DATE: 6-8 June 2007
VENUE: Sheraton Salobre Golf Resort & Spa
Click here for photos of the event.
Alternatively view the pictures in Book format at the following addresses:
Click here for the Travel Trade Gazette ITT Conference microsite.
Click here for the Travel Weekly ITT Conference blog and video vox pops.
Click here to view the final delegate list.
When delegates describe an event as “the best ITT Conference I’ve been to”, you know it’s been good!
The speakers were excellent and the business sessions were, as one delegate put it, “upbeat, motivational, inspiring”.
The guest speakers were especially good. Great Guns Marketing founder Liz Jackson proved the biggest inspiration, with her story of how she over-came the onset of blindness to set up and manage a hugely successful company. She convinced many that if you think you can… then you will!
Another lesson learned from Richard Reeves was the secret of happiness – apparently gardeners are the happiest people. Which means there probably aren’t a lot of garden centres in Belgium…
A debate on how much women in the travel industry are affected by a glass ceiling or, indeed, a sticky floor, was sparked by the appearance of Jenny Watson, Chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission. Her findings backed up the SHINE Survey into the role of senior women in the travel industry, with 72% of respondents agreeing men are more likely to hold senior posts.
Business forecaster Richard Scase asked the industry to take advantage of the UK’s changing demographics – we’re becoming older, albeit with a younger outlook, and more of us are single. However, futurologist Ian Pearson claimed our singular status will be dealt with by badges which can tell us if we’re in the same room as someone who fits our romantic profile!
Bill Bryson entertained with tales of his travels – with bells on! – and headline collection. With regards to Charles Kennedy though, ITT can only mis-quote Oscar Wilde: “To miss one flight, Mr Kennedy, may be regarded as a misfortune; to miss both looks like carelessness.”
ITT CONFERENCE SOCIAL EVENTS
On the last night, the Gran Canaria Tourist Board, Canary Islands Government and Turespana treated delegates to a sample of what Gran Canaria is like at fiesta time. In a party held beside the famous Maspalomas Lighthouse, they were treated to a spectacular show of dancing, music, fire eaters and carnival, all topped off with a breath-taking firework display. Definitely deemed the best ITT farewell party ever!
The Gala Dinner, sponsored by Times Media, was also a big hit – as was comedian Tim Minchin who’d revised his Ballard of Steven Freudmann especially for the occasion, turning it into a mini travel industry musical. The entertainment, the impressive surroundings of the Lopesan Gran Hotel Villa Del Conde, the great company and the flowing wine helped loosen wallets to the value of £30,500 in the Just A Drop charity auction – a fantastic total which beat last year’s total by nearly ten thousand pounds and has virtually doubled the total amount raised by ITT over the last couple of years!
BUSINESS SESSIONS AND SPEAKERS
MODERATOR
Tim Hames
Global Remix
Professor Richard Scase
Professor Richard Scase is one of the world's leading business forecasters. His latest book, Global Remix: The Fight For Competitive Advantage is an overview of major global economic trends and examines the challenges faced by Western businesses as a result of the rise of Asian, Eastern European and Latin American economies. Scase provided ideas and inspiration on how to make this economic revolution work for businesses and employees.
Click here to download a copy of Richard's presentation (NB the password is itt07).
Will Green Taxes Save The Planet?
Ben Webster, The Times
Dermot Blastland, First Choice
Jeff Gazzard, Airportwatch
Michael O’Leary of Ryanair blames middle-class angst for criticism of the environmental damage caused by airlines. He believes attacks on the airline industry are unjustified and there needs to be a global solution to the problems of carbon emission and climate change. So what are we to make of green taxes, and will they help save the planet? Getting clarification on these issues is vital for the future of the travel industry.
Click here for Jeff's ppt presentation
Face To Face With Manny Fontenla-Novoa, Thomas Cook
Following the merger of Thomas Cook and MyTravel, Manny Fontenla-Novoa is the person responsible for the world’s second largest travel company. As Chairman and Group CEO of Thomas Cook AG, he oversees the strategic direction and overall management of 33 tour operators, 2,400 travel agencies, 80 aircraft and more than 23,000 employees.
Happy Mondays
Richard Reeves, European Business Speaker of the Year
Work is no longer something to be endured, it’s something that should be enjoyed. Richard Reeves believes it’s both possible and desirable to put the pleasure back into going to work. Described as 'Britain's leading expert on workplace trends', Reeves is an authority on motivation and leadership.
Notes From All Over
Bill Bryson
Bill Bryson is one of the world's most popular writers on people, places, language and contemporary issues. The US-born best-selling author is best known for his series of books observing life in Britain in his international best seller, Notes from a Small Island. Bill is the Chancellor of the University of Durham and in 2004 won the Royal Society's Aventis Prize for science writing with his encyclopaedic work A Short History of Nearly Everything.
The Pearson Guide to the Future
Ian Pearson, Futurologist, BT
You don’t need a crystal ball to be a futurologist, but you do need to do a lot of reseach to track the technological developments that will impact our future. Ian will predict the consequences of technological developments which are most likely to have the greatest implications for the travel industry.
Are there Professional Careers on Offer in the Travel Industry?
Professor Rhodri Thomas, ITT Chair,
Leeds Metropolitan University
In January, Professor Rhodri Thomas was appointed the first ITT Chair at Leeds Metropolitan University. He hopes his studies will provide a greater understanding of the issues facing travel and tourism and consequently strengthen the industry. He presented the findings of his first research project to the ITT Conference.
Click here for Rhodri's ppt presentation
If You Think You Can…
Liz Jackson MBE, MD, Great Guns Marketing
Liz told her remarkable business story, focussing on the critical elements of her style of leadership that she uses to inspire and encourage her team to win and retain clients. She founded award winning Great Guns Marketing at the age of 25 with just five thousand pounds. Today it’s one of the UK’s largest telemarketing companies with a growth rate of 40% per annum.
Women are the UK’s Most Wasted Resource
Jenny Watson, Chair, Equal Opportunities Commission
Alessandra Alonso, Joint MD, Shine People & Places
Anita McErlean, Director, AMC Consultancy2006 was the 30th anniversary of the Sex Discrimination Act, but is equality still only a thin veneer that falls apart for women when they have children or become carers? Does sex equality come on terms that demand that women live as men used to? And does it come, ironically, at a time when modern men have decided they want to live in a different way and spend more time with their families?
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