Letter: Agents Are No Longer The Enemy

I was delighted to learn that the National Business Travel Association board unanimously recommended that travel agencies and travel management firms be admitted as allied members. This subject has been debated long enough, and the old arguments against it are now redundant. I believe that the time is ripe for this change in our bylaws, and I am confident that a substantial majority of our direct members will vote for it.

In 1966 and 1967, several travel agents submitted to the top management of many corporations very aggressive and businesslike proposals, completely bypassing the business travel managers, who were surprised and unprepared when they were confronted by their top management. Too many of them lost their jobs. NYBTA officers held an urgent meeting and put together a pamphlet, "Why You Should Not Use A Travel Agency." We rushed it to all travel managers involved in negotiations.

These problems do not exist today. The business travel department has progressed from a necessary business company expense to a profit center, which often more than pays for itself.

<I>Joseph Mitzi
Honorary member
National Business Travel Association
Roanoke, Va.