Engaging the Next Generation of Meeting Attendees

The Global Business Travel Association projected last summer that business travel would reach $1.4 trillion in 2024—surpassing pre-pandemic highs—and grow to nearly $1.8 trillion by 2027. We know there’s incredible power in meeting face-to-face and these record-high projections show organizations know it too. But spending isn’t the only thing shaping business travel. Generation Z (born 1997 to 2012) along with the younger side of the Millennial generation (born 1981 to 1996) are giving business travel new contours as the spending and transaction volume grow. Travel managers and event organizers will need to meet young professionals where they are, if they want to continue to have successful travel and meetings programs.

Capitalizing on Bleisure

Employees are increasingly looking to maximize their time spent traveling for business by incorporating leisure and cultural exploration into their trips—i.e. bleisure travel. Incorporating bleisure planning options as part of the business travel process can be a great way to increase employee retention and satisfaction—especially amongst Millennials, who are expected to continue dominating the bleisure market. To meet this growing need, corporate event organizers are incorporating hyper-local and cultural experiences into their event agendas to bring leisure activities to their attendees. To capture the attention of younger travelers, make destination information readily available on event websites and allow time for attendees to visit attractions, or plan networking opportunities that include exploring the city. Having easy-to-navigate attendee guides is also a must for attendees to maximize their time.  This is becoming an imperative, rather than a “nice to have,” as younger professionals enter the workforce.

Tapping into Digitization & Customized Experience

Younger Millennial and Gen Z employees are more accustomed to integrating technology into their workstreams. A recent Adobe study found that 70 percent of Gen Z workers would leave their current company to work for an employer with a better tech stack. In terms of travel and events, they will look for AI-powered solutions in 2024, like chatbots to address event questions or even travel issues quickly. They also want improvements to the user experience, such as touchless payments and integrations with leading payment or travel apps for seamless receipt organization.

Similarly, Millennial and Gen Z employees like to “choose their own adventure,” in both their personal and professional lives. So, giving them the opportunity to opt-in to specific hotel amenities or locations or choose which sessions they’d like to attend—and how they want to attend those sessions, whether in person or virtually—during a multi-day conference puts them in the driver's seat of their experience.

Prioritizing Sustainability

Sustainability is also top of mind for younger professionals. According to a recent Deloitte survey, more than half of Millennial and Gen Z respondents claim they researched a brand’s environmental impact and policies before accepting a job. When it comes to business travel and meetings, travelers also weigh whether an event program resonates with them, and if it doesn’t, they’ll think twice about increasing their carbon footprint to attend. Professionals will also look for sustainable options like carbon offset flights and eco-friendly hotels.

Event hosts can help facilitate more sustainable travel by aligning event dates and agendas to streamline flight needs and partnering with hotels and venues to minimize environmental impact. Organizers should be transparent about steps they’ve taken to minimize the event’s carbon footprint. Additionally, venues should be able to give detailed explanations of how they’re managing waste, another major component of event sustainability.

Including Inclusion

Ensuring an inclusive and accessible travel planning process is also critically important for event planners and travel managers alike as Millennials (and really, all business travelers today) recognize that travel should be accessible to people of all abilities, backgrounds, and identities.  

Today’s digitized environment means savvier, more connected and more informed business and meetings travelers. Younger professionals reap so many benefits to business travel, from networking opportunities and fostering creativity to experiencing new places and cultures.

It’s exciting to see how the new workforce is embracing the revival of business travel and in-person meetings and events. Employers and event planners will contribute to this momentum by creating spaces for these newcomers to create a community among themselves and survey them on their experiences to ensure travel and events are providing the value and networking opportunities they need. Companies that have a firm grasp on these shifting demographic trends are more likely to not just have a competitive advantage as it relates to driving their businesses forward, but also in keeping their employees engaged and happy for the long-term.