GBTA VDR 2021 - Agenda

Registration open

Media Cocktail Party

First Timers Session

In this session we welcome first time attendees of the Conference to join us and hear from the GBTA team and industry peers how to get the most from your Conference experience - offering both buyer and supplier perspectives. Find out more about the tools that are on offer to support you such as ‘MyConferencePlanner’ and get some top tips from the panel.

Don’t forget your business cards as this session will also provide attendees the opportunity to learn more about GBTA member benefits and will feature a ‘facilitated networking session’ helping you to broaden your business network and make those important connections.

We strongly encourage all first time attendees to take part!

Welcome Reception in Foyer

Delegates will have the opportunity to network at the Welcome Reception, catching up with old contacts and making new ones.

Megatrends Impacting Business Travel

Suzanne Neufang - GBTA CEO

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C-Level panel on 'Changing themes - the industry's response'

Few industries were impacted more by the pandemic, but as we return to travel how is our industry responding to changing travel and meeting patterns; sustainability and DEI. This expert panel will delve into how business travel will look in the coming years and how we as an industry are adapting to the new ways of working; meeting and being.

Moderator:

Suzanne Neufang - GBTA CEO

Panel:

Ariel Cohen - CEO and Co-Founder, TripActions

Meenaz Diamond - Senior Vice President, Sales Worldwide, Accor

Khaled Shahbo - Senior Vice President, Europe, Enterprise Holdings

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Keynote: The Carbon Footprint of Everything

Sustainability expert, Mike Berners-Lee, author of How Bad Are Bananas and There is No Planet B will talk on how corporations can accurately measure and reduce their environmental impact.

Mike Berners-Lee - Founder, Small World Consulting

Networking break in Expo

Interactive session - THE BIG IDEA: Agility is the new Travel Management
Agile is a methodology used primarily in software development to regularly release software that creates value for the user. This year, THE BIG IDEA is about applying that same methodology to better react and prepare for the future challenges in business travel. The session is workshop based and will tap into the experiences and creativity of the whole community. So let’s roll up our sleeves and discuss how, collectively, we can be responsive and still deliver on satisfaction, traveler safety, and company goals.

Facilitator:

Chris Elmitt – CEO, LIVVE

Made Possible by BCD Travel

Main stage

• Volunteer update and Awards

Adversity & Challenges — Maintaining a Resilient Mindset Under Pressure 

Mark Pollock – Explorer, Speaker & Collaborator

Sometimes we choose our challenges, sometimes our challenges choose us. What we decide to do about them is what counts. Deciding to be a competitor, a realist and a collaborator offers your people a chance of maintaining a resilient mindset under pressure. Mark Pollock’s keynote on adversity and challenges uses the power of active decision making to deal with challenges, regardless of where they come from, to help your people become more resilient.

Closing Main Stage: The Future of Business Travel

Get Up, Stand Up and Be Accountable
In this interactive session, we will look at what DEI is, why it's important and what it means for business travel in terms of your programme; supply chain and supporting the traveller.

Speaker:

Carol Fergus - Director - Global Travel, Meetings and Ground Transportation, Fidelity International & Co-Chair GBTA DEI Committee

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Report out from Think Tank Sessions and THE BIG IDEA made possible by BCD Travel - Business Travel 2022
Throughout this year's conference delegates will be collaborating to share best practice and brainstorm solutions through THE BIG IDEA and the Think Tank sessions looking at topics such as:
•    Business Travel in a world of remote workers
•    Tax and administrative implications of a mobile workforce
•    Meetings Management: in person; hybrid and virtual
•    Mobility 2022 - mobility as an employee retention tool

Facilitator:

Chris Elmitt - CEO, LIVVE

Speaker:

Erol Arkan - Vice President, Global Solutions Engineering

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Preparing for the next shock
On several occasions over the last 20 years, business travel has been brought to a standstill as a result of terrorism, natural disaster and most recently a pandemic – we don’t know what the next ‘shock’ will be but we do know it will happen and governments; industry bodies; suppliers and buyers all have a role to play in building resilience into our business travel eco-system. This session will look at lessons learned from the events of the 21st century and how we as an industry should prepare to respond to the next event.

Moderator:

Catherine Logan – GBTA’s Regional Vice President for EMEA, GBTA

Speakers:

Svend Leirvaag – VP Industry and Regulatory Affairs, Amadeus

Ben Park – Senior Director Procurement & Travel, Parexel