Check-In with Suzanne

If you’re like me, many times you see the parallels between work and life. I wanted to share a recent reflection on that here, so you may find today’s Check-In a little different…  

 

In 2014 when I was between jobs, I took up a new hobby: stained glass crafting. 

 

I took a multi-week class, learned some new skills and vocabulary, amassed some new tools – made a couple of passable but not particularly very creative window hangings.  

 

And then we moved from suburban Texas to New York City. 

 

I took along those tools and a terrific table that my husband had built for me for this hobby.  

And now 8 years and very few projects later – I’m ready to find all of it a new home. It doesn’t really fit in our apartment. And I’m afraid of inevitable glass shards escaping from new projects into the room where I work most days and where family sleep when they visit. So I now I’m in search of a place to donate everything. 

 

I tell this story because it’s an analogy for how we pass along our gifts to others… and that includes within our industry every day. 

 

Travel managers and suppliers in our industry have amazing experience in crossing borders, setting policies, guiding the “art” of travel for others (from road warriors to newbies). Our industry is a collaborative one – sharing and developing best practices together and then honing those collectively and individually as technology and the ecosystems evolve.  

 

And sometimes, when the world shifts dramatically – as it has in the past two years — those experiences, ideas and best practices become even more critical to share…. With risk officers. With HR and Future of Work experts. With sustainability officers. With those who don’t have the experience and expertise of our industry but can rely on the experts that do to help them when and where it’s needed the most. 

The best “art” is that which is shared…  

  

And our industry keeps proving that within the art of travel management. 

  

Keep on sharing your art…  

  

Suzanne 

 

Continue reading 

 

News to Know:

Uber to add flights, rail and car rental to UK app

Uber plans to add bookings for intercity trains, buses and car rental to its UK app as early as this summer, with both flight bookings and cross-channel train tickets to launch later this year. The pilot program is part of Uber’s plans to become a “one-stop shop for door-to-door travel”. The rail, bus and airline tickets will be available through partners whose services will be integrated into the app. Uber did not reveal the names of these partners. In addition, the company hinted at adding hotels in the future in a statement from Jamie Heywood, Uber’s regional general manager for the UK, Northern and Eastern Europe.

LATAM travel demand for Easter and summer ‘close to 2019 levels’

Demand for travel to Latin America covering the key Easter and summer holiday periods are at -13% and -12%, respectively, says ForwardKeys. The results nudge closer to the levels seen in 2019, according to the travel analytics company. Colombia and Costa Rica in particular are well-positioned to make a post-Omicron recovery, it continues. For both destinations, issued tickets have been above 2018/2019 levels since the beginning of 2022.

Business and Group Travel Make a Stellar First Quarter Comeback

“Once Omicron cases dipped and restrictions dropped, February’s rebound resulted in TripActions’ biggest month ever. Biggest, that is, until March,” the company said. It put this down to more offices reopening, but also gave a nod to the rise of super commuters. Travel spend, according to TripAction’s numbers, increased 220 percent from January through March 2022, jumping 1,650 percent year-on-year in March 2022. In terms of expense category shifts, airlines have returned to their pre-pandemic top spot, increasing 240 percent from January 2022 to the end of March 2022. In the same quarter in 2021 they were positioned 14th.

This US airport has reclaimed its title as the world’s busiest

Move over, Guangzhou. Georgia’s Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is once again the world’s busiest airport. The US airport was knocked off its No. 1 perch to the No. 2 slot in passenger volume in 2020 by Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in China, breaking the Atlanta airport’s 22-year streak in the top slot. But in the 2021 rankings released on Monday by trade association Airports Council International, ATL is back on top, a sign of recovery from 2020’s precipitous plunge in air traffic as the pandemic took hold.

GBTA News and Reminders:

Mobile Mavens – Who’s Using Mobile to Deliver a Great Experience

On April 13^th the Tech Safari Series will showcase new technologies launching cutting-edge solutions. Hopper, FCM and Sanctifly, identified and vetted by the GBTA Technology Committee, will share their new product and/or solution. Panel members will question the technology’s usability in corporate travel, explore the product’s value, and identify the audience(s) that will benefit from its use. Click here to learn more.

Global to Local Panel on Business Travel

With the COVID crisis slowing, countries lowering entry requirements and companies returning to office, what does this mean to our business models?  Will there be a great rush to travel, or will it trickle in?  Will there be new trends in how and why people travel, or will it be the same old thing?  Join our panel of local PSBTA experts on April 19^th as we talk about the new face of business travel. Click here to learn more.

I Got Your Back: The Importance of Mentors and Sponsors – Women In Technology

On April 20^th we will discuss the differences between mentors and sponsors and how to find the right person to support you on your career journey and what does it mean to continue to have other women’s backs as they make their way into senior roles. Click here to register.