|
Travel conference explored sustainable sourcing
Toronto—Safety and sustainability were the main topics at the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) forum in Toronto last month. The event drew more than 85 business travel executives, buyers and managers.
Presentations also focused on improving safety for corporate travellers. Michel Chamberland, corporate travel manager with Inco, talked about the extra vigilance he uses on suppliers to ensure quality. The talk was well-received by attendees since it highlighted some non-traditional approaches to metrics, said Monica Hailstone, regional director for Canada with ACTE.
“He does some very unusual things when he’s choosing or maintaining his programs of preferred suppliers,” Hailstone said. “He gave examples [for instance] taking a car, renting it for a day and actually taking it to the garage to get it safety checked…to make sure your suppliers are providing the right safety for your travellers.”
Delegates also discussed the latest methods and technology for keeping up with corporate travellers to ensure they have proper support and real-time travel alerts.
Over lunch, Kathrin Bohr of Canadian Business for Social Responsibility gave a presentation on corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the travel industry.
“Kathrin Bohr really put out there that Canada needs to take a bigger step toward doing better CSR practices. There’s this rating system that you use from one to five and most Canadian companies are around a three. So there’s a long road ahead,” Hailstone said.
Travel buyers were encouraged to choose suppliers who strive to be sustainable. For their part, vendors learned about the latest sustainability rating systems, such as the Eco-Rating program described by the Hotel Association of Canada. The system is comprised of questions—related to energy use, environmental policies and responsibility—which tabulate into a score.
Suppliers are then prompted to improve their score by investing in sustainability projects. Ontario ACTE members will reconvene in Toronto June 6 for a networking event, and June 12 in Ottawa.
|
