opping the list of misconceptions about federal employees is the myth that most government executives never venture beyond the beltway surrounding the swampy city of Washington, D.C.
In fact, for many feds, it seems that the opposite is true: Washington (or wherever they call home) is a place that they visit only every so often, to hand in a report at headquarters and drop off their dry-cleaning in between trips.
Yes, overall federal spending on travel is decreasing as agencies tighten their budget belts. In fiscal 1995, most agencies spent less on travel than they had estimated they would the year before, and the Office of Management and Budget is projecting a 6 percent decrease in total federal spending on travel between 1995 and 1997. (For more detailed data on government-wide spending on travel between fiscal 1995 and fiscal 1997, see "The Top 200 Federal Contractors," Government Executive's special August 1996 issue.) Agencies such as the Energy Department, the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the State Department are using videoconferencing technology to reduce the need for their employees to travel. The technology enables federal executives to attend conferences, collaborate on scientific projects with researchers from laboratories across the country, preside over hearings or negotiate international trade agreements without leaving home. Still, many federal executives have never traveled as much as they are traveling now. Agency travel may be decreasing, but, due to downsizing, so is the number of employees available to take trips. Employees that survive staff cuts may find themselves taking on more traveling assignments to get their agency's work done.
The departments of State, Transportation and Energy, and the government's financial institutions, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Resolution Trust Corp., are the civilian agencies who report the highest per capita travel expenses. In fiscal 1995, these agencies each spent over $3,500 per employee on business travel.
The nature of federal travel is as varied as agencies' missions. However, travel burnout is a malady to which all frequent federal travelers are susceptible. To avoid it, people need to develop strategies to cope with three aspects of traveling that can most wear them down-dead time, living out of a suitcase and managing the brief interludes they spend at home.
Dead time.
Dead time-those hours spent sitting on plastic chairs before a flight is announced, shuffling from foot to foot at the end of a line at a rental car counter or staring out the window of a taxi stuck in traffic-can consume much of a frequent traveler's life. Steve Yantz, a telecommunications specialist in the Office of the Director of Information Materials at Fort Knox, Ky., considers dead time the worst aspect of traveling extensively. His rule of conduct: "You don't want to add more time to your dead time." That's why Yantz squeezes everything he needs into a carry-on bag when he flies. "I'm usually out of the airport while people are still waiting for their luggage" to appear on the conveyer belt, he says. He may only be saving minutes for each flight he takes, but those minutes would add up to hours of watching baggage carousels over a career.
Yantz also looks to his laptop computer to minimize his dead time. "I can plug into any phone line, dial up an 800 number and retrieve my e-mail, transfer files," he says. "It cuts down on the amount of time you're not useful."
As airlines perfect their ticketless travel procedures, purchasing electronic airplane tickets may become a time-saving strategy. Passengers who have tested ticketless travel know that the system often requires them to wait in a long line at the airport in order to check in with a gate agent and collect boarding passes. In June, American Airlines and United Airlines introduced machines at which ticketless travelers with no checked baggage can confirm their seat assignments and obtain boarding confirmation. The machines, currently in only a few airports, will appear in more terminals as the year progresses.
Living out of a suitcase.
Packing light reduces the hassles of living out of a suitcase. Lugging less means that there are fewer items to leave behind and makes packing a less time-consuming chore. However, packing light can be foolish if carried to extremes. "I've known business men and women who go to such extraordinary means to pack light," writes Jack Cummings in The Business Travel Survival Guide, "that they would practically freeze to death if the temperature dropped 20 degrees." A good rule of thumb is that 90 percent of the contents of a traveler's luggage should be for use on the trip, and 10 percent should be a safety margin-another day's worth of clothing, a second pair of glasses.
The best way for travelers to determine how little they can get away with is to note what items they bring and do not use as they travel and leave them behind on the next trip they take. "You learn quick what you really need, and what you don't need," says Yantz. However, observes Cummings, "each new business trip can dictate new travel requirements." Travelers aiming to pack light for an unfamiliar climate can obtain local weather forecasts from American Express (800-554-2639) or the Internet. Also, suggests Cummings, travelers should time themselves to learn how long it takes to pack, so they know how much time to set aside before each trip. "A rushed packing job is likely to be a poor packing job," he says. This is even more true when packing for a new destination.
In between trips.
Federal employees who travel as frequently as every other week say that their lives at home seem to revolve around preparing for the next trip. After they've submitted their travel voucher, done their laundry, mowed the lawn and filed the travel authorization for their next trip, it's time to hit the road again. Days at home are often compromised by post-trip exhaustion. "When I'm traveling, I have unlimited energy, due to the change of scenery," says Yantz. "When I get back home, I'm wiped out."
Unfortunately, most home-based chores can't be avoided. Many frequent travelers depend on their spouses or roommates to take care of the lion's share of bill-paying, plant-watering and dog-feeding. When leaving an empty house behind, it's important for travelers to practice crisis prevention so precious days at home aren't consumed by cleaning up after disasters that can occur when they are away.
Epicurious Travel, a new site on the Internet (http://travel.epicurious.com) provides a checklist for travelers to ensure their homes are intact when they return. Among the more insightful suggestions:
Unplug televisions, stereos and computers so an electrical storm can't zap them.
Don't close all the curtains, since a completely shuttered house always looks empty.
In the winter, lower the thermostat but don't shut off the heat completely-otherwise, pipes may freeze and burst.
Send clothes to the dry-cleaner while traveling; if the house is robbed, at least you'll have something to wear.
NEXT STORY: Reconsidering Downsizing