NBTA Releases New Meetings Management White Paper
	The Groups & Meetings Committee of the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) released �Framework for Success: Building a Strategic Meetings Management Program,� a white paper designed for travel managers who have responsibility for the development or ongoing management of a Strategic Meetings Management Program within their company.
The document outlines a broad spectrum of tools designed to provide commonly used terminology, definitions, cost/benefit analysis tools, and best practice methodologies in meetings management. Co-chaired by Maddy Caliri, AT&T and Tracey Wilt, Xerox Corporation, the NBTA Groups & Meetings Committee was created in July 2003 based on a widespread trend within member companies of merging business travel management and meetings management. The Committee will provide resources and develops industry standards to help corporate travel professionals implement effective meetings policies and procedures in their corporations. �We hope this white paper will help travel managers to adopt best practices that can be applied across their entire organization,� said Caliri. The Groups and Meetings Committee will release additional documents to support this white paper later this year, including hotel and airline FAQ�s and tools of the trade, meeting resources guide and links, the impact of governmental legislation (i.e. Sarbanes-Oxley, etc.), and key support strategies to maximize the impact of a successfully launched Strategic Meetings Management Program. �It is important that travel managers are sensitive to their companies� culture, industry and business requirements before implementing any strategic meetings management program,� Wilt stated. The Committee is sponsoring two Strategic Meetings Management sessions at the upcoming NBTA convention in Orlando, FL: an introductory level session focusing on the elements outlined in this white paper and an intermediate session focused on best practices and reducing risk in meeting contracting. A copy of the white paper with associated Q&A�s can be found on the NBTA web site at www.nbta.org. NBTA members are encouraged to contribute comments and suggestions to the NBTA Groups & Meetings Committee for future projects or educational opportunities. The National Business Travel Association is the source for critical information on the business travel industry. For more than 35 years, NBTA has dedicated itself to the professional development of its members through advocacy, education and training, and networking opportunities. NBTA represents over 2,400 corporate travel managers and travel service providers, who collectively manage and direct more than $170 billion of expenditures within the business travel industry.