Marriott CEO Sees Corporations as “Conservative” on Restarting Business Travel
Executive sees travelers as forcing change in effort to get back on the road >>
by: Harvey Chipkin
Arne Sorenson, CEO of Marriott International, said corporations are being “conservative” about business travel. Speaking on a virtual panel organized by the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference – usually held in New York at this time – Sorenson said he is “frustrated” by companies closing offices for long periods and extending travel bans through the end of 2020 and even well into 2021. He said the situation was a result of the “conservative nature of big institutions” with “lawyers sitting around a table to see who is acting the most conscientious.” But Sorenson said he thought travelers, especially younger ones, will force changes and tell their employers they can’t be forced to stay at home. Keith Barr, CEO of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), said his company is seeing strong business on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in many locations, showing there is a lot of business travel with people feeling comfortable driving from city to city while they are less comfortable about traveling by air.
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