Please contact Wyndham Garden Sterling Heights directly at (586) 979-1400 to reserve your room. Identify the event as MBTA Michigan Business Travel Association.  Room rate of $99.00 plus taxes has been secured and will be accepting bookings through February 9th for this rate.

Meeting Agenda:

9:30am  – 10:00am: Registration & Networking

10:00am  – 11:30am: Morning Session: Improve Traveler Booking Compliance to Vendor Programs

Guest Presenter:  Will Tate, CPA, Partner, GoldSpring Consulting

Will Tate, partner at GoldSpring Consulting, an independent travel management consultancy company, brings three decades of financial accounting and travel management experience to a wide range of organizations. He developed a software solution to quantify the effectiveness of travel management programs in a multi-dimensional format.

Will has taught many industry courses and co-authored the GBTA course “Fundamentals of Business Travel Management.” He was an adjunct professor of the Wharton School of Business of the University of Houston and of the University of Virginia and has presented on corporate travel management topics worldwide. Will is a Certified Public Accountant and received his Bachelor of Business Administration in accounting from Texas Tech University.

The 90 minute Morning session will address the full Chapter Membership, both buyers & Suppliers. Focus will be on how to engage and partner with your preferred travel vendors to help reinforce the value provided to your common customer base (the Corporations Travelers)? Looking at the challenges confronting buyers as they attempt to win their travelers over to book via approved channels, selecting the approved suppliers. Efficiency, Metrics, cost of non-compliance, senior leadership support… are just a few areas touched on. Individuals in the audience will augment the presentation content with real-live experiences / challenges / success stories.

11:30am  – 12:00pm: MBTA Business Meeting & Committee Updates

12:00pm  – 1:00pm: Lunch

1:00pm  –  2:30pm: Afternoon Session - Break Out Session for suppliers and buyers

Will Tate conducting a supplier workshop to help strategize with the suppliers on how they can effectively partner with buyers towards the common goal of driving business to their solution. Will’s experience as a Global Travel Manager, and Consultant will provide insight in an environment where suppliers can speak openly regarding the challenges confronting them.

The buyers Afternoon session will be in a round-table configuration, facilitated by the MBTA Education Committee, providing an opportunity for each buyer to provide details about their program, what’s working and their biggest challenges. Collaboration with peers where they can speak openly on possible solutions which can lead to compliance strategies. Specific program details can be visited in this environment, with take-a-ways all buyers will benefit from. 

2:30pm  –  2:45pm –  Closing Remarks (for all attendees) 

2:45pm – Meeting Adjourned  – Prize Drawing