ACTE COLUMN CAROLINE ALLEN Future-proof your life Robots are on the rise and business travel is not immune U
P TO 65 PER CENT OF CHILDREN CURRENTLY IN PRIMARY SCHOOL will enter the workplace into a job
that doesn’t even exist today as positions are invented that we can barely yet imagine. In the last ten years, titles such as app developer, social media director and Uber driver were created, while over the next two decades, the rise of the robot will result in large-scale automation of many human tasks. To equip young people with the skills to survive, some primary schools now teach writing code. Imagine a classroom without text books, replaced by Virtual and Augmented or Alternative Reality, (VR and AR). Pupils may soon see holograms through headsets to learn about the Battle of Hastings or the solar system.
Pepper is one of two robots launched last September to educate children at the London
Caroline Allen is the regional director of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (
acte.org).
Design and Engineering University in a radically different way. Pupils are inspired to work out how to programme the robots, igniting their imagination and desire to learn. Automation is infiltrating every aspect of our lives. A Chinese real estate company has used a 3D printer to build a two-storey house in just 45 days. Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research has developed a robotic librarian that laser-scans shelves, identifying books that are missing or misplaced. At Japan’s National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, scarily human-like androids act as exhibition guides. Robots check in guests at Henn-na Hotel in Nagasaki, and a multilingual android greets customers at the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi in Tokyo. In food production, robots milk dairy cows. In the medical world, ultra-precise robo-surgeons have performed two million procedures
from knee replacement to vision correction since 2000. Robots dispense pharmacy orders, while weaponised drones fight wars. By 2030, it is anticipated that one- quarter of US combat soldiers will be replaced by robots.
If you think the business travel industry won’t be affected, think again. Dubai airport is developing facial recognition technology. By 2020, travellers will be scanned, heralding the end of the immigration queue and the passport. The role of the travel manager must evolve or it will go extinct. Learn how to future-proof your career at ACTE and CAPA’s upcoming Autumn Summit, October 11-13 (ACTE Buyer members €25. Suppliers 30 per cent discount).
CORNEEL KOSTER Corneel Koster has joined Delta Air Lines as senior vice- president of Europe, Middle East, Africa and India. Now based in London, he was previously Chief Operating Officer at Aeromexico and has held senior operational and commercial roles at Virgin Atlantic and Air France KLM.
BUYINGBUSINESSTRAVEL.COM
JOHNNY THORSEN Johnny Thorsen has been appointed as vice-president of travel strategy and partnerships at virtual assistant app firm Mezi. He has 20 years’ experience in travel technology, and was previously senior director at SAP Mobile Services, and CEO of Contgo.
ANDREW MUNT Pentahotels has promoted Andrew Munt to vice- president of operations. He joined the group in 2010 and became regional director, then head of Pentahotels UK in 2016. The group operates 27 properties including six in the UK.
FEYSAL NAGI Oman Air has appointed Feysal Nagi as district sales manager for Manchester, following the launch of a Manchester-Muscat service in May. His previous experience includes roles with Air Seychelles, Qatar Airways and Southall Travel.
BBT July/August 2017 99
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