BBT Diamond Awards Nominations Panel 2008

The carefully balanced nominations panel brings together Buying Business Travel’s team of award winning journalists with buyers from a range of companies which vary by sector and size, providing a truly representative view of the business travel industry as a whole.

Readers will also have an opportunity to make individual nominations when they come to cast their votes.

Geoff Allwright
Travel and expense manager for Airbus UK, where he has implemented a fully on-line travel and expense management process for all employees. This intranet-based approach has been well accepted with an air booking adoption rate of 80% and large travel spend savings resulting. Previously worked as travel manager for HP and Intel in the UK.

Ginny Harris
Sourcing group manager, GlaxoSmithKline, responsible for European agency services (both transient and group travel). GSK’s global travel programme provides both assurance of supply and competitive rates for all domestic and international business travellers and drives best practice in terms of compliance, technology and value.

Rebecca Perry
Travel coordinator for R. J. Kiln for the past three years, having joined as a PA to the active underwriters of Syndicate 510 and 557 in 1999. Travel Arranger of the Year 2007 in the BBT Diamond Awards.

Caroline Strachan
Travel manager for Yahoo! International since June last year, she is due to take over the chair of the Institute of Travel Management in 2008. Formerly travel operations manager, EMEA, for Cisco Systems.

Robbie Hughes
Global travel operations manager - EMEA, for Oracle Corporation. Previously with Cisco Systems after 21 years at American Express in both travel and card roles. Combined industry knowledge of over 30 years.

Catherine Chetwynd
Leading freelance writer on business travel and a regular contributor to Buying Business Travel. Writes on a wide range of subjects, including expense management systems, hotels and serviced apartments.

Colin Ellson
Regular contributor to Buying Business Travel and former deputy editor of Executive Travel magazine. Acknowledged authority on the Middle East, Eastern/Central Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Bob Papworth
Buying Business Travel’s multi award-winning executive editor, including Business Travel Journalist of the Year (2004) and top feature writer (2006/2007), covering a wide range of topics and combining informed comment with his unique writing style.

David Richardson
Regular contributor to Buying Business Travel and a leading writer on transport and other related topics, he was voted best writer on car rental in the 2005 Business Travel Journalism Awards.

Mike Toynbee (chairman)
Editor of Buying Business Travel, has an unrivalled track record as business travel’s longest serving editor with more than 25 years’ experience, including Executive Travel and OAG’s monthly ET Online newsletter.