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Uniglobe Travel International Hosts First Ever South Asia Conference
‘All work and no play’ is not the mantra that most
corporate travel agents live by, Savio Rodrigues finds out at the three
day Uniglobe conference in Bangkok.
Travel must be the most dreaded word in the mind of every
single travel agent. Day in and day out, all that flashes before him or her
is 'Travel' - a client needs to travel to Dubai, a client needs to travel to
Singapore, a client needs to travel the North Pole. So when the idea to travel
personally to what could probably be called Asia's hot spot (no pun intended)
Bangkok, you'd expect most travel agents to say, "Oh no not Travel again."
But I was so wrong, for, just like words don't seem to stop haunting me and
I feel lost when I am not haunted by words, it is the same syndrome with the
bunch of enthusiastic corporate travel agents, I met in Bangkok.
Travel is in their blood, the realisation dawned at the three
day Uniglobe Travel South Asia Regional Conference, organised by Uniglobe Travel
International last month for their franchisees in the region. Uniglobe Travel
International is the world's largest single-branded travel franchise company
with 750 locations in 24 countries.
The congregation of over 180 participants which included corporate
travel companies like Perfect Connections, Keshav Travels, Mod Travels, Kocchar
Travels, Comfort Travels reveled at the first-of-its-kind conference, attending
informative and innovative training sessions to lazing around at the Amari Atrium
hotel lobby. With so much `play' involved work didn't look so bad after all.
After the sessions on the first day, it was time to let your
hair down and the delegates dressed in their James Bond attire (theme for the
evening) moved around with a ‘license to chill.’ The fun-times (which
had been a constant aura in this gathering right from take- off at the international
airport in Mumbai) rolled on at the party at JW Marriott. And believe me when
I say this, JW Marriott never disappoints when it comes to ensuring that party
animals have a wild and freaky time. And some of the travel agents gyrating
to popular Hindi tracks like ‘Kajre Re,’ ‘Woh Lamhe’ and
many others could have easily slipped into the dancing shoes of film stars.
The revelry later shifted to night spots across the city and continued till
the wee hours of the morning.
The next day it was up and shiny at nine a.m. for another
round of training sessions. While some were fighting to ward off sleep, a few
who had popped an Alcasetzer were fit as a fiddle. But all perked up for the
action of Rattle Snake County, the three hour team-building workshop. It is
interesting how team games can throw up insights about people's character and
traits. Hopefully, lessons learnt at the workshop will be retained and implemented.
Continuing its trend of high excitement, Uniglobe organised an evening rendezvous
on a cruise on the Bangkok River. While dinner and the ensuing tête-à-tête
was comparatively mellow, once off the boat it was yet another night out in
the city.
Next day thankfully afforded some personal time and while
some opted for a city tour to catch a glimpse of its famous temples and historic
buildings, others like me chose to laze around the hotel and get ourselves an
experience of the celebrated Thai Body and Foot massage. And Boy was it good.
When it was time to go, everybody felt rejuvenated and ready to take on the
grind of their high-pressure jobs armed with a whole load of new contacts and
insights.
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Uniting Corporate Travel Companies
Towards A Common Success Goal
 Martin
Charlwood, president and COO, Uniglobe Travel International expresses
his thoughts to Savio Rodrigues on the changing dynamics of corporate
travel. Excerpts from the interview.
Over the past couple of
years, Uniglobe Travel like many other corporate travel franchise companies
has been increasing its presence in the South Asia region and China considerably,
what is spurring on this active focus in this region?
The travel and tourism industry
in South Asia - India in particular- and China is witnessing a stupendous
growth. The growth in tourism - both corporate and leisure travel - is
spurring on an emergence of many small and mid-size travel service providers.
With globalisation taking businesses to various key cities across the
world and with more leisure travellers in this region looking at touring
global destinations; South Asia and China are the key areas to tap.
Has the corporate traveller
evolved in South Asia?
Most certainly, initially
corporate travel was about getting on a plane, checking into a hotel,
doing a presentation and boarding a plane back home. Today, the business
traveller is looking for more than work. He wants his business trip to
be coupled with entertainment, leisure and an opportunity to rejuvenate.
This need is changing the very dynamics of business travel. India in particular
is growing phenomenally in both inbound and outbound corporate and leisure
travel and the average Indian businessman or business woman is not only
looking for getting the work done but they are also looking to shop, go
sightseeing and enjoy. In short, I would say the Indian corporate traveller
is now informed, educated and selective.
MICE has been the forerunner
in spurring corporate travel, what do you have to say about it?
It is actually globalisation
that is spurring on corporate travel. Globalised work stations and business
opportunities is fuelling the need of the corporate traveller to get out
from his/ her current domicile and embark on business travel to establish
a global brand. Today, while Indian companies are opting to conducting
meetings, conferences and exhibitions within the country, many are also
taking this business abroad in order to offer its employees or customers
an unique experience that consists of both work and leisure. It's the
mantra, 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.'
What is Uniglobe Travel's
core competency and prime focus?
Operating under well-recognised
brand name, Uniglobe specialises in providing travel services to small
and mid-sized corporate accounts and to leisure travellers. Our systems
are designed to help build the profitability of new and existing independent
travel agencies. Franchisees benefit from common image, professional development,
training and ongoing support services. Each franchise is independently
owned and operated, enabling it to more closely identify and work with
its customers. Keeping this in mind, the company has introduced various
tools and initiatives contributing towards efficiency in the franchise
operation. With the growing strength of the network, the company has received
positive responses from some of the top suppliers in the industry paving
way for preferred relationship for higher revenue to the franchisees.
What is the corporate
philosophy that governs Uniglobe Travel?
We aim to be the leading
brand name in the travel sector. The cornerstone of our programme is that
the Uniglobe travel agent is committed to providing the highest standard
of service and performance to customers. The 5,000 Uniglobe people working
throughout the world follow a simple credo: "To be the best that
we can be with integrity, initiative and dependability. That is the Uniglobe
way." The Uniglobe Travel mission is to supply professional, value-added
travel services and superior customer service, delivering a customer experience
that is beyond expectation
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