Crossroads Milan offered a unique educational programme designed by buyers, for buyers to help attendees meet their distinct professional goals:

• 16 education sessions covering best practices and next practices
   
• Strategic meetings management sessions
   
• Fundamentals of Business Travel Management course/CTE designation
   

Travel Management: Next Practices

The best way to predict the future?  Invent it...

Many travel management professionals talk about the need to become more “strategic," but then maintain the status quo by following the established practices of others.  While there is merit in learning from the best—it is only a starting point.  The business world in general—and the travel industry in particular—moves at such a rapid pace that the practices of others can quickly become obsolete.  This Conference programme is designed to help you develop your own “next generation” of best practices. 

This track will take you beyond how travel management happens now or in the past, but how will it happen.  Moreover, you’ll learn how to identify the “inflection points”—the moment when a particular product line, business model or whole industry changes—so that you can adapt your own business strategies accordingly.  

T101: Managing Outsourced Relationships  

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As companies seek to achieve high-quality transactional services for the lowest possible price, several models for travel management have emerged—from the centralised “shared service” approach—to the complete business process outsource model (or some variation thereof).   The key success factor in any of these configurations is the ability to effectively partner with service providers.  This session will explore the latest procurement perspective on how to:

• Establish critical performance metrics—that don’t hamper productivity
• Create effective continuous process improvement programmes based on a shared vision
• Set up formal governance procedures to address service and client satisfaction issues

Presenters:
Liane Feisel, Principal, Feisel Consulting
Sabine Sehrt, Vice President, International Travel Management, Siemens AG

T102: Managing a New Generation of Travellers

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Demographers predict a significant shift in the available talent pool of knowledge workers, particularly in the “greying” countries of Western Europe.  Given the looming shortage, the “war for talent’ will only intensify.  The next wave of employees—"digital natives"—have lived their entire lives ‘connected’ and are much more comfortable with the notion of job fluidity.  Travel experts will offer insights on how to:

• Develop travel policies and product offerings to attract and retain this new breed of traveller
• Identify the right communication and change management strategies
• Cater to an increasingly virtual and distributed workforce through “mobility management” 

Presenters:
Mike Tangney, Global Travel Manager, Google
Huub van Rumund, Corporate Purchasing NPR, Oce-Technologies B.V.


T103: Reducing Your Environmental Impact Thru Consumption Management

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As companies continue to embrace environmental sustainability as a corporate priority, travel managers are well-positioned to create a carbon reduction strategy while still finding ways to cut costs and increase value within their organisations.  Consumption or demand management goes the next step further in the cost equation to eliminate “unnecessary” trips in the first place—with the attendant emissions “savings”.   This session will present case studies illustrating innovative ways to:

• Align your strategy with corporate "Triple Bottom Line" goals
• Implement consumption management initiatives for travel
• Leverage low-cost, collaborative technology options
• Influence purchasing behaviour at the point of sale
• Quantify savings and calculate ROI

T201: Establishing Meaningful SLAs (buyer only)

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Drawing from sample Service Level Agreements (SLAs), this session will provide an opportunity for travel buyers to share their experience among peers.  During facilitated roundtable discussion, participants will gain practical advice on designing effective SLAs across the supply chain and their role in an outsourced relationship management strategy, including how to:

• Clarify expectations – what an SLA can and cannot guarantee
• Measure results – how to track, report and review SLA compliance
• Create “value chain SLAs”
• Ensure that your SLA buys what you’re already paying for

T202: Winning (and Keeping) the Account (designed for suppliers)

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In today’s global, intensely competitive, and transparent business environment, suppliers must preserve client relationships through solid strategic account management.  The role of the “account manager” is essential to creating long-term partnerships.  This session, designed especially for travel suppliers, will explore:

• Critical skills for strategic account managers
• How to avoid “commoditisation” and communicate value at the CxO level
• How to create true partnerships based on shared risk/shared reward

