Keynote: The Challenge of Change
Encompassing a motivational and dynamic future view of the global business world, this keynote presentation begins with an initial look back over past business, consumer and lifestyle trends and summarises the resultant pressures and changing dynamics of today's key business issues.
Ten must-have features of a Travel Policy
Building and implementing a corporate travel policy can be a daunting task, especially when it seems as though there are so many aspects and variables to consider.
Jo-Anne Lloyd, independant travel consultant.
In order to effectively strategise buying practices and enhance negotiation opportunities, one needs to have a clear understanding of the procurement process from both sides of the fence.
Hisham Elfil, business project development advisor, Qatar Foundation
Roland Bunge, general manager commerical, Kanoo Travel
The art of airline contracting and corporate data management
Developing and maintaining good relationships with preferred airlines can truly be described as an ‘art’. It is often hard to know where to start when trying to grasp an understanding of the various fare structures, booking classes, restrictions and opportunities for discounts. Certainly, having airline contracts in place and making effective use of your TMC as a partner in the process is a key tool in managing these issues and opportunities.
‘From travel agent to TMC – The giant leap’
Globally, the travel industry has seen the slow but steady shift to zero commissions which, to a large extent, has empowered previous ‘travel agents’ to become full-service travel management companies (TMC). With this shift, TMCs have had to change remuneration structures, charging management or transaction fees - but is this trend being embraced by the Middle Eastern travel community? How are the new remuneration models affecting travel buyers and are TMCs able to effectively ‘sell’ their expertise and justify their fees.
This session will focus on how agents can offer added value in a move towards becoming full service TMCs and how travel buyers can work alongside their TMCs to benefit from key account management, reporting facilities and a true value-added service, creating transparent and strategic partnerships and helping to elevate the standards of business travel management across the region.
Benjo Van Laarhoven, executive vice president, Alshamel International
Chris Crowley, senior VP sales EMEA, BCD Travel
Keynote 2: MEED Research Survey: Business Travel trends in the Middle East
Corporate travel bans were imposed throughout the world in 2009 as companies fought to ride out the global financial crisis but business travel spending has resumed this year as a fragile economic recovery takes hold.
An exclusive survey by MEED of senior management executives at firms with business interests in the Middle East reveals 62 per cent of companies expect to spend more on business travel in 2010 than last year.
This keynote session will present the results from MEED’s Business Travel Survey, providing a unique insight into the future prospects for the business travel and tourism industry across the region.
Liz Bains, analysis editor, MEED
Technology Pecha Kucha - Online systems and technological advancements – what generation are you?
Technology is changing the way travel is delivered for all of its stake holders but, in a region where ‘self service’ is not commonly embraced, this is leading to many travel professionals asking the question ‘How do I adapt and what technology solutions do I need to consider?’ This session will clearly define the different product and service offerings available in the local market, the advantages of their use and the challenges in their implementation.
This exciting session will be modelled as a ‘Pecha Kucha - a kind of forum conceived in Japan as a venue through which young designers could meet, show their work, exchange ideas and network using specific presentation limits that keeps discussions concise, fast-paced and entertaining. The Pecha Kucha format of ‘20 slides, each shown for 20 seconds in the space of 6 minutes 40 seconds’ will be applied to this session’s unique presentations resulting in a rare opportunity for the business travel audience to learn about a wide-range of emerging online and technological travel applications in the space of one hour.
Bicky Calra, president, TraVision
Nature versus nurture: Can you nurture good travel practices in the midst of status driven behaviour?
Travel managers constantly face the issue of ‘difficult’ travellers who insist on ignoring or by-passing travel policy. Travellers often feel that company travel should carry perks and thus make status-driven decisions about the travel options and classes they book and the suppliers they use.
As a travel manager, how do you deal with these types of travellers who not only have a ‘What’s in it for me?’ attitude but are also often in senior management or ‘connected’ positions, making your job feel more like managing a political minefield than a travel portfolio?
This round table session will consider these and other behavioural change management scenarios, allowing delegates to problem solve with their peers and develop strategies for nurturing improved traveller compliance.
Moderator: Michael Jackson, keynote speaker and facilitator
Better Business Rules
Designed to encourage innovative thinking, this keynote presentation outlines the things we neglect to see around us which are staring us directly in our face – every single day – and presents a solid case for thinking and acting differently in order to generate new behavioural patterns and necessary success in the workplace and company markets.
By challenging its audience members to question their awareness of the shapes, form, sequences and routines of their daily lives, it presents a stimulus to their curiosity and self-interest which engages them in a dynamic, interactive manner and makes each person question their own conventional wisdom.
Issues of pattern-blindness, stereotyping and refusal to adapt to new circumstances because of change resistance are fully dealt with in a dynamic, light hearted and amusing, yet very heartfelt, manner.
Michael Jackson, keynote speaker and facilitator