Empowerment and support for women in the hospitality sector provided by GBTA Foundation
In an effort to promote gender equality in the hospitality industry, GBTA WINiT, a global initiative by the GBTA Foundation, has expanded its reach to include members from Canada, Mexico, Europe, and across the Asia Pacific region. This programme focuses on strategic leadership, effective communication, personal growth, and other essential skills for executive readiness.
The strategies employed by GBTA WINiT to help women break the glass ceiling are manifold. One such strategy is mentorship and networking. By connecting women with experienced leaders, the programme offers guidance to navigate challenges and achieve career goals more effectively. Collective networking efforts also drive systemic change by advocating for more inclusive environments and policies that support women’s advancement.
Another strategy is professional development. GBTA WINiT offers educational resources and training to equip women with the skills needed to ascend to leadership positions. This focus on personal and professional growth equips women to better compete for senior roles.
Advocacy for inclusive policies is another key strategy. GBTA WINiT emphasizes the importance of community and advocacy, working together to influence industry standards and push for policies that promote gender equity in the workplace.
Role modeling and empowerment are also crucial. Seeing women in leadership positions can inspire others to pursue similar paths. Programmes like WINiT highlight the achievements of women in the industry, fostering a sense of empowerment and motivation.
Building a supportive community is another important aspect. Creating a space where women can share experiences and challenges helps build resilience and fosters collaboration, which are crucial for overcoming barriers in male-dominated industries.
Personal branding is a popular topic in these programmes, helping women refine their presence, communicate their value, and advocate for leadership roles. The GBTA Foundation's survey found that women make up the majority of professionals on both the corporate travel manager and supplier sides, but significant gender disparities remain in the most senior executive roles.
GBTA WINiT supports more than 2,000 active mentees and trains over 1,000 women each year through its leadership offerings. The programme teaches leadership habits such as effective delegation, prioritization, and goal-setting. It has also expanded into emerging areas like adaptive leadership, managing burnout, and leading through change.
Communication skills are emphasized, including tailoring messaging, negotiating, and influencing across various stakeholders. These programmes aim to address the gender gap by targeting the transition from director to executive roles, with a focus on inspiring change, shaping future leaders, engaging every level, motivating change, and recognizing achievement.
Breaking through the "glass ceiling" within the industry requires visibility, advocacy, and readiness. Mentorship is the first step, but sponsorship is the game-changer, offering guidance, perspective, and influence. GBTA Foundation's initiative, Path to Parity, aims to achieve 50/50 gender representation in leadership roles across the business travel industry by 2035.
The GBTA Foundation is a non-profit trade organization serving over 9,000 members in the $1.57 trillion business travel industry across six continents. The organisation helps women advance in their careers through mentorship, leadership development, global community-building, and recognition. GBTA WINiT's mentorship model empowers mentees by allowing them to set their own goals, manage relationships, and guide the pace.
The gender gap won't close with good intentions alone but requires programs that address real barriers, use real data, and operate at scale, with companies willing to commit and leadership from across the business travel ecosystem. Only 39% of vice presidents or executives at travel supplier and travel management companies are women, compared to their higher representation at director levels, where they hold 66% of the roles.
Resilience is another major theme, with training on building traits like confidence and composure. Recognition is a critical lever for GBTA WINiT, elevating voices that deserve to be seen and celebrated. The Path to Parity initiative includes mentorship, research, community engagement, and allyship to address the gender gap. Community is considered a critical leadership behaviour, with a focus on making meaningful connections.
- GBTA WINiT's strategies for helping women in hospitality ascend to leadership roles also include focusing on finance, as they offer educational resources and training to equip women with the skills needed to compete for senior positions, including financial management and strategy.
- In addition to leadership and personal growth, GBTA WINiT emphasizes the importance of business skills, such as effective financial management, in order to give women the competitive edge they need to advance their careers in the hospitality industry, thereby bridging the gender gap in finance and executive positions.
