Business Travel News - November 19, 2007 - (Page S22)

European 100 Spotlight PFIZER Consolidating Meetings Across Europe P ings management in that spend was divided among several areas of the same company, making the task of collecting reliable fizer has consolidated its meetings sourcing program data a difficult one. Pfizer’s European travel managers therefore across Europe by implementing the StarCite technol- created a project team that concluded the key to consolidatogy tool. The pharmaceutical company estimates ing data was to introduce technology. conservatively that it will cut costs by at least 10 perHowever, when it looked into the tools on the market, it found cent as a result, thanks to improved data leading to none that matched Pfizer Europe’s requirements as closely as better buying decisions, reduced cancellation fees and more it wished. The team therefore started to work with StarCite to reefficient registration management. The savings also will be design the product, especially to re-tune its characteristics for the achieved through a wider meetEuropean market. Examples included ings strategy that includes consolmaking the tool multilingual and mulidation of destination manageticurrency, and being able to roll the ment companies, audiovisual currencies up into a single summary. companies and other local thirdThe implementation has worked party suppliers. well, Shillam said. “We can now see The strategy is notable, as crosswhat we have booked,” she said. “It is border consolidation of meetings not perfect but it is a lot better than it programs and the use of meetings was. We are buying space as an organtechnology remains rare in Europe, ization, not market by market.” and Pfizer introduced the tool in Pfizer is beginning to use the inforEurope before the United States, mation it has gathered to negotiate net where the company is headquarrates, although against a background tered. Pfizer has only rolled out the of challenging conditions where deStarCite tool on a limited basis in mand exceeds supply in many destithe United States, Latin America nations. “Hotels have responded posiand the Far East. tively and we will start to leverage our Sue Shillam, Europe, Middle East rates next year, but at the moment the and Africa director of global travel problem is securing meeting space,” for Pfizer, has led the European Shillam said. “This should at least give project. She will retire in January us priority for future bookings.” SUE SHILLAM, 2008 after running the company’s Although improved data was the Pfizer Europe, Middle East and Africa European travel program for 20 principal reason for introducing StarCite, years and that of Ciba-Geigy for 12 a less-anticipated benefit has proved director of global travel years before that. With Shillam’s to be the efficiencies in delegate regleadership, Pfizer has started to coordinate meetings across 24 istration, such as rooming lists. This has helped reduce the mancountries in Europe through a network of travel managers who ual registration costs of $50 per delegate, tangible savings that also have responsibility for meeting spend. So far, three of the the European team has found very helpful in persuading senlargest markets have started using StarCite and another two ior management to buy into its strategy. are about to come online. In addition to introducing StarCite, Pfizer has taken other Shillam and her colleagues started to collaborate on meetings steps to consolidate its European meetings program, including because each market was using its own processes and inter- starting to outsource the booking of travel for events. mediaries, creating major inefficiencies. “There were cases of “In the past, our air spend associated with meetings was lost, one Pfizer business bidding against another for the same meet- which is why we have moved it to our travel management coming space, or situations where Pfizer Germany was paying for a pany,” said Shillam. “You need service-level agreements and safevenue for the first part of a week and Pfizer Denmark for the guards to ensure the data is retained.” second part,” she said. “The businesses were also cancelling Pfizer also has begun consolidating the specialist meetings meetings that could have been replaced by another part of the agencies it uses. However, although this will produce economies organization.” of scale, Shillam is wary of squeezing the intermediaries so hard Continued on page 23 The company also faced the traditional challenge of meet- BY AMON COHEN 22 EUROPEAN 100 BUSINESS TRAVEL NEWS WWW.BTNONLINE.COM http://WWW.BTNONLINE.COM

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Business Travel News - November 19, 2007

Business Travel News - November 19, 2007
Contents
Avis Ups Its Bet With Carey Investment
Notebook: ACTE Assails Green Taxes
EC Adopts Revised CRS Code Of Conduct
Dynamic Discovery: General Dynamics’ Loper Mines Data
American First: AA Wins BRN's 2007 Air Survey
Perfecting Attendance: CA’s Brust Deploys Event Reg. Tech.
Mtg. Buyers Grapple With Price Hikes
Business Travel News - 2007 Resource Guide
Table of Contents
Airline Benchmarks
Siemens: Global Balance
Hotel Benchmarks
Syngenta: Selective Sourcing
Online Booking Benchmarks
Pfizer: Cross-Border Mtgs. Consolidation
Meetings Benchmarks
Planes, Trains and Striking Good Deals

Business Travel News - November 19, 2007

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