NOTICE OF SPECIAL MEETING FOR THE PURPOSE OF
CONDUCTING A SPECIAL ELECTION

Election of Directors;
Vote on Proposed Bylaw Amendments

In preparation for the upcoming voting opportunities, please take a moment to review the election materials and platform statements in the Board of Directors Election Brochure 2015.

If you are a GBTA Direct or Allied Member, you may vote in this election.

Voting by electronic means will be held from 9am Eastern Time on Tuesday, September 15, 2015 to Thursday, September 24, 2015 at 5pm Eastern Time. Results of the elections will be announced on Friday, September 25, 2015. Individuals must be valid Direct or Allied Members of GBTA to be eligible to vote.

The open Board positions in the 2015 Election are as follows:

• President for a term of two years
• Vice President for a term of two years
• Three (3) Direct Member Directors at Large for a term of three years
• One (1) Allied Member Director at Large for a term of two years

Bylaw Amendment Proposal

A Bylaw proposal has been submitted for review and approval by the GBTA Membership. This proposal has been endorsed by the GBTA Board of Directors. If you are a GBTA Direct Member, you may vote on these proposed changes on this ballot.

These consensus recommendations were reached by an independent Bylaw Coalition, unanimously approved and presented to the Board as follows:

• Retain legal counsel who specializes in association bylaws to review and update the bylaws in their entirety for full compliance with current New York State law and related best practices.
• Create a new type of Member called “Indirect Member” for all industry-specific consultants and TMC outsourced buyers. This member type would retain Direct Member benefits, but would not have voting privileges.

  Clarification: There are many consultants and outsourced travel managers that act in buyer roles yet work for suppliers. In order to recognize their opportunity to work as an industry buyer, while also preserving the integrity of the Direct Member category, this member type was created. The sole difference between a Direct and Indirect Member is that the Indirect Member will not have voting rights nor can serve in a leadership position reserved for Direct Members (i.e. Board of Directors).

   

• Include language in the bylaws that make it explicit that Members have equal rights consistent with their
  respective status (i.e., Direct Member, Allied Member, etc.) regardless of where, globally, that person works.
• Remove term limits from elected Board Members and Officers. It was ultimately the belief of the Coalition that it was in the best interest of the Members to allow their votes to decide the tenure of an elected leader, and not term limits, thereby retaining high performing leaders.

  Clarification: This change does not alter the process by which Board Members must continue to be elected by their peers but simply allows them the right to run for office without limitation of terms.

   

• Remove “C-level” title from any volunteer positions. Ultimately the coalition believed that the “C-level” title was inappropriate for a volunteer association officer and ultimately might discourage potential candidates from participating in an election.

You can review more information to understand these proposed changes in detail:

• Current GBTA Bylaws
• Proposed Bylaws
• Comparison Document
• Overview Presentation

Thank you for your time and attention to these matters.

Best regards,

Michael W. McCormick
Executive Director and COO