Corporate Travel Professionals Gather for Largest Corporate Travel Conference in Latin America
Caleb Tiller , +1 703-684-0836, ext. 138
Courtney Leigh Beisel , +1 703-684-0836, ext. 133
CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS FROM LACTTE 2007
Sao Paulo, Brazil (February 5, 2007) – The 2007 Latin American Corporate Travel & Technology Exchange (LACTTE), a three-day networking and education event focused on the corporate travel industry, starts today in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The event, hosted in partnership between the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) and the Brazilian Business Travel Association (ABGEV), is the largest event of its kind hosted in Latin America. More than 550 corporate travel buyers and suppliers from Brazil, the United States and other Latin American countries are in attendance at the conference.
NBTA President and CEO Suzanne Fletcher commented, “NBTA is pleased to once again partner with ABGEV to present the LACTTE 2007 conference. Now offering even more networking and education opportunities, the event is sure to provide participants with an enhanced understanding of current and future trends impacting the industry, and a forum to strengthen buyer and supplier partnerships in the region.”
Based on the overwhelming success of last year’s event, LACTTE 2007 features a significant expansion in its conference program, including: 15 sessions, up from 10 sessions in 2006, across three education tracks; an additional two hours of exhibition time in the Technology Exchange Showcase; and an extra day to accommodate even more professional development and networking opportunities. Education sessions will focus on a variety of topics aimed at improving corporate travel professionals’ knowledge and expertise in the Latin American region. The focus of these sessions include self-booking realities, travel management company relationships, developments in the aviation industry, travel risk management, travel policy compliance and travel distribution.
Vivianne Martins, President of ABGEV, added, “ABGEV and NBTA paid very close attention to the feedback of attendees at the inaugural 2006 LACTTE conference, and worked together to incorporate those comments into the program for this year’s event. Participants in this year’s event are treated to even more leading-edge education sessions that will help develop their expertise and knowledge of the Latin American business travel marketplace even further.”
"Attending LACTTE 2007 is a great opportunity for me to learn more about Latin American region my company continues its expansion into this region," remarked Jim Wilkins, Global Account Manager for Delta Air Lines. "The knowledge and expertise that I will gain through attending the education sessions will help me provide even more strategic value to my corporate travel program, increasing my ability to aid the company in achieving its organizational goals."
The event also features numerous networking opportunities aimed at fostering conversations between corporate travel buyers and suppliers, including four general sessions, a welcome reception and six and a half hours of exhibition time at the conference’s Technology Exchange Showcase. General session keynote speakers include Waldemar Niclevicz, the first Brazilian to climb Mt. Everest; Angela Hirata, Foreign Trade Consultant, Sao Paulo Alpargatas, distributor of the world’s most popular flip-flops; Rodrigo Kede, Chief Financial Officer of IBM; and Lincoln Seragini, President of the Seragini/Farné and member of the Brazilian Academy of Marketing.
Carlos Eduardo Santos, GSK, said, “The networking and technology showcase are great opportunities for me to connect with my peers and build lasting, mutually beneficial business relationships with key suppliers in the region. The knowledge I have gained and the contacts I have made throughout LACTTE 2007 will undoubtedly assist my company in remaining efficient and competitive as the Latin American economy continues to expand.”
For more information regarding LACTTE 2007, please visit www.nbta.org/lactte2007.
About NBTA
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.
About ABGEV
ABGEV is the business travel association representing buyers and suppliers from the business travel community in South America. Before its official launch in 2003, it existed for more than 10 years as an informal group of travel managers providing business travel benchmarking. ABGEV’s goals include growth and improvement of the business travel industry in Brazil and development of strong relationships between all players in the corporate travel market. ABGEV has about 320 members managing more than $200 million USD in annual travel expenditures, and representing about 20 percent of the Brazilian business travel market. For more information, visit www.abgev.org.br.
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