SITE
The USA: Incentive travel’ s birthplace and the engine of a global mindset
SOCIETY FOR INCENTIVE TRAVEL EXCELLENCE( SITE) CONSULTANT PÁDRAIC GILLIGAN REMINDS US THAT THE GLOBAL BUSINESS EVENTS INDUSTRY OWES MUCH TO AMERICA’ S EARLY EMBRACE OF SCALE, SPECTACLE, AND SERVICE CULTURE
F or those of us who work in
incentive travel, it’ s worth remembering that our entire industry owes its origins to one place: the United States of America. So much of what defines our contemporary worldview, our ideas of success, reward, and recognition has been shaped by the American spirit.
Incentive travel could have emerged in no other soil. The USA, with its unapologetic embrace of aspiration, created a culture where achievement wasn’ t something to be whispered about or wrapped in modesty, it was something to be celebrated.“ Honest reward for honest effort” wasn’ t just a slogan; it was a lived reality. You put in the work, you got the reward, with no hidden clauses and no strings attached. That clarity of purpose became the bedrock for corporate recognition programmes, and ultimately for our sector’ s most powerful motivator: travel as the ultimate reward.
Think about the historical moment in which this ethos took root. The USA’ s post-war boom fostered an economy built on optimism, productivity, and the belief that better was always possible. Companies sought ways to motivate their teams, not just with cash bonuses which could disappear into the monthly household budget, but with experiences that would live in memory for a lifetime. The early incentive trips, often to Florida, California, Hawaii, were exotic for the participants but, more than that, they were tangible proof that the organisation valued and celebrated their contribution.
From there, the idea spread, first across North America, then across the Atlantic, and eventually into every global market. Today, incentive
Above:
Pádraic Gilligan
“ The Americans understood early on that when you touch the heart, you move the performance needle” travel is a truly international practice, but its DNA remains unmistakably American. The boldness of the destinations, the creativity of the itineraries, the understanding that the‘ experience’ starts long before departure all trace back to the American model.
The USA also defined much of the style and language we still use to talk about incentive travel. The gala dinner with an inspirational keynote? The personalised recognition moment on stage? The focus on storytelling to elevate the experience? These are not accidental but part of a reward philosophy that sees motivation as an emotional currency. The Americans understood early on that when you touch the heart, you move the performance needle.
Of course, it’ s not just incentive travel professionals who have been shaped by the USA’ s influence. The global business events industry owes much to America’ s early embrace of scale, spectacle, and service culture. From the sprawling resorts of Las Vegas and Orlando to the urban sophistication of New York, Chicago, and San Francisco, US destinations have long been benchmarks for event infrastructure and hospitality standards.
We live in an era where global competition for top talent is fiercer than ever. The principles that powered the first incentive trips out of the USA, clear recognition, meaningful reward, aspirational experience, are not only still relevant; they are vital. They remind us that human motivation is a universal constant, even if the cultural packaging changes.
So yes, the USA remains a crucial market for our industry. But, more than that, it remains our source code. Its influence is coded into the DNA of every programme we design, whether the trip is to Miami or Marrakech. That’ s worth remembering as we look to the future of incentive travel in an interconnected, sometimes uncertain world. n
ISSUE 138 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / 15