- Air Passenger Duty will rise, Heathrow will get its third runway, and the HS2 development will be back on track under the new Government, according to the predictions of political expert and LBC Radio Presenter Ben Kentish. But he also believes Keir Starmer might only survive one term, so will there be enough time?
- Buyers agree they have a duty to give timely feedback to suppliers who are unsuccessful in their attempts to get into a corporate travel programme, but warn that they’re time poor. Suppliers who want to increase their chances of success are told to simplify their pitches, do their homework, understand the organisation’s business and programme, and know when a potential client is going out to tender.
- The time-old question ‘Who is the customer? – the travelling employee or the employer who is paying the bill – lives on. In a fireside chat with Festive Road’s Caroline Strachan, the Senior Vice President Worldwide Sales at United Airlines, Doreen Burse, said she believes the customer is whoever is making the decision. Is it that straightforward?
- Cost remains the most important factor in a travel buyer’s airline category strategy, according to a poll of ITM Conference delegates. It hovered around the 83% mark, following by sustainability ((61%), quality (57%), customer (50%) and innovation (40%).
- Nearly two thirds (61%) of buyers admit they do not give enough focus and attention to ground transport in their travel programme. Just under one in five (17%) believe it does and 22% said they were unsure. Buyers were advised to take small steps, for example creating an intranet page to give guidance to their travellers to drive policy compliancy and enhance duty of care.
- ITM members would most like to see New York added to the easyJet network, according to a fun poll during the conference. The Big Apple was the most popular choice, followed by Southampton, Norwich, Southend and Tallinn. The Moon, Mars and Reading also made it on to the wishlist!
- The industry’s obsession with ‘previous experience required’, never-ending email threads and the Wi-Fi struggle were identified as the three top annoyances that deserved to be locked into Room 101, beating bleisure, influencers, noisy people on trains and other personal annoyances shared by Chris Galanty at FCM Travel, Adam Knights at ATPI and Jason Geall, Amex GBT.
- We shouldn’t be worried about the move to continuous pricing. Doreen Burse at United Airlines reassures corporate travel buyers that these are purely a way for airlines to increase revenues by selling seats at fares they might not have otherwise sold, not an excuse to put up prices.
- Being a true leader requires embracing new challenges, prioritising customer-centric strategies and staying curious, according to an inspirational session with Sophie Dekkers, easyJet Chief Commercial Officer.
- Registration is now open for the ITM 2025 Spring Conference, Inspire. The event takes place at Celtic Manor in Wales on April 29-30.
10 takeaways from the ITM Autumn Conference
