With the economy humming along and business booming, consultants continue to be on the road again—although not at quite the record-setting levels they were last year, according to Consulting Magazine's annual Best Places to Stay survey, which was conducted between April and July. This year, 228 consultants participated in the annual survey, reporting their travel habits and preferences for the last 12 months.
In 2015, 60 percent of consultants reported they spent more than 100 days a year on the road, but that number dipped to a more historically normal 51 percent in 2016, which is closer to where it's been most years. For the purposes of measuring consultants' travel, the 100-day threshold works out to about two or more days per week, which is considered to be the benchmark for being classified a "road warrior."
In terms of days on the road, the biggest shift from last year was in the slightly shorter 51- to 100-day range. Last year, that number was 20 percent; in 2016, that number ballooned up to 28 percent. Meanwhile, the number of consultants traveling fewer than 50 days per year remained relatively unchanged year on year.
