Business travel spending growth slowed through the tail end of 2012 as companies postponed critical investment decisions until after the U.S. presidential election and Congressional debate on the fiscal cliff. However, the business travel forecast for 2013 should be more positive, provided there is continued easing of economic and political uncertainty—presenting an early indication of greater corporate confidence in spending decisions.

According to the GBTA BTI Outlook - United States 2012 Q4, a report from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) sponsored by Visa Inc., U.S. business travel spending is expected to rise 4.6 percent in 2013 to US$266.7 billion, on a slight -1.1 percent decline in trip volume to 431.8 million person-trips for the year. The key factors in 2013 business travel spending growth are projected to be:

• Increasing international outbound travel spending—projected to rise 5.9 percent
• Increasing group travel spending—projected to rise 5.2 percent
• Very modest price inflation—indicating that companies will be spending more real dollars on business trips.

Spending growth in 2013 should begin modestly, at 2.0 percent in Q1 and 2.9 percent in Q2, and then pick up the pace with rates of 6.4 percent in Q3 and 7.2 percent in Q4. 

“Even with an agreement to avert the fiscal cliff in the near-term, there are still many issues that need to be addressed; however, companies should now have somewhat greater confidence in their spending decisions,” said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and COO. “While companies will approach the first half of the year with some caution, pent-up demand to get back on the road should hopefully fuel accelerating growth in business travel spending through the end of 2013.”

At the close of 2012, annual U.S. business travel spending is estimated by GBTA to have grown 1.6 percent to $254.9 billion, on a -1.9 percent decline in trip volume to 436.5 million person-trips. The spending increase was mainly due to rising travel rates. 

This increase in spending for 2012 was also a downgrade from GBTA’s previous forecast of 2.6 percent last quarter, reflecting the ongoing uncertainty of the fiscal cliff debate and the economic impact of Hurricane Sandy.

International Travel to Strengthen

Previously a strong driver of overall business travel spending growth, international outbound business travel stumbled badly in 2012, growing just 0.7% as challenges in the Eurozone impacted trade and business confidence, causing a ripple effect that reached the shores of the U.S. and Asia.

Although the Eurozone remains troubled, increasing industrial production and retail sales in China signal an improving economy for 2013. Among other factors, a stronger China will improve U.S. export growth and help act as an engine for international outbound business travel. As a result, GBTA expects to see a 5.9 percent rise in international outbound spending for the year.

Group Travel to Rebound

Group travel had a very challenging 2012, with spend rising just 1.3 percent for the year. This year should bring a welcome turnaround to the group travel market. GBTA forecasts that group travel spending will rebound nicely, with 5.2 percent growth for the year as the broader economy recovers. 

“The projections that we see for both international and group travel are encouraging,” McCormick said. “Businesses will be looking to capitalize on growth opportunities abroad and spend more on in-person meetings and events as well. By nature, meetings are longer-lead investments that require greater confidence in the future.”

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(Story materials from GBTA.)

The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA)—the voice of the global business travel industry—and Meeting Professionals International (MPI)—the meetings and events industry’s largest and most vibrant global community—are pleased to announce a new joint venture. The two organizations will work together to co-create new industry-leading education and training opportunities.

“This is the first and only broad association partnership that GBTA has entered into since forming the GBTA Academy. GBTA believes MPI is the right partner to reach the meetings management industry and marketplace,” said GBTA executive director and COO, Michael W. McCormick. “Our collective members will be reaping the benefits of this partnership for years to come.”

An LLC is being formed with an executive steering committee to operate and manage the new curriculum, which is expected to be available in 2013. Both organizations are bringing together their expertise and research prowess to develop and deliver these new educational and training offerings.

“We continually hear from the community that they want associations to work together and provide opportunities for improving their career skills. The collaboration with GBTA will deliver the single most essential management training program in the industry, creating a new standard for excellence,” said Cindy D’Aoust, COO and interim CEO for MPI. “The result is enhanced value for both our members and the industry.”

The new senior level education will be available to both MPI and GBTA members. While both current designations will continue to be recognized by MPI and the GBTA Academy, this new educational program is being derived from the best of GBTA’s Strategic Meetings Management Certification (SMMC) and MPI’s Certificate in Meetings Management (CMM) program.

GBTA is the world’s premier business travel and meetings organization whose 5,000-plus members manage over $340 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually. MPI is the meetings and events industry’s largest global community comprised of more than 21,000 members representing 84 countries worldwide.

For more information, please visit gbta.org/academy or www.mpiweb.org/Education/CMM.

The GBTA Foundation, the research and education arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), in partnership with the Strategic Meetings Management Taskforce and StarCite Inc., recently announced the launch of the Strategic Meetings Management (SMM) Maturity Index. The SMM Maturity Index allows companies to accurately identify the developmental progress of their SMM programs and provides a prescriptive report of recommendations for further improvement.

“The SMM Maturity Index will drive the meetings industry forward by bringing invaluable know-how to organizations at every step along the path toward a best in class program," said Daphne Bryant, executive director for the GBTA Foundation. "We’re excited to build on the success of the SMM Maturity Model to launch the next evolution of this essential industry framework.”

The SMM Maturity Index will help companies gauge the progress of their SMMP across 13 categories including strategy, data analysis and reporting, policy, approval, technology and sourcing/procurement. Recognizing that each SMMP is as unique as the organization which implements it, the SMM Maturity Index takes differing approaches into consideration and is based on best-in-class models.

“Having been there for the earliest beginnings of the strategic meetings management profession, it is inspiring to see how far we’ve come with the creation of a new tool that will further standardize best practices and help companies achieve great SMMP results,” said Kevin Iwamoto, vice president of enterprise strategy for StarCite. “Companies will benefit tremendously from the clear guidance and benchmarks the Index provides.”

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) has changed its name to the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA). The organization says it's enhancing the member value proposition through a broader global focus and new member features and benefits, including the following.

• An expanded global footprint of networking and educational events, many of which will be complimentary for members.
• Free worldwide registration for members to all GBTA webinars.
• Access to new and improved industry research and resources, including global benchmarking tools.
• Enhanced online collaboration and information sharing.
• An internationally driven and interconnected committee network offering global guidance.
• Continued expansion of the GBTA network for representation in every major business travel market.

GBTA says it will also offer advanced networking, giving members the ability to find the expert they need on any topic, in any global region, and collaborate with them. A new, more robust website will allow members to find resources more easily and enable greater collaboration, and GBTA also says it will continue to have a strong voice in industry advocacy, reflecting the increasingly global nature of the changes happening in the business travel industry.