Presenter:
Michel Brisson, Sales Consultant, RevenueStorm

T203: Cutting Through the Green Noise: The ICARUS Ark

This truly original session will effectively offer a current status report on how key segments of the travel industry have embraced carbon emission reduction programmes—or not.  Set up in “Survivor-style” format, individuals representing Airline, TMC, Hotelier, Rail, Car Hire/Fleet and Travel Buyer will vie for the last space on the ICARUS Ark or be voted “off” by the audience based on their environmental record.  Presented by the Institute of Travel Management in a series of debate-style rounds, this session will paint a vivid portrait of:

•       Travel’s real contribution to global warming
•       Relative merits of current carbon reduction initiatives
•       Future commitments vs “greenwashing”

Moderator:
Paul Tilstone, Executive Director, Institute of Travel Management

Presenters:
Jan-Peter Bergkvist, Vice President, Environmental Sustainability, Scandic Hotels
Francois Dodane, Manager, Business Travel, Thalys International SCRL
Annette Forbes Marsden, Director of Sales & Marketing EMEA, GetThere
Jon Green, Sustainable Travel Manager, DEFRA
Karlheinz Haag, Head of Environmental Issues, Lufthansa German Airlines
Matthew Pancaldi, UK Sales Director, HRG 

F101: Leveraging the Payments Revolution

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With Europe poised to fully implement the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) initiative by 2010, the implications for businesses and consumers are considerable.  This session will explore the latest trends in e-procurement/e-payment solutions in travel, including expert analysis of:

• The implications of SEPA from an operational standpoint
• Resulting new entrants and business models to consider
• Factors that drive B-2-B commerce in the travel industry and what effect it will have on travel procurement/settlement going forward

Presenter:
Zach Aron, Senior Manager, Deloitte Consulting


F102: Mitigating Risks

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In the arena of travel management, risk mitigation is especially complex.  Whether on an individual level (i.e. traveller safety) or corporate-wide basis (i.e. supply chain management), travel managers must be conversant on a variety of legal, legislative and industry developments in order to implement effective programmes and policies.  This session will explore the gamut of issues, including:

• The implications of the U.K’s duty of care/corporate manslaughter legislation for Europe
• The latest on data privacy initiatives in the EU and how to safeguard your corporate travel data
• Best practices

Presenters:
Kelly Everhart, Director of Operations, Honeywell Meeting Solutions
Andreas Krugmann, Manager, Business Travel Industry, Mondial Assistance Group


F103: Developing Your Strategic Meetings Strategy

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Companies spend over €200 billion on meetings & events annually and yet only a small percentage of companies have this sizable, but fragmented, spend under management.  Drawing from the Strategic Meetings Management Programme (SMMP) framework developed by NBTA, this session will guide you through the process step-by-step and draw from current research in the field conducted by Aberdeen Group.  Case study presentations will highlight how to:

• Identify and articulate the cost savings, risk reduction and process efficiencies of implementing an SMMP, including “when to leave well enough alone’
• Creating policy and implementation plans
• Evaluate the make vs buy decision

Moderator:
Cécile Drévillon, Senior Consultant, Meetings & Events EMEA, Carlson Wagonlit Travel

Presenters:
Phil Dunphy, Global Travel Manager, Pfizer
Ursula Nixdorf, Manager, Facilities & Services, Location Coordination Switzerland/ASG Event Mgt, Accenture AG

F201: Getting Your Total T&E Spend Under Management

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How significant is your T&E spend beyond the usual air-hotel-car buys?  What if the “next horizon” for travel spend optimisation was working with your accounting department to help improve policy compliance and increase supplier incentives?  When is the cost to "track" not worth the amount you can "trim"?  This session will provide:

• An analysis of all "hidden costs" of travel, including meals & entertainment
• Policy considerations and technology enablers
• Opportunities to increase incentives, including improved VAT recovery, charge card incentives and hotel commissions