Travel Matters June 2017

CONNECTING THEDOTS This year’s Business Travel Show did not disappoint. Probably the largest gathering of business travel professionals in Europe, visitors were able to discover CTM’s new online booking tool, Lighting on the CTM stand. The Innovation station delivered live demos of the tool and how it can be tailored to specific client needs, boasting lightning-fast responsiveness and a wonderfully ergonomic user interface. The usual CTM cocktail hour was a storm, with buyers and suppliers alike conversing with the Senior Team at CTM over what’s on the horizon for the company. FAST WORK www.travelctm.co.uk 18 | CTM INSIGHT That’s the question being posed in CTMs White Paper, which establishes the ROI corporates should expect from a TMC based on factors including procurement model (online, offline and hybrid models), fulfillment options, account management and spend. The paper will feature case studies from contrasting market sectors and will provide a formula travel managers can use to benchmark their TMC’s overall performance. Due out this month (June), order your copy through your CTM account manager. WHAT’S YOUR TMC WORTH TO YOU? WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU We value your opinions and ideas on the contents of Travel Matters. Please email marketing@eu.travelctm.com with any feedback on the magazine or any ideas you may have for future articles. London is the best connected city in the world with six airports connecting to more international destinations than any other city - helping bring in record numbers of business travellers according to fDi Benchmark. Their latest figures show that the British capital has direct air connections to 336 destinations around the world, an increase of 5.7 per cent on the previous year. This new data comes as figures from the UK government’s Office for National Statistics International Passenger Survey show that international business visits to the city have grown by 34 per cent over the past five years, with a record 3.7 million overseas business tourists in 2015, accounting for 20 per cent of the total number. “We hear it time and time again from our clients who are as far afield as China, Asia Pacific, North America and Europe: connectivity is key,” says Rachael Boraston, Sales and Marketing Manager at Principal. London DMC. “A destination can have the best venues but if delegates can’t get there it simply won’t work. Great connectivity also often translates into cost savings for event planners, and at a time when budgets are tight, this is paramount. Whether it is getting here, or moving around the city, London’s accessibility is definitely a major draw for event professionals.” It was revealed recently that London had maintained its position in the top 5 of the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA) rankings, for the second year in a row. The city has moved up the rankings from 19th to its current position in just five years. News of improvements to US air traffic control came when the Trump administration proposed in early June a privatisation scheme of the service as part of a broader initiative to bolster US infrastructure. Greeley Koch, executive director of ACTE was swift to welcome the news, saying that it was, “welcome relief for the business travel community” as “US airlines remain shackled to antiquated technologies like radar and radio.” He hoped the US would avoid the work stoppages that crippled other countries when implementing similar measures. GREEN LIGHT ON US AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL