NBTA’s 40th Annual International Convention & Exposition, to be held this year in Los Angeles, is fast approaching. Connecting News caught up with NBTA President & CEO Kevin Maguire, CCTE, to get his take on what attendees can this year expect to get out of the Business Travel Event of the Year.
What about this year’s conference stands out the most to you?
The corporate travel industry has been fighting a sluggish global economy for months, and travel managers have been dealing with challenges such as rising airfares, increased travel fees and taxes, flight scheduling cutbacks and more. I’m sure this will be a major discussion point at this year’s Convention. Not only are many of the education seminars addressing this issue within all segments within business travel, but I know that attendees will also be sharing recent experiences and lessons learned with each other.
Another new feature of the Convention that stands out to me is the full education program we are offering to those with specific strategic meetings management responsibilities. As corporate travel and corporate meetings management are often times handled by the same people or within the same department, NBTA’s Groups and Meetings Committee introduced the concept of developing a Strategic Meetings Management Program (SMMP). The SMMP sessions offered this year will cover various aspects of meetings management, including virtual meetings, hot topics, strategic payment solutions and more.
Finally, NBTA is very proud to be going green this year at Convention. We have reduced printed promotional materials, and those that were printed were done so on recycled paper with environmentally friendly ink. Onsite printed materials will also be greatly reduced, many of which will not be distributed and only available online or by request. Also, the Los Angeles Convention Center is one the greenest facilities of its kind in the world. As the largest solar energy-generating convention center in North America, it offers 100 percent environment-friendly service products, and all foods and plants are composted and recycled.
What advice would you give to a corporate travel professional attending the NBTA Convention for the first time?
Whether attending for the first time or the 40th time, each year the NBTA Convention informs, connects, inspires and entertains corporate travel professionals from the across the globe. First-timers can expect to become a part of an international community made up of travel managers and suppliers from around the world. They will meet colleagues and gain industry expertise that will better prepare them to handle the challenges of these uncertain economic times.
What many first timers are most impressed with is the sheer magnitude of the Convention. We’re talking more than 6,000 people and more than 130,000 square feet of exhibit space. It can be a bit overwhelming at first, but we do a great job of easing first timers into it at the First-Timers’ Orientation and Luncheon. By the time Convention is over, our first timers go home with contacts, insight, empowerment and the excitement of looking forward to next year’s show.
This will be your first year attending the Annual Convention as the NBTA President. Are you more excited that usual?
Yes! What I am most excited about, as I am every year, is meeting new colleagues and reconnecting with old ones. This year I am in a position to hear about the challenges they are facing and their concerns for the future of the industry and address them with the Convention at large. I am excited about introducing folks to NBTA’s Board of Directors and putting their issues and comments in the forefront of the association’s agenda. NBTA is here to serve its members and the global business travel community; I’m looking forward to hearing from everyone about how we’re doing and what we can do to continue to help.
Return to Connecting News July 2008