by Pádraic Gilligan, Founder, SoolNua & Chief Marketing Officer, SITE
Incentive travel professionals should adopt a consultancy approach, addressing critical issues like sustainability, to lead the industry forward and align with evolving stakeholder expectations and corporate practices.
We are incentive travel professionals
Google may have transformed us into amateur diagnosticians, yet when faced with a medical issue, we still heed our doctors’ advice. Similarly, we might have a good grasp of numbers, but we rely on professional accountants for our annual returns. The same goes for legal matters; we depend on lawyers for their expertise. Professionals such as doctors, accountants, and lawyers provide advice based on their expertise and accountability, not on what clients want to hear.
So, why don’t we as incentive travel professionals adopt a similar approach?
The impact of Covid on Incentive Travel
Since Spring 2020, when Covid entered stage left, incentive travel professionals have been playing their part in an unfolding drama best described by the acronym VUCA: volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous. COVID shuttered our industry for two years but then it opened again to unprecedented demand but, at best, volatile supply. And that’s not to mention the complexity of having no trained staff or the ambiguity of how and whether to service the business.
Since then other, arguably graver, matters have taken centre stage: our industry now contends with critical issues such as diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB); the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) as either an enabler or disabler; climate change and the role of incentive travel in contributing to CO2 emissions; and geo-political unrest, particularly in Eastern Europe and the Middle East.
Sustainability and Incentive Travel
The Incentive Travel Index (ITI), an annual survey conducted by the Society for Incentive Travel Excellence (SITE) and the Incentive Research Foundation (IRF), has explored these core challenges over the years. Surprisingly, with the exception of geo-political issues, the concerns highlighted above have ranked low among survey respondents. When probed further, the common response is that these issues “are not of concern to our customers.”
This raises the question: are we leading or being led? Should we act merely as “order takers,” fulfilling the immediate desires of our clients? Or should we position ourselves as professional consultants, trusted advisors who provide informed opinions and guide clients on what is best for their businesses in the mid to long term?
Research on the place of sustainability in incentive travel
For instance, ITI responses to questions on the importance of environmental sustainability show little or no change since the question was first asked in 2017. It was unimportant in 2017 and it’s still unimportant in 2023, particularly amongst US respondents. Destinations are not being chosen on the basis of any criteria related to sustainability – so distance from the sponsoring company’s base location is not a deterrent, nor is the country’s / host property’s intrinsic sustainability credentials.
Yet, as business professionals we know mid to large sized companies have radically changed the way they file their annual reports with Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Diageo, General Motors and Coca-Cola – to name but a few – all using both GRI (Global Report Initiative) and SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board) in their annual statements. For these companies, and countless others, environmental sustainability is indeed a major concern.
Sustainability is a corporate concern
The likes of KPMG, Grant Thornton and EY see this as reflective of a broader trend towards greater transparency, accountability and integration of sustainability into core business strategies. It’s also highlighting the evolving expectations of stakeholders, who increasingly demand detailed and credible information on a company’s sustainability practices and impacts.
As Incentive travel professionals we must recognize our role in steering the industry forward. By taking a stand on critical issues – and sustainability is but one of them – and providing expert advice, we can ensure that our industry not only thrives, but also contributes positively to broader societal goals.
Surely it’s time to elevate our role from mere service providers to strategic partners who lead with insight and integrity?
Pádraic Gilligan is Founder of SoolNua and Chief Marketing Officer at SITE. The pictures here are courtesy of St.John’s based photographer, Joey Woolridge with whom SITE worked in St.John’s, Newfoundland last week.