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NEWS in-person event in London last week. Coverage by T ravel Weekly reporters


Rzymowska: Operational flexibility is here to stay


O


Mark Tanzer addresses delegates


sity and inclusion’


build it back better, certainly around diversity and inclusion.” The operator is commissioning


a survey on diversity to understand what it means to staff and to find out how the business could improve. Young said other areas, such as


brochure content, needed to be more reflective of today’s holidaymakers. Jo Rzymowska, Celebrity Cruises


vice-president and managing director for the EMEA region, said: “It’s up to us to show the younger industry that it’s a great sector. For 20 and 30-year- olds, it’s really important they have people to look up to. We need to make it [the industry] more diverse.”


Brian Young


perating more flexibly and efficiently is the “new normal” and is here to stay, say


travel businesses. In the cruise sector, new onboard


safety protocols were working well and would continue, said Celebrity Cruises’ Jo Rzymowska. “The new normal is living with


Covid,” she said. “To do that we have learnt some benefits. We have been able to change our business models more quickly than in the old model. Our teams are more adaptable and customers more understanding. Communication has been critical. “We have spent time not just


being transactional. People want brands and businesses that stand for something and care for them and look after them.” Rzymowska, Celebrity’s vice-


president and managing director for the EMEA region, described flexibility as “the new normal”,


Mark Colley and Jo Rzymowska


adding: “It’s really important we continue that. Customers will continue to expect that.” Brian Young, G Adventures’


EMEA managing director, said companies had been forced to adapt “through necessity” and would have to continue looking at how to operate more efficiently in ways they had not pre-pandemic. “We need to think longer-term,”


he said. “What would make our call centres more efficient? Is it technology rather than more resources [staff]? I think we will all build back in a different way because we have had to look at every part of our business and look at efficiencies.” He added: “Customers will


demand more flexibility so we have to look at customer behaviour and adapt.” Mark Colley, managing director of


Sunways Travel, a Kent-based agency whose main focus is corporate travel, said travel choices and durations had changed “indefinitely”, with shorter meetings likely to be carried out virtually but long-haul trips being extended. Colley said the agency had


decided to stop working with a “small minority” of suppliers which had been “unhelpful and difficult to get hold of” during the pandemic. “We won’t work with the ones


that let us down; that really impacted our reputation,” he said.


Now is the time for agents to really shine – Pollard


The new boss of dnata Travel in the UK and Europe says the complexity of travel offers opportunities for travel agents to add value and secure bookings. Ailsa Pollard, who takes up her role as UK and


Europe chief executive for dnata Travel Group on November 1, conceded coming out of the pandemic would “bring its own pain”, referencing a 20% increase in call-handling times. But reiterating comments


made to Travel Weekly before the convention (Travel Weekly, October 7), she told delegates: “Now is the time for travel agents to really shine. “There’s a wealth of experience


travelweekly.co.uk


in the industry. Agents can step up. Customers are willing to pay some of that higher margin.” Pollard said dnata-owned B2B operator Gold Medal was working with agents to jointly help


their customers “remove friction” from the holiday booking process. And she said she planned to meet with


key partners in her new role to discuss ways they could help customers together.


T


Ailsa Pollard


ravel Weekly was again trade media partner for The Travel Convention. For full coverage, visit travelweekly.co.uk/abta21


21 OCTOBER 2021 9


PICTURES: Arif Gardner


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