodation will be booked. Considering those things, travels should be planned and booked two months in advance. For events requiring employee visas, a minimum lead time of 60 days is mandatory to process internal documentation (such as invitation letters) and account for embassy wait times.
+As part of the logistics planning, a booth schedule will be created and accommodation will be booked. Considering those things, travels should be planned and booked two months in advance. General travel policies — including flights, visas, extended stays, and bringing family — are documented in the [Travel handbook](/handbook/peopleops/travel/).
 Team members assigned to an event should avoid scheduling personal travel during the week immediately before the trade show, to help ensure smooth preparation and on-site execution.
 
 If anyone wishes to take days off after the event, it would be ideal to add the out of office event to the team and personal calendars right after booking the travel tickets, so the retrospective meeting can be planned ahead of time considering the team availability.

src/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/calendar-management.md

@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ please:
 
 * Ensure there's no overlapping meetings
    - Or when there's overlap in events, it's clear which one the CEO participates in and which meeting won't be attended.
-* Block times, by creating events, to travel to meetings on-site
+* Block times, by creating events, to travel to meetings on-site (see [Travel Booking](/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/travel-booking/) for CEO preferences)
 * Check the [event anatomy](#calendar-event-anatomy) for meetings
 * Confirm hiring blocks, recurring syncs, and investor meetings are correctly placed.
 * Ensure all Out-of-Office (OOO) blocks remain intact.

src/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/index.md

@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ multiple times a day.
 1. [Inbox Management](/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/inbox-management/)
 1. [Calendar Management](/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/calendar-management/)
 1. [CEO Task Management](/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/task-managment/)
+1. [Travel Booking](/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/travel-booking/)
 1. Other tasks to pick up (Peopleops, bizops, etc)
 
 ### CEO meeting hours

src/handbook/operations/ceo-ops/travel-booking.md

@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+---
+navTitle: Travel Booking
+navGroup: CEO Ops
+---
+
+This page captures the CEO's travel preferences to guide the E.A. when booking
+flights, trains, and hotels. General employee travel policies — including what
+FlowFuse covers for flights and accommodation — are documented in the
+[Travel handbook](/handbook/peopleops/travel/).
+
+## Flights
+
+Flying and being away from home should be optimized in following order:
+1. Ability to get results on site
+1. Limit disruptions to family routines
+1. Reduce Jetlags for long-haul flights
+   Prefer overnight flights on eastbound journeys and daytime flights westbound.
+
+### Seating
+- Aisle seat has the strong prefference. Window seat is ok, never a middle seat.
+- As close to the front of the cabin as possible.
+
+### Airline preferences
+- **Preferred**: KLM (top tier).
+- **Avoid**: United Airlines — it's the US equivalent of Ryanair.
+- **EU travel**: No Ryanair.
+
+### Upgrades
+
+The company at this time doesn't pay for any upgrades, this means that for some
+journeys the CEO will order flights with upgrades and pay the difference back to
+the company. See the [Expenses handbook](/handbook/peopleops/expenses/) for how
+reimbursement works.
+
+* For flights over 3 hours, ensure extra leg-room is order.
+* For flights over 6 hours, discuss how expensive the upgrades to Premium economy or Business class are.
+
+## Loyalty Programs
+
+When booking, please ensure the credit to the right program is set up. Details are
+in 1Password.
+
+| Alliance | Airlines | Program |
+|---|---|---|
+| SkyTeam | KLM, Delta, etc. | Flying Blue (KLM) |
+| Star Alliance | United, Turkish, etc. | Miles & More (United) |
+
+## Trains
+
+For countries where the trains are well organized, like most of the EU and parts
+of Asia, prefer the train to flying. Trains generally have better door-to-door
+travel times, better internet, and less stress.
+
+When booking a train, reserve a seat where possible (Deutsche Bahn!) — saves
+time finding one on board and ensure this time can be used to work.
+
+## Hotels
+
+Location of the hotel relative to work engagements trump the follow list to optimize for.
+However, when there's options, please consider the preferences.
+
+In order, optimize for:
+- A quiet room. Request an interior-facing or courtyard room away from street noise.
+- A park or safe running route in the area is a plus.
+- Hotels that provide shaving products are preferred; traveling with shaving gear is inconvenient.

src/handbook/peopleops/summit.md

@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ dinners and lunches. Each employee is then responsible for booking their own fli
 and travel arrangements. Please check in with the summit organizer on your own personal
 budget, as this will differ person-to-person and be a factor of each employee's location.
 
