The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) has surpassed 3,000 members for the first time in the association’s nearly 40-year history. NBTA membership represents 30 nations, and includes almost…
The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) has surpassed 3,000 members for the first time in the association’s nearly 40-year history. NBTA membership represents 30 nations, and includes almost nearly 1,800 Direct members, or buyers of corporate and government travel services.
That makes NBTA both the largest business travel group in the world and the group with the largest membership of business travel buyers. NBTA Direct members represent a wide variety of government agencies and businesses, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to emerging market leaders.
NBTA President & CEO, Suzanne Fletcher, said, “As a long-time member of NBTA, I am thrilled to see my association continue to grow and get stronger. Reaching the milestone of 3,000 members will help NBTA continue to offer industry-leading benefits to its members and to the global corporate travel community.”
A number of factors have contributed to that growth, including the following:
Organizational expansion: In the last five years, NBTA has added a subsidiary in Canada (NBTA-Canada), an Asia-Pacific subsidiary (NBTA-Asia Pacific) and a membership group for government travel buyers (NBTA Government Travel Group). Additionally, NBTA formed a committee on Groups & Meetings, which has pioneered the concept of Strategic Meetings Management. The committee’s groundbreaking series of papers on the subject has attracted more NBTA members with corporate meetings responsibilities. Each of these initiatives contributed to the growth of NBTA’s membership. In turn, the expansion of the number and types of members represented by the world’s leading corporate travel association increased the organization’s ability to represent and provide benefits to the industry.
Professional development programs: NBTA and its foundation have introduced two new professional designation programs in recent years, for a total of three. As a result, NBTA is the provider of a three-tiered program designed to meet a corporate travel professional’s development needs throughout a career: Fundamentals of Business Travel Management/CTE, Certified Corporate Travel Executive (CCTE) and
Global Leadership Professional (GLP).
Regional Chapters: NBTA has worked more closely in recent years with its network of 42 Chapters across the United States. Mutually beneficial programs – such as joint marketing initiatives, Chapter volunteers at the NBTA Convention, NBTA providing speakers for Chapter events and organizing programs for Chapter leaders – have made both the Chapters and the national organization better at what they do, and have increased membership. For example, NBTA has worked with its Chapters to designate select Chapter educational events as electives for NBTA’s most well-known professional development program, the CCTE. That initiative has made CCTE courses more widely available, increasing participation in the program, while also increasing interest and participation in Chapter events designated as CCTE electives.
Growth of Convention: Participation in the annual NBTA International Convention & Exposition has grown each year. The event offers opportunities for education and professional development at all levels, the most face-to-face networking time, and the largest trade show available to corporate travel professionals anywhere in the world. That unique set of industry-leading opportunities has driven growth in attendance numbers, which, in turn, has fed the growth of NBTA’s membership.
Focus on members: NBTA takes quite seriously the pledge to have a member-driven agenda. All of NBTA’s successes outlined here have fueled the growth in membership, and those successes have been driven by member demand. As an example, until this year, only NBTA Direct members (travel managers, or buyers) have been able to vote for elected Board members. This disparity has long been a topic of debate, and in recent years it has become clear that the majority of members supported the idea of creating Board seats elected by Allied members (travel suppliers). NBTA asked its Direct members to vote on the idea, and the vast majority voted to add elected seats for Allied members. The first election will take place this summer. That change is just one example of the fact that NBTA’s agenda is determined by its members.
Advocacy: Long the voice of business travel, NBTA has focused in recent years on growing its role as an advocate for the industry. With several U.S. Congressional testimonies and multiple successes to show for its efforts, NBTA is gaining even more recognition throughout the industry and in the halls of government, and more potential members are seeing the importance of supporting the organization that advocates for them. One important recent victory is the introduction of a Registered Traveler program that provides participants with expedited screening at participating U.S. airports. NBTA lobbied for the program for years, and continues to push for its expansion into more airports. More recently NBTA has opened a new front on the issue of travel taxes, and scored victories in various states around the country where new or increased car rental taxes have been defeated. A bill recently introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would provide a Federal solution by ending the practice of discriminatory car taxes.
Effective marketing/communications/sales: Part of NBTA’s membership growth is attributable to communicating more effectively with – and on behalf of – members and potential members. NBTA’s ramped-up communications, marketing and sales efforts have included more targeted direct mail, special sections and advertisements in publications such as BusinessWeek and Time promoting the value of travel management and membership in NBTA, partnerships with Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), and more.
NBTA Executive Director & COO, Bill Connors, CTC, said, “As a long-time travel industry and the associations guy, I’m proud to see how well NBTA answers the challenge of meeting the needs of a diverse membership. Our success as an association is reflected in the fact that we continue to grow at a steady pace each year.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
