Caleb Tiller
, 703-684-0836, ext. 138
Courtney Leigh Beisel
, 703-684-0836, ext. 133
Alexandria, VA (February 21, 2006) -- The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) today provided members the next installment in the groundbreaking series Framework for Success: Strategic Meeting Management Programs. The paper serves as a guide for travel managers who are making technology decisions with regard to the development or management of a strategic meetings management program (SMMP).
Like the other Framework for Success papers, Choosing the Right Technology in Support of Your Strategic Meetings Management Program was authored by the NBTA Groups and Meetings Committee. It builds on the six best practice steps outlined in the first paper of the series, explaining how technology can be used to manage and support each of those steps. Readers will learn eight selection criteria to use in reviewing meetings management technology and the importance of conducting a cost/benefit analysis when purchasing such technology.
“Choosing the Right Technology will give readers the knowledge to effectively select and use technology to manage a successful strategic meetings management program,” said committee Co-Chair Kari Knoll Kesler, Global Manager- Honeywell Meeting Solutions, Honeywell, Inc.
Committee Co-Chair Joni Miyashiro, Travel Manager, Amgen Inc., said, “The members of the NBTA Groups and Meetings Committee continue to hear from colleagues throughout the industry what a useful resource the Framework for Success series has been. We are pleased to continue meeting that need with this latest paper on meetings management technology.”
The NBTA Groups & Meetings Committee was formed in 2003 in response to NBTA member feedback indicating travel managers were increasingly expected to provide value in the corporate meetings arena. In March 2004, the committee issued Building a Strategic Meetings Management Program, the first paper in the Framework for Success: Strategic Meeting Management Programs series. The well-received paper pioneered the strategic meetings management concept. Since then, the committee has expanded the series to include:
- Building a Strategic Meetings Management Program
- Critical Meeting Components: Hotel and Air
- Building a Meetings Policy in Support of Your Strategic Meetings Management Program
- Mobilizing Internal Stakeholders in Support of Your Strategic Meetings Management Program
- Choosing the Right Technology in Support of Your Strategic Meetings Management Program
NBTA members can learn more about developing and implementing a strategic meetings management program by reading the entire series, available at http://www.nbta.org/Research/WhitePapers. Members of the media interested in copies of the papers can contact the NBTA media relations team at pr@nbta.org or 703-684-0836. The NBTA Groups and Meetings Committee will share additional SMMP technology information in a seminar at the NBTA International Convention & Exposition, July 16-19, 2006, at McCormick Place in Chicago.
The National Business Travel Association is the source for critical information on the business travel industry. For more than 35 years, NBTA has dedicated itself to the professional development of its members through advocacy, education and training, and networking opportunities. NBTA represents over 2,700 corporate and government travel managers and travel service providers, who collectively manage and direct more than $170 billion of expenditures within the business travel industry. For more on NBTA, visit www.nbta.org.
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