CONTACT:       
Caleb Tiller, +1 703-684-0836 ext. 138, ctiller@nbta.org
Nicole Hayes, +1 703-684-0836 ext. 133, nhayes@nbta.org

Networking Event, Specialized Education Certification to Meet the Needs of Sports Travel Community

Houston, TX (August 10, 2010) – The National Business Travel Association – the premier global resource for travel management professionals – today announced the launch of a new online professional development certification program catering to the specialized needs of the sports travel management community. The association will also hold its first NBTA Sports Travel Conference July 12-13, 2011, in Indianapolis, IN, home of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The conference – the first of its kind -- will provide a forum for travel professionals working in athletics at all levels and across all sports to address the specific challenges of varying travel spend. 

Craig Banikowski, CTE, C.P.M., CPM, NBTA President & CEO, said, “Sports travel is a distinct segment that presents unique travel management challenges and opportunities. These new education and networking opportunities will help sports travel professionals to better understand the ins and outs of their sector, while expanding their business travel networks and enhancing their careers.”

NBTA’s Fundamentals of Sports Travel Management is an online, self-paced course designed to identify and address the unique components of a managed sports travel program at the professional, collegiate and youth sports levels. Participants will learn general sports and travel industry principles, then explore the intersection of these industries and the distinct competencies and skill sets needed to establish or enhance a sports travel management program. Upon successful completion of the course and final exam, participants earn the designation of Sports Travel Professional (STP) demonstrating mastery of the essential concepts of sports travel management.

To ensure the quality of NBTA’s new sports travel resources, the NBTA Sports Travel Task Force, created last year to address industry issues and propose solutions, has become a permanent, standing Committee of NBTA. Made up of representatives from the leading colleges, universities, and professional sports associations and under the leadership of Chair Darla Montalto, Corporate Travel Managers for Major League Baseball, and Vice Chair Monisa Cline, Staff Vice President of Continental, the NBTA Sports Travel Committee will offer guidance, leadership, and input in the continued development of sports travel education and offerings.

Nikki Watson, founding Chair of the NBTA Sports Travel Task Force and Assistant Director of Business Intelligence and Project Management at the National Collegiate Athletic Association, said, “NBTA is the ideal channel for gathering the sports travel community and hosting a centralized body to help solve problems and recognize best practices for sports travel managers. Members of the new NBTA Sports Travel Committee are personally and professionally invested in creating opportunities to work together and learn from each other.”

The Fundamentals of Sports Travel Management course consists of seven modules and a final exam. Participants may review course content, glossary and download resources at any time. A comprehensive final assessment tests mastery of defined learning objectives. The course will be available in the coming weeks.

About the 2010 NBTA International Convention & Exposition
Widely recognized as the must-attend event for business travel buyers, suppliers, industry leaders and business travel journalists, the 2010 NBTA International Convention & Exposition is taking place in Houston August 8-11, 2010.  More than 5,800 travel professionals will take advantage of the Convention’s programming, designed to empower attendees to maximize value for their companies, including more than 65 seminars on the most important topics in business travel, more than 400 companies exhibiting in the Expo and countless opportunities for networking with peers. For details, visit www.nbtaconvention.org. 

The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) is the world’s premier business travel and corporate meetings organization. NBTA and its regional affiliates – NBTA Australia / New Zealand, the Brazilian Business Travel Association (ABGEV), NBTA Canada, NBTA Europe, NBTA Mexico, and NBTA USA – serve a network of more than 17,000 business travel professionals around the globe with industry-leading events, networking, education & professional development, research, news & information, and advocacy. NBTA members, numbering more than 5,000 in 30 nations, are corporate and government travel and meetings managers, as well as travel service providers. They collectively manage and direct more than US$340 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually on behalf of more than 13 million business travelers within their organizations. For more information, visit www.nbta.org