Alexandria, Va. – Career development and advancement for women in the global business travel industry was at the forefront as GBTA WINiT celebrated a decade of commitment to helping women move forward in their careers yesterday at its annual Summit, Awards Ceremony and Gala held at the TWA Hotel at JFK Airport in New York City.

GBTA WINiT (“Women in Travel”), a program of the GBTA Foundation, brought together industry professionals and leaders for a day of education, collaboration and recognition with a focus on raising awareness and creating advancement around the challenges and successes women face in the global business travel sector. The Summit and Gala aimed to spark industry dialogue, promote learning and empowerment and celebrate the progress and achievements of women in the field.

The“Journey Forward” - A Day of Education and Collaboration

Through its 2024 theme “Journey Forward,” the Summit brought together 200 travel industry professionals at all levels – including WINiT members, mentors, mentees, alumni, advisors, committee volunteers and board members. Spanning leadership, innovation, mentorship and allyship, program discussions included trailblazing journeys of female CEOs to a high-energy networking session focused on leveraging everyone’s unique strengths to a think tank harnessing the collective, diverse expertise and experiences of the WINiT community to chart its future path forward.

The Summit also included the announcement of “GBTA WINiT Path to Gender Parity: Advocating for 50/50 Leadership by 2035,” a new initiative with the goal of achieving gender equity in the business travel industry over the next 10 years. Event delegates participated in an interactive workshop helping to create the path ahead across five pillars: inspiring change, shaping future leaders, engaging at every level, motivating change and recognizing achievement.

The year-round mission of GBTA WINiT and initiatives like the Path to Gender Parity are in recognition that there is still more to be done in our industry to offer women equitable opportunities for growth and advancement in their careers. We’re actively working to make tangible, impactful progress… and showcasing the individuals and companies who are going above and beyond to join us. Delphine Millot, Senior Vice President, Sustainability, GBTA and Managing Director at the GBTA Foundation

The GBTA Foundation announced it is now among the 10,000+ signatories of the United Nation’s Women Empowerment Principles (WEP), which offers guidance to businesses on how to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment in the workplace, marketplace and community. As a WEP signatory, an organization’s leadership pledges to foster business practices that empower women, including equal pay for work of equal value, gender-responsive supply chain practices and zero tolerance against sexual harassment in the workplace. (Read GBTA’s profile here.)

Latest Research About Women in Travel Industry Leadership Positions

The GBTA Foundation also exclusively shared the results from its new survey called, “How Women are Shaping the Future of Business Travel,” which focused on the challenges and opportunities women face both as professionals working in the industry and as business travelers themselves.

The survey revealed that even though women make up the majority of professionals on both the buyer and suppler sides of the industry, this representation is strongest at mid-management levels and significant gender disparities remain in the most senior executive roles. In fact, according to the survey respondents, only 39% of vice presidents or executives at travel suppliers and travel management companies are women, compared to their higher representation at director levels, where they hold 66% of the roles.

Gala and Awards Pay Tribute to Trailblazing People and Companies

After the Summit, almost 230 attendees gathered for the WINiT Awards Ceremony and Gala to honor the commitment and accomplishments of individuals and organizations over the past year.

The GBTA WINiT Award winners for 2024:

Pinnacle Awards

  • Outstanding Woman of the Year | Doreen Burse, SVP Worldwide Sales, United Airlines
  • Most Innovative Trailblazer | Axita Bhalsod, VP Analytics and Data Science, Egencia/Amex GBT

Leadership Award

  • Lifetime Achievement Award | Kristin Shovlin, retired, Delta Air Lines

Individual Awards

  • Female Mentor Coaches
    • Anna McConnell, VP Sales, Avis Budget Group
    • Karly Theroff, Director of Account Management, FCM Travel
  • Male Mentor Coaches
    • Mike Guadagnoli, VP Business Rental Sales, Enterprise Mobility
    • Larry Restiano, SVP, Global Business Partnerships, Amex GBT
  • DEI Leadership Award | Linda Bekoe, CEO, APLBC
  • WatchHER: Future of the Workforce | Nicole Slone, Product Marketing Specialist, Delta Air Lines

Company Achievement Awards

  • Creating a Company Culture for Women to Advance and Succeed | Enterprise Mobility

Top 50 Women In Travel

  • GBTA WINiT announced the Top 50 winners
    earlier this month, which can be found here.

The event also kicked off a new scholarship fund that will support the GBTA Foundation’s mission of building and retaining a diverse pipeline of talents in the business travel industry. Donations continue to be accepted here.

Visit the photo galleries here for the 2024 WINiT Summit and the WINiT Gala.

Visit here to learn more about GBTA WINiT, and for more information about the GBTA Foundation, go to https://gbtafoundation.org/.

About GBTA Foundation

The mission of the GBTA Foundation, the US 501c3 charitable arm of the Global Business Travel Association, is to help the global business travel industry create a positive impact and better future for people and the planet. The GBTA Foundation focuses on the strategy and execution of GBTA’s global sustainability programs, supporting initiatives related to climate action; diversity, equity and inclusion; and other talent-related topics via education, research and advocacy. Visit gbtafoundation.org for more information.

About GBTA WINiT

GBTA WINiT is a network of global women and men who serve as catalysts to drive change by providing support and empowering women to take the next step in their careers. The GBTA WINiT Program aims to support gender equity in the business travel industry by helping women thrive and advance throughout the lifecycle of their careers. The core programs of GBTA WINiT include mentorship, education and development, and network and community.

About GBTA

The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) is the world's premiere business travel and meetings trade organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area and serving stakeholders across six continents. GBTA and its 8,000+ members represent and advocate for the $1.48 trillion global travel business and meetings industry. GBTA and the GBTA Foundation deliver world-class education, events, research, advocacy and media to a growing global network of more than 28,000 travel professionals and 125,000 active contacts. For more information visit gbta.org.

About the GBTA Foundation

The mission of the GBTA Foundation, the US 501c3 charitable arm of the Global Business Travel Association, is to help the global business travel industry create a positive impact and better future for people and the planet. The GBTA Foundation focuses on the strategy and execution of GBTA's global sustainability programs, supporting initiatives related to climate action; diversity, equity and inclusion; and other talent-related topics via education, research and advocacy. For more information visit gbtafoundation.org.

Debbie Iannaci
GBTA Global Communications, PR & Research
+1 305 301 7057
GBTA