Despite their strong penchant for technology, virtual meetings don't cut it for Millennials, 57 percent of who say technology can never replace face-to-face meetings to get business done, finds new research by the GBTA Foundation, the research and education arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA).
The findings are from the latest GBTA Business Traveler Sentiment Index, which also found that Millennials (45 percent) are nearly twice as likely to want to travel more for business than Baby Boomers (26 percent).
"Millennials are the newest generation of road warriors and, like their more experienced peers, they understand that face-to-face meetings remain key to getting business done," said GBTA Executive Director and COO Michael, W. McCormick.
Other key findings:
• Millennials are more likely to rely upon social media to meet up with friends when traveling than Baby Boomers (46 percent versus 17 percent).
• Millennials are less likely than Baby Boomers to want to use their personal credit cards to float business expenses (53 percent versus 69 percent).
• In they could select only one travel amenity, Baby Boomers would strongly prefer to pay no fee to check bags (47 percent compared versus 34 percent of Millennials), while Millennials want free Wi-Fi (30 percent compared versus 17 percent of Baby Boomers).
Said Susan Chapman-Hughes, senior vice president at American Express Global Corporate Payments, GBTA's partner in the study, "Millennials in particular are interested in business travel and see the value it brings to their companies and their careers. This generation may see more upsides to business travel because they've found new ways to stay connected to their personal and professional commitments while on the road."
Finally, GBTA also measured overall business traveler sentiment and found that overall business traveler satisfaction with getting through airport security has declined significantly in the past three months (from 55 percent in the second quarter to 45 percent in the third quarter), but that overall satisfaction levels with the business travel experience remain high (73 percent).
"Over the last quarter, business travelers across the board -- Millennials, Gen Xers, and Baby Boomers -- reported that their goals were met on business trips, leading to greater satisfaction," McCormick concluded.