CERTIFIED TRAVEL INDUSTRY SPECIALIST PROGRAM

The Race to Beat Pete

In 2008, I challenge you to a friendly competition, the RACE TO BEAT PETE. As a new enrollee in the CTIS Program I encourage you to get in the race and race me to finish line, graduation! I will keep you updated on my progress and we will race for bragging rights as well as the desired designation. I see the value of this program that 450 of our industry colleagues have completed and I look forward to continuing my industry education through the CTIS Program. On Your Mark, Get Set, Enroll!

Pete Pantuso President & CEO American Bus Association

Travel Industry Specialist certification is an avenue for enhancing members' professionalism and boosting confidence in their businesses by motorcoach travelers and the industry. ABA's CTIS program offers continuing education through Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis to sharpen and enhance members' professional skills.

It's the only university-administered certification program in the group travel industry. These correspondence courses, available via mail and the Internet, plus the required American Bus Marketplace seminars (available via cassette) are designed to increase members' competitive edge. Providing a solid foundation for building relationships to grow your business, ABA's CTIS Program allows you to differentiate yourself from the field. CTIS has become a desired designation in our industry because it represents a commitment to the industry and up-to-date knowledge of trends and tools to conduct business. Much of our industry is the one-on-one business relationships that are developed between the operators and the suppliers. Branding yourself can make all of the difference in the success of your business and your career.

"A large part of why I signed up for the Specialist Program Certified Travel Industry Specialist Program was seeing how dedicated ABA & IUPUI were to providing members with continued education and professionalism for our industry. After receiving my CTIS designation, I not only felt a huge sense of personal accomplishment, but immediately felt the recognition from my peers in ABA. It has certainly set me apart and shown my travel and tourism partners just how dedicated and committed I am to their clients."

Chris Rackmyre, CTIS
THE MAINE TOUR CONNECTION

"The CTIS program has given me a solid foundation and an understanding of the industry. The effort I put forth to complete the program has helped to strengthen and grow my company, while showing my dedication and commitment. My colleagues in the tour and travel industry know that I have an understanding of all elements of a tour and that I have the knowledge and preparation to work with all components to provide an outstanding experience for my clients."

Larry A. Marquardt, CTIS, CTP
GET AWAY TOURS AND CRUISES, INC.

Program Details

Certification requires successful completion of two components:

Five IUPUI Correspondence Courses As an enrollee, you will complete three required courses and your choice of two electives. All IUPUI registration materials, enrollment forms, and course assignments (including books) will be sent to you from IUPUI. All of the IUPUI courses in the CTIS program are correspondence courses and will be mailed, e-mailed or faxed to the address on the application form.
Eight Marketplace Education Seminars Seminars may be attended during ABA's annual Marketplace or listened to on purchased CDs of the seminars. You will receive credit for any recorded educational seminars from 1989 through the present Marketplace. If you have not previously completed educational seminars and wish to listen to seminars on CD, CDs are available on ABA's web site or at Marketplace each year for approximately $10 each. Credit will be given when seminar evaluations are received by ABA.

Enroll Today [1]

Complete the application form below and return it to ABA with your enrollment fee After ABA receives your enrollment you will receive a welcome email from ABA. Additionally, IUPUI will send a welcome packet that will include the IUPUI course enrollment form. Each enrollee will also be match with a mentor to offer advice, encouragement, and share any tips and pointers for the successful completion of the CTIS Program.

Enrollment in the Certified Travel Industry Specialist Program includes:

University administered courses - the first in the industry
Up-to-date knowledge of trends and tools of group travel
Flexible scheduling can be completed at home, in the office or on the road
ABA Member Discounts: the most cost-effective program in the industry
Mentoring Program
Record Keeping [2]: we will track your progress for you so you don't have to maintain your own records
Your enrollment does not expire until you graduate - our commitment to you.

One time ABA Enrollment Fee:

$125 ABA Member
$175 Non-ABA Member

The IUPUI Course Registration Fee includes all of the materials for the IUPUI courses.

$240 ABA Member per course
$255 Non ABA Member per course

Registration Discounts:

20% discount when you register in five 2008 courses by Feb. 15, 2008.
10% discount when you register 30 days prior to the course start date.

CTIS is non-transferable to another representative in a company but may transfer with the enrollee to a new employer.