+See the [Travel handbook](/handbook/peopleops/travel/) for policies on flights, visas, extended stays, and bringing family.
+
 Other expenses whilst performing duties as employee [are reimbursed](/handbook/peopleops/expenses/#expenses) if within the scope of the summit.
 
 ### Alcohol
@@ -88,19 +90,9 @@ be working.
 The Organizer should also factor in the ease of getting Visas for team members who need
 to travel outside of their country. 
 
-### Visas & Invitation Letters
-If a letter of invitation is required, please reach out to BizzOps team so we can generate one. If a visa application is required, the employee will be responsible for covering the associated fees. (Visa applications are part of the standard screening process for travel, and since this applies to all employees, the costs are handled individually rather than as a company expense.)
-
-### Flights
-
-As the summit organizer, you should research rough flight costs for each employee based
-on their location. Add a 10-15% buffer and set this is a budget for that employee.
-Employees are responsible for booking their own flights. 
+### Flights & Accommodation
 
-FlowFuse intends to accommodate a reasonable journey in terms of duration and
-departure time.
-
-FlowFuse will not cover business class flights for employees.
+As the summit organizer, research rough flight costs for each employee based on their location, add a 10–15% buffer, and communicate that as their personal budget. General employee travel policies — including flights, accommodation, visas, extended stays, and bringing family — are documented in the [Travel handbook](/handbook/peopleops/travel/).
 
 ### Accommodation
 
@@ -119,30 +111,6 @@ make the summit days themselves smoother, and more enjoyable.
 In the past, we have had a room share arrangement for a summit, and whilst it
 reduced cost, the feedback was that in the future we should avoid this where possible.
 
-#### Extended Stays
-
-Traveling is a privilege that we should not take for granted. Many employees will
-get to visit places around the world they otherwise would not have had the
-opportunity to visit, and as such, FlowFuse fully encourages employees extending
-their stay either side of the summit, whether this to be working remotely or as [paid-leave](./leave).
-Any costs during this time though, will be at the employee's own expense.
-
-#### Bringing Family
-
-If an employee wishes to bring their family to the summit, they are very welcome to.
-
-Family members are encouraged to attend the social events as part of the summit, it's
-great to get to meet colleague's families and help further build relationships.
-For costs in group bookings, e.g. if FlowFuse have paid for a social event at a fixed
-cost, independent of attendees, then family members are welcome to join for free.
-On occasions whereby an expense is directly proportional to the number of attendees,
-then additional family members will be charged accordingly.
-
-For accommodation, if the employee already has a Double room, then there are no additional costs to
-consider, however if the standard room provided to all employees would be a Twin,
-or Single, and the employee wishes to upgrade this, then additional costs will be
-at the employee's own expense.
-
 ### Food
 
 #### Breakfast

src/handbook/peopleops/travel.md

@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+---
+navTitle: Travel
+---
+
+# Travel
+
+FlowFuse team members travel for company events, including the annual [summit](/handbook/peopleops/summit/) and [trade shows](/handbook/marketing/events/). The policies below apply to all company-related travel.
+
+## Expenses
+
+Travel expenses are reimbursed in accordance with the [expenses policy](/handbook/peopleops/expenses/). The general principle is to treat work-related expenses as if they were your own money.
+
+## Flights
+
+Each employee is responsible for booking their own flights. A per-person budget will be communicated by the event organizer in advance, typically based on estimated costs plus a 10–15% buffer.
+
+FlowFuse accommodates reasonable journey durations and departure times.
+
+FlowFuse does not cover business class flights.
+
+## Accommodation
+
+Hotels near the event venue are preferred over city-central options. Accommodation that includes breakfast is preferred to simplify morning logistics.
+
+## Visas & Invitation Letters
+
+If a letter of invitation is required, please reach out to the BizzOps team to generate one. Allow a minimum of **60 days** lead time to process documentation and account for embassy wait times.
+
+If a visa application is required, the employee is responsible for covering the associated fees. Visa costs are personal expenses, as they are part of standard travel screening that applies to all employees individually.
+
+## Extended Stays
+
+Traveling is a privilege. Many employees will visit places they otherwise would not have the opportunity to see, and FlowFuse fully encourages extending a stay either side of a company event, whether to work remotely or as [paid leave](/handbook/peopleops/leave/). Any costs during an extended stay are at the employee's own expense.
+
+## Bringing Family
+
+Family members are welcome to join for company travel and are encouraged to attend social events. Where an event is booked at a fixed group cost, family members may join for free. Where costs are directly proportional to the number of attendees, additional family members will be charged accordingly.
+
+For accommodation, if an upgrade is needed (e.g., moving from a twin or single room to a double), the additional cost is at the employee's expense.