USQ travel manager named Australia's best business travel professional

USQ Corporate Travel Manager Liz Newberry has received a national business award

USQ’s travel management has received national recognition from one of Australia’s leading organisations for business travel professionals.

USQ Corporate Travel Manager Mrs Liz Newberry was named the 2009 National Business Travel Association (NBTA) Asia Pacific Excellence Award winner for outstanding achievement in the categories of risk management and duty of care, negotiation of supplier contracts and implementation of a self-booking tool.

Mrs Newberry accepted the award at the Association’s National conference in Canberra earlier this month (September).

'I was very excited to receive this Asia-Pacific honour,' Mrs Newberry said. 'USQ is now seen as a University that is leading the way in corporate travel.

'Among other things, the judges said they were impressed by the University’s duty of care and risk management for travellers during the swine flu pandemic over the past months.'

Mrs Newberry, who has been USQ’s corporate travel manager for three years, organises more than 5000 domestic and international travel bookings for staff and associates each year.

'I would describe my role as challenging, and ever-changing,” Mrs Newberry said. “We’ve made a lot of changes to the University’s travel management, including consolidating 49 different processes of managing travel into one, which has saved USQ $ 300,000 each year.

'The travel office has always received a lot of support from senior management and in particular, Professor Bill Lovegrove.'

The $20,000 prize includes two return Business Class tickets to Los Angeles to attend the 2010 NBTA Convention and Exposition in Houston, Texas, in August next year.

This convention and exposition provides access to more than 60 educational sessions and networking opportunities with more than 6000 business travel professionals.

'I’m proud to be representing USQ and Asia Pacific at this international event,' she said.

Mrs Newberry will also be a guest speaker at the Corporate Travel World Asia-Pacific & Travel & Conventions Meeting Asia Conference in Bangkok next month.

Contact Details:
Media Contact: Madeleine Tiller, USQ Media, +61 7 4631 1163 or 0400 025 429