More than 5,200 attendees from around the world joined the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) Convention 2023, which was held August 13-15 at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas. The three-day conference included numerous education sessions, inspirational speakers from across the hospitality and travel ecosphere, and plenty of opportunities for travel buyers and planners to connect.
In addition to sessions exploring everything from DEI initiatives in business and managing neurodivergent travelers to being a courageous leader and balancing the latest tech trends, the GBTA Convention also featured an Industry Insights on Sustainability panel with Marriott President & CEO Anthony Capuano and United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby. The panel discussion dug into how their businesses are leading the way toward a greener future for travel as well as how it can be a sustainably profitable pivot for everyone involved. The Convention also glimpsed into the future with Future Today Institute CEO Amy Webb, who offered how organizations can achieve their preferred future and tackle tomorrow’s most pressing questions about work, relationships, and our way of living.
The association also shared its 2023 Business Travel Index Outlook, which was created in collaboration with Visa. The extensive annual report expects that global business travel is strong and will recover quicker than previously projected, with expectations to exceed pre-pandemic spending levels of $1.4 trillion in 2024 and grow to nearly $1.8 trillion by 2027. In 2022, global business travel spending rose 47 percent to $1.03 trillion, with strong gains continuing and 32 percent growth expected in 2023, according to the report.
The crossover in our industry has long been understood as many from luxury chauffeured transportation also attend and exhibit at the conference. This year, more than a dozen transportation companies were on the show floor, including 305 Transportation, A1A Global Ground, Carey, Dav El/BostonCoach, EmpireCLS Worldwide, Gem Worldwide, Golden Class Limousine, NYC Limousine VIP, Mundi Limos, Reston Worldwide, RMA Worldwide, SIXT, BLS, Sunny’s Limousine, and Urban Worldwide (apologies if we missed anyone!).
“As is GBTA’s mission and promise, Convention is a platform where we bring together in-person the ‘many voices’ in the industry for the ‘one purpose’ of building a better future for business travel through community, learning, and advocacy,” said GBTA CEO Suzanne Neufang. “As GBTA just revealed in our latest five-year forecast report, global business travel is expected to continue to be a resilient industry that is poised for growth while delivering value to global economies, companies and business travelers alike.”
Finally, GBTA also announced the election results, which included five newly elected Board members and other elected leadership positions who will begin to serve immediately for a two-year term.
- President: Mark Cuschieri of UBS
- Vice President: Rosemary Maloney of Alteryx
- Direct Seat, Director-At-Large: Carol Fergus of Fidelity International
- Allied Seat, Director-At-Large: Mike Daly of Serko
- Regional Director--Canada (Direct Member): Elizabeth Oliveira of OMERS
- Allied Leadership Council Chair: Tammy Routh of Marriott International
- Chapter Presidents Council (CPC) President: Ronda Dean of F5 Networks
Next year’s GBTA Convention is scheduled for July 22-24 in Atlanta. The association also has regional events planned for the remainder of 2023, including GBTA APAC Conference in Singapore (September 19-20) and the GBTA + VDR Europe Conference in Hamburg, Germany (November 14-16).
Visit gbta.org for more information.
[08.22.23]