The BTTB Travel Management Awards 2009
Seven named in BTTB Awards
ABB Australia and Corrs Chambers Westgarth have been recognised for their travel programmes at the BTTB Travel Management Awards held in Sydney last week.
Engineering company ABB won the 2009 Travel Programme (large account) award. It was the first organisation to run a third-party American Express business travel account (BTA) and continues to innovate, driving much of its travel process online.
National law firm Corrs won the small account award in recognition of its use of best fare of the day and use of restrictive fares.
The winners were judged on detailed submissions which evaluated aspects such as the rigour of the travel policy, currency of contracts, processes and procedures, and compliance levels. Duty of care and environmental responsibility were also recognised.
Other finalists in the large account category were Australia Post and Raytheon, while the University of Southern Queensland made it to the finals for the third time, this year in the reclassified “small account” category.
The awards ceremony also included the naming of several “suppliers of the year”.
International SOS won in the Traveller Safety Services category for the third time; Tramada Systems won the Travel Technology Services category for the second time; and Butler Caroye made it back-to-back wins in the Consulting Services category.
Visa Commercial Card won the Expense Management Services award while World Travel Professionals was named leading Travel Management Services provider.
The supplier awards were based on buyer nominations and motivations. “Buyers were asked to identify suppliers who had gone beyond the call of duty – and we got some great stories about customer service, innovation and cost-containment,” says BTTB managing director, Nigel Wardropper. “The word ‘partnership’ was used often in the descriptions of the winners.”
The buyer awards, sponsored by Qantas, include business class air travel to attend an international educational event of the winner’s choice, but compere Allan Leibowitz pointed out that “Wimbledon, the Monaco Grand Prix or a new Cirque do Soleil show in Vegas are not classified as educational”.
The awards dinner was held at the Sofitel Wentworth Sydney as part of the BTTB Australia 2009 conference.
The BTTB Travel Management Awards for Buyers are kindly sponsored by Qantas.
