The Institute of Travel Management (ITM), the UK & Ireland’s leading professional body for business travel managers and suppliers, is enhancing its membership offering significantly with the launch of ‘ITM Community’, a programme of initiatives to help members navigate the impact of Covid-19 on their professional lives.
ITM Community is designed not only to support those in the industry who have been furloughed or displaced; it also embraces resources that underpin ITM’s dedication to providing education and guidance to members who have retained their jobs but are increasingly under pressure to justify their role.In recognition of the corporate travel industry’s prolonged journey to recovery, ITM is offering complimentary ‘Business’ level membership from now until the end of April to new or existing members who are currently on furlough or displaced. This gives unlimited access to all ITM resources, educational opportunities and virtual events until 30th April, including attendance at the 2021 annual ITM Conference ‘Revive’.
ITM is also placing even greater focus on its educational offering to help members address the challenges of re-defining travel programmes, preparing for recovery and building traveller confidence, in an ever-changing business travel landscape.
ITM’s calendar of virtual events for the first half of 2021 has increased by 25 per cent year on year. This includes:
- Buyer Insight sessions and Buyer Knowledge exchanges which were introduced in 2020 in response to members’ heightened need to share information and support each other during the pandemic crisis. These sessions will run bi-monthly in the first half of 2021, with capacity to increase frequency to flex with members’ needs.
- A new series of bi-monthly Travel Category Showcases focussing on a specific area or sector of business travel; presented by a maximum of four relevant suppliers per session, each giving a 10-minute insight into their business; followed by a 5-minute Q&A. This series has been developed after ITM member survey results revealed demand from 60 per cent of buyers for access to category specific content in order to stay abreast of rapid industry change.
- Increased frequency of Inside the Mind of the Buyer events to bi-monthly (previously hosted three times per year) to give suppliers much needed insight into travel buyers current priorities and challenges.
ITM has also launched its Mentoring Programme for 2021 to support members with their career development and personal growth. Now in its second year, the programme has matched 30 mentees with experienced individual members who will provide guidance and knowledge sharing throughout the coming 12 months.
Scott Davies, ITM’s Chief Executive Officer commented: “As our industry tackles a third UK lockdown, some of our members who previously may not have been furloughed or displaced, now find themselves in this position. Moreover, some of our members are sadly furlough veterans, but this furlough may not resemble previous experiences, when reduced hours were more commonplace rather than a complete absence. The Covid-19 pandemic has also led to almost half of buyers feeling increased pressure to justify their roles within their organisation as travel came to a complete stop.
“The heart of ITM’s mission has always been to focus on providing a community for business travel professionals, where they can be informed, educated, connected and inspired,” continued Davies. “Caring for our community has become even more important since the start of the pandemic. We have strived to support our members with access to vital knowledge sharing and resources throughout 2020 and are committed to introducing yet further supportive initiatives in 2021. Hence, we are bringing all these initiatives together under the ‘ITM Community’ banner.”
