EXECUTIVE ASSISTANTS BY CATHERINE CHETWYND
GRACE UNDER FIRE
BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS WITH SUPPLIERS, NEGOTIATING DEALS, SMOOTHING THE TRAVELLER EXPERIENCE… SOUNDS FAMILIAR?
PAs, EXECUTIVE SECRETARIES AND EX- ECUTIVE ASSISTANTS are the unsung heroes of the travel-buying world, and many have a serious budget and juggle managing travel with the rest of their job. Of the six we talk to here, all but one use a travel management
company (TMC), two are working with procurement and, between them, they are making travel arrangements for numbers that range from two to 50 people. Developing strong relationships with hotels is key, and it’s clear that while the
Michelle Parkes PA to Cormac Tobin, UK managing director, Celesio UK
OUR TMC PROVIDES US WITH A BOOKING TOOL, but we tend to ask the TMC to research long-haul flights. We have around 500 people travelling. There are a number of travel bookers in the business, including two dedicated travel bookers. An in-house travel team is quite rare these days, but we need it – they are very busy. Claire Hicks, from the procurement team, and I maintain
relationships with representatives from each hotel. We do an annual review and usually can secure quite competitive rates by showing them the amount of business we can push their way. Booking private jets is a new thing for us, because we are now owned by an American business and they have their own fleet. Recently, the management board came in from Stuttgart for a budget review and then they flew on an executive jet with my boss to Dublin to do the Ireland review meeting. We could see the benefit because we could cover two meetings in different countries easily in one day. First and foremost, I need to be resourceful and forward thinking. I’m always scanning the diary and planning ahead. Everything is subject to change and I have to be prepared for that. I need to think like my boss and make sure choices I make are the choices he would want me to make for him. And I have regular meetings with secretarial teams, bookers and people looking after directors, so that we can share best practice and discuss what is going on around the business.
BUYINGBUSINESSTRAVEL.COM
scope and scale of their travel manage- ment operations varies widely, they share skill-sets that are vital in a high-pressure environment: from excellent organisational expertise and ability to prioritise, to – as one eloquently puts it – patience, tenacity, determination... and grace.
Cherry Salvesen PA to the directors, Cullum Detuners
I BOOK TRAVEL FOR ABOUT 50 PEOPLE, including five, soon to be six, directors and the senior management team. We have got a very good TMC, Reed and Mackay. They have set us up with an arrangement that allows us to pre-pay for hotel accommodation, so that if someone is on a job for six-to-eight weeks, they only have to pay for food and extras on their credit card. I have built up a good relationship with some local hotels – for our Christmas event, I think I’ve paid the same price for the last three years. But our TMC negotiates with the majority of hotels worldwide – they have got the buying power to get good rates. And I sometimes get the chance to travel. It is very useful to be able to see the amount of legroom and which seats have extra room on an aircraft. I also handle marketing and do photography for the company – images for our newsletter or of product. I never know what each day’s going to bring. In fact, right now, I’m surrounded by Tesco bags because we’re doing a buffet lunch for our accountant, who is retiring. Overall, I need a lot of common sense, and people- and time-management skills – I have to be able to juggle things. I have built up a portfolio of what people want and how they want it. The main challenge is time management and I make sure that, if I can’t meet deadlines, I am honest about it.
BBT MAY/JUNE 2015 97
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