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“We are thrilled to have Kevin join our team,” said Pow Wow Smart CEO Evan Michaels. “He has one of the most valuable and recognized brand names in both travel and meetings management. Kevin truly understands group ground transportation, our solution, and where we fit into strategic meetings management (SMM) and the meetings & conventions ecosystem. We have no doubt that Kevin will help guide our intention to lead in managing this spend category.”
Iwamoto brings a diverse career of industry experience, knowledge and respect, having been a global procurement senior category buyer with HP, in travel management with the Walt Disney Company and on the supplier side, having recently retired from Lanyon in May 2016. Most recently, he received the prestigious Top 20 Changemaker Award from MeetingsNet in June, and a week later was awarded the MPI RISE Award for Meetings Industry Leadership. His industry blog won the 2015 Gold Magellan Award for Best Industry Blog from Travel Weekly magazine. Iwamoto is also credited as being one of the founding thought leaders that created SMM programs while he was ending his term as president and CEO of Global Business Travel Association in 2003.
“Pow Wow Smart has created a valuable technology platform that is a procurement professionals’ dream in terms of pricing transparency and sourcing documentation,” Iwamoto said. “I’m hoping to assist with the articulation of their value chain contribution to existing SMM programs and look forward to working with the executive team and advisory board members of Pow Wow Smart.”
Visit powwowsmart.com or miride.com for more information.
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Featured speakers included United CEO Oscar Munoz, who offered a candid assessment of his airline and air travel in general: “The airline industry has made travel hell for business travelers. We need to do better to improve the air travel experience. My goal is to show you can run a business with heart that also makes money for its investors,” he told the audience. TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger also took the stage for a one-on-one interview with GBTA Executive Director and COO Michael W. McCormick.
With mergers and acquisitions of some of the best-known brands in the air travel, lodging, and ground transportation sectors continuing at a rapid pace, GBTA Convention 2016 featured a Center Stage panel discussion on the topic of consolidation with some of the most well-known experts in the field. Moderated by Guy Langford of Deloitte & Touche, the panel comprised: Cvent CEO and Founder Reggie Aggarwal; Expedia President and CEO Dara Khosrowshahi; and Accor Hotels COO Kevin Frid. The panelists agreed that with a healthy and robust reliance on technology, as well as the continued environment of low borrowing and easy access to capital, consolidation will continue to be a major driver shaping the business travel landscape for years to come.
CNN anchor Richard Quest moderated a lively discussion on the future of ground transportation between Lyft Chief Business Officer David Baga and Dav El/BostonCoach CEO Scott Solombrino. Duty of care, fair wages for drivers, and safety based on background checks seem to be where the traditional ground transportation companies make their strongest arguments. Ride-sharing services, on the other hand, point to their high demand and successful business model to advance the argument that travelers have made their decision.
Solombrino was also joined by David Seelinger of EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services to discuss how their companies have spearheaded an effort to join together several hundred affiliates across the country for an extensive "ASAP Fleet" of luxury cars. New York City will be the first location to launch later this summer, followed by a systematic roll-out of destinations across the U.S. More information will be available at a later date.
The new app will provide corporate clients and consumers with not only the convenience of tap-and-ride transportation but also an unmatched level of service and safety measures (including background checks, drug testing, insurance, defensive driver training, etc.), which can only be available from companies who have spent years training and managing professional chauffeurs.
"This is an exciting time in the chauffeured car industry," Solombrino said. "It is extremely important to both companies that our clients continue to receive the highest level of customer care they have always enjoyed, while at the same time have access to the immediacy of on-demand technology which smartphones and portable devices can now provide."
"Our new on-demand service will streamline the process for clients to book rides with us and our affiliates," added Seelinger. "The app is our safe solution for clients who need last-minute transportation and have high expectations for the quality of their ride."
Actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus and NFL quarterback Peyton Manning also inspired the audience, as did Featured Speaker and NASA astronaut Navy Captain Scott Kelly, who has spent more time in space than any other American—including his record-breaking year at the International Space Station. Captain Kelly spoke of the many similarities between space and business travel: "If you don't try to make things better—even a little bit—they are going to get worse... Sometimes you have to prepare for a very unlikely scenario that could have a huge impact."
Next year’s Convention will be in Boston, Mass., July 15-19, 2017.
Visit www.gbta.org for more information.
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CLA President Dianne Cavender of DDG Classic Limousine kicked off the meeting with introductions, housekeeping, and expressing her satisfaction with the evening event’s turnout. Treasurer Nikko Ouzounis of White Dove Limousine then presented his financial report, and Doug Pooley of Colorado Limousine and Jody Cowen of Carey Denver provided an update on their efforts to thwart Denver’s unconstitutional herdic law, which encompasses municipal ordinances mandating that all for-hire vehicles operating within the city have a herdic license.
Weiss then spoke to those in attendance about both the benefits of attending CD’s 2016 Show in Washington, D.C. and how Colorado market at large compares and contrasts to the industry on a national level. He emphasized that while TNCs have invaded the region’s ground transportation, the luxury sector will remain competitive with corporate travel and airport transfers.
He also discussed the growing trend of group work, and how both retail and bus-type trips will continue to be assets to the industry with their high barriers to entry for TNCs. With the Global Business Travel Association’s (GBTA’s) 2016 Convention going on in nearby Denver, the event’s announcements, like EmpireCLS Worldwide Chauffeured Services and Dav El/BostonCoach coming together to create an industry-wide on-demand app, were also explored.
After also touching upon the growing trend of operators putting buses and motorcoaches in their fleets and how technology continues to be an instrument of evolution in chauffeured transportation, Weiss raffled off two passes to CD’s Show, which were won by Avi Ancel of Uptown Limo and Steve Felt of Colorado Black Car.
Among CLA’s many committees reporting on their efforts, the Legislative/PUC/Airport Report indicated that measures have been taken to get rid of all non-safety-related rules, with a particular focus on eliminating the 10-year rule for vehicle turnover. The Education Committee has reached out both legal and transportation speakers to present at future meetings, while the Public Relations Committee called for newsletter submissions, social media materials, and volunteers to keep the PR momentum going.
Cavender then reminded members that they can submit questions for the board to address at future meetings’ roundtable discussions, which aim to clarify any concerns that any members have about everything from insurance to the industry in general to the association in particular. She also put out the call for more member involvement with the CLA’s Legislative, Membership, Sponsorship, and Education committees to help maximize the benefits of being an association member.
The next CLA general meeting will be September 20.
Visit cololimo.org for more information.
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