ITMC SUMMIT THE NEED TO GET ‘REWIRED’
TMCS from around the world gathered in the UAE in June for the annual ITMC Summit where the ‘rewired’ conference theme tackled the changing face of travel management, writes Andy Hoskins.
Organised by the WIN Global Travel Network, the two-day event was attended by suppliers and TMCS responsible, between them, for an estimated Us$20billion in annual business travel spend.
“We’re often threatened and frequently challenged in a constantly changing landscape,” said WIN CEO Neil Armorgie in his opening remarks, as he urged TMCS to “stand up and fight their corner”.
Festive Road’s Ian Jones urged TMCS to differentiate themselves from the competition in order to thrive. “People use a TMC because they’re told to, not because they choose to,” he said. “Business travellers are led by loyalty and experience but the business is price-led. It’s a precarious business model.”
Jones also discussed the eight types of TMC his organisation has identified, including high-touch ‘creme de la creme’ agencies such as Eton Travel and Reed & Mackay, and those ‘holding on to the past’ who don’t have “the will, the skill or the bill to move forwards”.
Procurement specialist William Pegg advised TMCS to carefully consider what business they pitch for. “If the first you hear about a tender is the invitation then the likelihood of you winning it is slim,” he said.
He also challenged TMCS to calculate how much it actually costs them to go through a tender, to build rapport with potential clients and to ask questions of the organisation during the tender process.
“Very few say ‘let’s have a chat’ when they receive the tender. It doesn’t happen enough and it’s a great way to build rapport,” he said.
Meanwhile, John Gray of Rockport Analytics revealed $1.4trillion was spent on business travel in 2018 but warned the rate of growth was slowing – dropping to 3.1% in 2019, following growth of 5.7% in 2018 and 5.8% in 2017. “This year is projected to be the weakest year for global growth since the recession,” said Gray.