Behind the scenes
A look behind the trips: our global team, workplace culture and Giving Back.
In 2025, our global team grew again
We invested in destination knowledge, strengthened our approach to inclusion and built more capacity across the business.
What the team told us
The headline message was consistent with previous years: the people make it. Team members, culture, flexibility, trust, pride in the mission and connection to our destinations all came through as things people continue to value.
At the same time, growth placed pressure on the experience of working here. Our eNPS – which measures whether employees would recommend Inside Travel as a place to work – averaged +6 in 2025, down from +20 in 2024.
How we're responding
In response to feedback, our People & Organisational Development annual plan focuses on improving communication, strengthening learning and development opportunities and supporting managers to better understand and act on employee feedback.
Key actions include:
- Launching a new Employee Handbook with enhanced policies and guidance.
- Launching Compass, ITG's first global learning platform, giving team members easier access to learning and development opportunities.
- Introducing Insight to Impact, helping managers turn employee feedback into meaningful action and improve visibility of actions.
- Pay and benefits review including a review of the company bonus structure and global benchmarking of salaries.
The drop in eNPS in 2025 reflected the reality of a year of growth and change. While our culture and people remain a clear strength, the experience of working here hasn't always kept pace with the demands placed on teams. We see this as a turning point rather than a setback.
Inclusion and belonging
In 2025, ten colleagues from all four branches formed our first EDI Action Group, moving EDI from informal commitment to a structure with clear ownership and Board-level visibility.
By the end of the year, the group had helped deliver:
- First EDI Strategy: Board-approved, with more than 70 actions identified and prioritised
- EDI Policy: Shared expectations formally set across the business
- Board reporting: EDI progress and risks added to formal Board updates
- Gender Pay Gap Report: Our first formal analysis of gender pay differences
- EDI Hub: A new internal resource covering neurodiversity, religion, LGBTQ+ inclusion, disability and mental health
Access to a break
Giving Back began with a simple purpose: to help families facing financial pressure, illness, caring responsibilities or bereavement access a short break, respite or meaningful experience.
Travel gives people time together, new experiences and memories that last. For some families, those moments can be especially hard to access.
In 2025, our branch Giving Back partners helped families and children access holidays, wishes, camps, getaways and shared experiences.
Giving Back in 2025
Each year, we commit up to 5% of adjusted profit after tax to Giving Back.
In 2025, most funding went to our branch charity partners, reflecting Giving Back’s original focus on access to breaks, respite and shared experiences. The remaining funding supported destination partners, employee-nominated charities and emergency relief.
Family Holiday Charity (UK): £36,600
Helping families coping with some of the toughest challenges life can bring access short breaks and day trips. Our donation was equivalent to around 49 family holidays, supporting approximately 252 people.
A Dream A Day in Tokyo (Japan): £11,483
Arranging dream trips to the Tokyo area for children fighting incurable illness, together with their families. Our donation was broadly equivalent to supporting one family’s trip.
Make-A-Wish (Japan): £11,495
Supporting children with critical illnesses to experience a wish that brings joy, confidence and time with family during difficult periods. Our donation was roughly equivalent to funding two to three wishes.
Make-A-Wish Colorado (United States): £16,884
Helping grant wishes for children with critical illnesses across Colorado, creating moments of hope and lasting memories for children and their families. Our donation was equivalent to almost three wishes.
Camp Quality (Australia): £11,495*
Providing essential support for children facing cancer and their families, including camps, retreats and the chance to make new, positive memories away from cancer. Our donation was equivalent to supporting approximately 16 families.
*Donated in January 2026 at the charity's request.
We use a percentage of profit because it is simple, consistent and meaningful. When the business grows, the fund grows. Our partners know support is coming, and our teams know their contribution matters, wherever they work.
Access to opportunity in Siem Reap
Giving Back also supports destination partners. In 2025, that included a £10,400 donation to Child’s Dream, helping fund the SPOONS Hospitality Development Programme in Siem Reap.
SPOONS provides vocational hospitality training, life skills education, accommodation, internships and job placement support for young Cambodians from low-income backgrounds.
Our donation was enough to support the equivalent of around four students through a full year of training. Across the programme, 50 young people completed training, and 98% secured employment within one month of graduation.
Emergency relief
Most Giving Back funding is planned. Some of it cannot be.
We reserve a small part of the Giving Back pot for emergency relief, so we can respond when urgent needs arise. In 2025, that funding supported communities affected by flooding, earthquakes and severe weather across Brisbane, Japan, Cambodia and Vietnam.
- Red Cross, Brisbane flooding
- The 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake
- Just a Drop, Cambodia Emergency Relief
- GlobalGiving Southeast Asia Flood Relief Fund
Team volunteering
Every team member has two paid volunteering days each year to support causes and organisations that matter to them. In 2025, teams supported children’s camps, animal shelters, local clean-ups and environmental restoration projects.
In Brisbane, the team focused on restoring creek habitats around the city, including areas affected by Cyclone Alfred. Working with Cubberla Witton Catchments Network and Save Our Waterways Now, they planted native plants, cleared invasive species from creek banks and helped open a new restoration site in the city’s inner west.
Establish the Inside Travel Foundation
Giving Back is evolving. We are establishing the Inside Travel Foundation as a formal charitable structure to widen access to travel and meaningful experiences, while supporting community-led work. It will also give us clearer governance around how partners are selected, funded and reported on.
Improve employee experience
Continue acting on employee feedback, with a focus on communication, learning and development, manager support, pay and benefits. Key actions include a new Employee Handbook, Compass, Insight to Impact and a pay and benefits review.
Turn EDI strategy to action
Prioritise the actions identified by the EDI Action Group and report more clearly on progress, gaps and what changes as a result.
