Elevating the Global Business Travel Industry
Susan Gurley - Executive Director - Association of Corporate Travel Executives

The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) is truly a global organisation. Founded in 1988 in the United States, through the vision of corporate travel suppliers and buyers seeking to establish equitable representation within the travel management profession, the association now has more than 9,000 business travel professionals, from 82 countries, participating in its education events worldwide.

Education
The original ACTE model called for an international network, emphasizing smaller, more numerous educational forums held not only in the United States, but also throughout the world. It is a model that has served ACTE well to this day, one that is reflected in its mission statement, “To provide global and regional leadership for the advancement of the business travel industry through the exchange of knowledge and opportunity and the pursuit of excellence.”
In 2009, ACTE will hold 57 education events in the seven regions that the association serves: Africa, Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and the United States. This includes two Global Education Conferences in the United States (Washington, D.C.) and Europe (Prague); three regional education conferences in Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Canada, and 52 educational forums throughout the world.
Attendees to ACTE education events have the opportunity to hear from global thought leaders in corporate travel, business, economics, education, politics and technology. ACTE conferences offer new strategies in travel management, fresh insights and unparalleled opportunities for peer-to-peer networking in the global business travel industry.
ACTE attendees also learn that better management of travel spend continues to be accomplished in tandem with achieving goals set for the environment and sustainability.

Advocacy
While ACTE also works with ministries and government agencies throughout the six populated continents and analyses legislative developments concerning the corporate travel industry such as safety, security, and data privacy, it declines political activism or political action committee and special interest fundraising. ACTE advocates on behalf of all its members, to educate executives on the issues, to foster an open dialogue, and to encourage fair and balanced solutions.
For a generation, ACTE has pioneered, initiated, and advocated just and balanced global travel management industry innovations and improvements. The association has been in the forefront of:
•Traveller Safety and Security
•Potential EU Fingerprinting Abuse
•Data Privacy and Laptop Seizures of Citizens and Non-citizens at U.S. Borders
Traveller Safety and Security
Increased tensions around the globe have forced government agencies and law enforcement bodies to implement physical and virtual protection mechanisms for improving the safety of civilians, as well as the protection of information. In this new security environment, travellers have had to react and adjust to new technical and compliance requirements that many times impede the conduct of business.

ACTE has always been on the forefront of the issue of traveller safety and security. Shortly following the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in November 2008, the association published its recommendations of security questions to ask hotel partners, and 12 basic travel guidelines for business travellers to address security concerns, including a checklist of items to pack to optimize traveller safety in the event of a high-risk situation.
Potential EU Fingerprinting Abuse.

In 2008, ACTE was the first business travel organization to report on the potential for abuse or compromise in a growing trend by governments to rely on higher levels of electronic surveillance to track the movement of suspected terrorists or criminals throughout the global transportation network. The association’s position was prompted by an announcement from the European Union (EU), in which the governing body had proposed the fingerprinting of all non-Europeans entering the 27 countries of the region.


ACTE’s concerns were mirrored by privacy advocates opposed to the automatic sharing of biometric data between governments, and security specialists who oppose storing so much sensitive information in one place. Furthermore, civil rights groups and European privacy groups have already voiced strong opposition to this proposal and that many of the 27 EU countries, such as Belgium, have very strong privacy laws that specifically limit access to databases. ACTE will continue to monitor this situation as it develops.



Data Privacy and Laptop Seizures of Citizens and Non-citizens at U.S. Borders
ACTE has been instrumental in leading the issue of data privacy and laptop seizures at U.S. Borders right to the halls of government. Within 18 months of acting as the lead advocate for transparency and change on this issue, and bringing it to the attention of the international business travelling public, a new bill was introduced by the United States House and Senate.
Introduced on September 26, 2008, the “Travelers’ Privacy Protection Act of 2008”, guarantees travellers’ rights in cases of laptop seizures at U.S. borders. The bill requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials to demonstrate reasonable suspicion – and to obtain a warrant – before seizing a laptop or other electronic device and randomly copying the data it contains.

ACTE Connect – A Free and Open Resource
ACTE also introduced the first business travel management research resource to be offered online by a major professional association – ACTE Connect – in May 2008. ACTE Connect is the first one-stop resource for the business travel industry’s intellectual capital, research and best practices. It is a free and open resource to all – not just ACTE members.
Since going live, ACTE Connect has had over 16,000 searches, averaging approximately 2,000 searches per month. More than 850 documents, white papers, and reports are currently housed on the site.
Research is continuously refreshed by travel buyers and suppliers, TMCs, consulting firms, research organisations, government agencies and academia. Commercial messages are not accepted. To access ACTE Connect, please go to www.acte.org.

Corporate Social Responsibility
ACTE launched its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Initiative in the autumn of 2004. It was the first organization in the business travel industry to recognize this key issue, and to educate members on the positive corporate/social benefits of sound CSR practices.
In the last five years, ACTE has engaged in numerous global CSR initiatives, including:
•Instituting, in 2006, an Environmental Considerations RFP document for green meetings
•Introducing TransACTE, the first environmentally-friendly trade show concept
•The ACTE/KDS Survey on the impact of CSR in the business travel industry (now in its fourth year)
•Partnering with Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD), a major German transport and environmental organization, on its Green Travel Project
•Hosting carbon-low global conferences in partnership with Marriott and British Airways
•Global Symposium at the ACTE Asia-Pacific Education Conference in August 2008 on Mainstreaming CSR in Business Travel Management
•Partnering with The CarbonNeutral Company (United Kingdom) to provide a travel carbon calculator to members to measure their emissions
•White paper, Carbon Neutrality – An integral part of the corporate travel supply-chain, based on the results of an ACTE global survey
•Member of the UNEP International Taskforce on Sustainable Tourism Development
•Partnering with international organizations such as International Office of Migration (IOM), MTV Exit Europe Foundation and ECPAT to end exploitation and trafficking of women and children

ACTE incorporates environmentally-friendly practices into its global conferences and throughout its regional offices, and remains committed to reducing carbon emissions at all events. Twice a year, ACTE gives its CSR Award, the first of its kind in the industry, to those business travel executives who incorporate eco-sensitive practices into their travel programs.

Summary
Global in every sense of the word, ACTE's international board (with more than 50 percent of its members from outside the United States) recommends an integrated approach to national culture, corporate culture, and common objectives in proposing uniform corporate travel standards. The association does not export one country's interpretation of travel management policies and systems as the "best practice" for the industry worldwide. Rather, ACTE relies on the experience and expertise of its members, leaders, and staff within each region and nation to develop the most relevant and applicable programs and events to “Think local, act global.”

For the last 20 years ACTE has remained the leader in global education for the business travel industry. ACTE will continue to work on behalf of travel managers and suppliers alike to give them the tools they need to succeed – in good times and in bad.

ACTE International
515. King Street,
Suite 440
Alexandria,
VA 22314
Tel: 001 703.683.5322
Email: info@acte.org