You may enroll in the program at any time during the year. The CTIS program is designed to be completed within 12 months. However, you may take longer with no additional ABA enrollment fees. CTIS Graduation is celebrated each year at the American Bus Marketplace.

Required Courses

Customer Service - July 1 - August 31, 2008 Learn to identify and profile your customer base; analyze their environment, develop tools to access that base and learn techniques that can enhance your company's image to your customers. Five operating principles will be reviewed. Through exercises, you'll have an opportunity to take a look at your organization's strengths and weaknesses as well as your own.

Access Customer Service Course Overview and Outline [3]

Promoting Your Business - May 1 - June 30, 2008
Learn how to make your business stand out. This course can help you promote your business with an understanding of the "guerrilla-marketing" concept for large and small businesses. Basic marketing strategies will be developed along with exploration of successful advertising andpromotional programs. Learn to create a stronger identity to better position your product or service, and develop a strategy to get the most out of your promotion dollars.

Business Grammar and Writing - September 1 - October 30, 2008
Learn practical tips and techniques for successful business writing. This course provides a basic understanding of grammatical relationships rather than mere memorization of rules. Acquire skills to better target your audience and establish positive communications with your clients. Enhance your writing skills through exercises and letters, applying persuasive, controversial, and routine correspondence styles. Upon completion, you will have a portfolio of assignments for reference to gain greater confidence and proficiency in both your business and personal correspondence.

Elective Courses

Personal Organization and Effectiveness - November 1 - December 15, 2008
T.S. Eliot is quoted as saying, "We must not cease from exploration. And the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time." This course provides the opportunity for you to examine and improve your effectiveness, not only at work tasks, but also as a whole person striving to fulfill your responsibilities as an entrepreneur, employee, spouse, friend, parent and other life roles. Stephen Covey has described timeless wisdom of the ages in a way that helps you tailor your own life plan for maximum benefit to yourself and others in his book, "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People". Benefit from this excellent book and improve your interpersonal skills in your professional environment and personal life.

Sales: Motivation and Skills - March 15 - April 30, 2008
Everyone, regardless of his or her job, helps their company sell a product. This course is designed for sales and non-sales professionals in the group travel industry who want to develop or sharpen their selling skills. Explore what motivates successful salespeople, the dynamics of a sales presentation and the perspective of the customer. Learn techniques you can use to enhance customer response from your sales presentation.

Effective Advertising - March 15 - April 30, 2008
This course explores the fundamental principles and procedures of advertising. Through exercises and readings, you'll examine the psychology of advertising, yearly programming, image barriers, graphics, layout and copy, publicity and public relations. Whether you're responsible for preparing your company's advertising strategy or want to better understand the basic advertising concepts, this course will provide a solid foundation. You'll gain greater confidence in working with ad agencies and providing input to your organization's advertising program.

Using Business Information for Decision Making - November 1 - December 15, 2008
This course is designed to make business professionals comfortable with using business data to make informed decisions. Learn how financial statements are prepared, how the budgeting process works, how to turn operating plans into dollars and how to use financial data to make decisions. Areas covered include understanding financial statements, preparing revenue and expense budgets, making projections, management analysis and dealing with accounting and financial personnel. Learn to take advantage of the various tools available in any organization to help you plan future activities.

CTIS Graduation

ABA hosts an annual graduation at Marketplace. Current and past graduates gather to celebrate the accomplishments of earning of “desired designation of CTIS”. Graduates receive a certificate, CTIS pin and a new name badge with their new designation

Class of 2008 Photo

CTIS Class of 2008, February 2008, Virginia Beach, VA [4]

Graduate List [5]

Related Resources
Marketplace 2008 Seminar Descriptions [6] Marketplace 2008 Seminar Handouts [7] (Available handouts are listed under each day’s schedule) CTIS Enrollee Graduation Status and Mentor Database [8] CTIS Brochure [9] CTIS Enrollment Form [10] IUPUI Course Registration Form [11] Seminar Credit Form [12] Purchase the CD [13]

Contact Information

American Bus Association
CTIS Program
700 13th St. NW, Suite 575
Washington, DC 20005
tel: 800-283-2877
fax: 202-898-1575
e-mail: meetingsdept@buses.org [14]

IUPUI
Sherry Blackburn
Community Learning Network
Continuing Studies
620 Union Drive, Ste 142
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Phone: 317-274-5052
Fax: 317-274-2638
e-mail: sblackbu@iupui.edu [15]