It is now getting really disappointing as, after the most recent ballot, the Unite union claims another mandate to strike. They claim the cabin crew are behind them but I would question that after looking at the following vote results.
BA has around 13,000 crew of which about 11,000 are with the disputing union (Unite). The number of crew to actually vote was 5,105 (approx 39% of the workforce) and 3,419 wanted to strike. This means the percentage of BA crew voting to strike was a mere 26%. A mandate to strike? I don’t think so. Especially as I hear that because there is a little remaining internal solidarity amongst the crews it was enough for those who no longer wish to strike to not vote at all this time around. Otherwise it would have been a very different result.
One of the saddest things about this is the impact this dispute has had within the various factions amongst the cabin crew. Many of the main strike supporters are well known in BA circles as long time militants and non representative of the main workforce. Separately some non striking crews have had their cars vandalised in the BA secure staff car parks and face great hostility when they try to work. I cannot see the scars of this strike action healing for years to come let alone by the ultimate end of the dispute. They have turned against each other in a very emotional manner.
Meanwhile the union is fighting for its future credibility after making promises of regaining concessions and lost travel perks as the strike intensified. They got it horribly wrong as, from what I can see, BA has drawn a clear line in the sand and said not only ‘no further’ but ‘you will get less’ as the action continues. Whilst this has been going on BA has not only won the support of its investors, many clients and most TMCs but also issued new contracts to non striking staff and started employing a whole new workforce.
So now we have a different kind of ‘impasse’. OK, the current dispute is no nearer resolution and the strikers are still being used as cannon fodder by Unite in it’s increasingly political campaign but meanwhile BA have quietly advanced plans to make the striking crew surplus to requirements. They must be sharpening the axes at H.Q as I write.
Is there going to be a winner in this dispute? Yes there certainly will. BA will finally clean up a significant amount of the industrial mess left by previous executive management and ultimately build foundations that will enable them to compete more effectively with their rivals. But there will be losers too. A union with a bruised ego and a whole lot of crew out there trying to find new jobs only to discover that the pay is not what they have come to expect. Ironic really.
Thursday, 22 July 2010
Sunday, 18 July 2010
Brushes with the rich and famous 1 – Royalty
During my career I have had the honour (sometimes dubious) of meeting the royals on a number of occasions. To be honest, all of these meeting have left an indelible mark in my mind, and on one occasion my buttocks, as I will explain. In fact I might as well explain that one first.
I was based in Zambia at the time they were hosting the Commonwealth conference which was to be opened by the queen. One of my jobs was to ‘look after’ the crew of the two giant Hercules cargo aircraft that fly out in advance with the Queen’s essential supplies. In those days (and possibly even now) everything the Queen uses, eats and drinks was all flown down in advance under considerable security by the UK armed forces.
The aircrews had a great time. Although Zambia is one of the most fertile countries in the world it was ravaged by shortages of even the most basic foods and almost everything had to be imported. Only problem was that it was almost impossible to arrange and here is where the crews used to come in. I would be prepared to wager that at least 25% of the aircraft payload consisted of cigarettes, apples, butter, oil and other such important staples. These were used to both sell and act as guaranteed invitation material to any party or event in the country during their stay. There was one expatriate lady who was famous for doing practically anything for a few sticks of celery
Anyway, the point behind this story is that I was allowed a sneak peek at the Queen’s ‘treasure trove’ of supplies and amongst it was two toilet seats. Apparently she always takes her own plus an aide that knows how to fit them on any type of toilet appliance. I am afraid I could not resist trying them . Out of respect to the monarchy I kept my trousers on but unfortunately my belt got stuck. I struggled and struggled until I popped out but for the next few weeks I had an indelible bruise to remind me of my heresy. Every time I see the Queen now I think of what we have in common!
Since that occasion I have had quite a few brushes with royalty including being studiously ignored by Prince Andrew, winked at by Diana, sworn at by Princess Anne and laughed at/with by Prince Harry but my most contentious was an altercation with Prince Philip. My wife still totally disagrees with me about this but I think his highness was totally out of order! After all he is known as a no nonsense, say what you like, approachable type of person. I wonder who you think was right.
We had been invited by Emirates Airline to attend a charity cricket match in the grounds of Windsor School between the airline and the Lords Taverners charity team. All the great and the good were due to attend the event and the guest of honour was to be Prince Philip (their next door neighbour). He swept into the ground and immediately worked the guests up into a frenzy of excitement by ‘chatting’ freely to all. He then headed off to his specially allotted seat and drank his usual bottles of brown beer. It was all very nice and a very English kind of event.
All went well until lunch. I was genuinely very honoured to find we had been put on the top table (of twelve place settings) just two seats away from the Prince with only Mike Gatting (the cricketer) and his charming wife between us. Prince Philip turned up last and then there was a rather long and embarrassing silence. Nobody was being introduced so I spoke up and told him who I and my wife were. It was as if I had thrown a hand grenade on the table. An audible gasp came from the Prince. He recoiled back and threw his hands in the air. His equerry finally appeared and manhandled me aside. “You NEVER speak to the Prince before being spoken to first” he muttered menacingly. “He will be in an awful mood now” he added. And so it was. Prince Philip sat down and would barely utter a word to anyone. Can this be the man who has made so many gaffes and unwise comment over the years I thought?
My wife reckons it was my fault. Do you? My view is that, in this modern world, politeness supersedes traditional etiquette. Needless to say that despite him being the husband of our Queen he will not be on my Christmas card list this year. Maybe someone told him about that toilet seat?
I was based in Zambia at the time they were hosting the Commonwealth conference which was to be opened by the queen. One of my jobs was to ‘look after’ the crew of the two giant Hercules cargo aircraft that fly out in advance with the Queen’s essential supplies. In those days (and possibly even now) everything the Queen uses, eats and drinks was all flown down in advance under considerable security by the UK armed forces.
The aircrews had a great time. Although Zambia is one of the most fertile countries in the world it was ravaged by shortages of even the most basic foods and almost everything had to be imported. Only problem was that it was almost impossible to arrange and here is where the crews used to come in. I would be prepared to wager that at least 25% of the aircraft payload consisted of cigarettes, apples, butter, oil and other such important staples. These were used to both sell and act as guaranteed invitation material to any party or event in the country during their stay. There was one expatriate lady who was famous for doing practically anything for a few sticks of celery
Anyway, the point behind this story is that I was allowed a sneak peek at the Queen’s ‘treasure trove’ of supplies and amongst it was two toilet seats. Apparently she always takes her own plus an aide that knows how to fit them on any type of toilet appliance. I am afraid I could not resist trying them . Out of respect to the monarchy I kept my trousers on but unfortunately my belt got stuck. I struggled and struggled until I popped out but for the next few weeks I had an indelible bruise to remind me of my heresy. Every time I see the Queen now I think of what we have in common!
Since that occasion I have had quite a few brushes with royalty including being studiously ignored by Prince Andrew, winked at by Diana, sworn at by Princess Anne and laughed at/with by Prince Harry but my most contentious was an altercation with Prince Philip. My wife still totally disagrees with me about this but I think his highness was totally out of order! After all he is known as a no nonsense, say what you like, approachable type of person. I wonder who you think was right.
We had been invited by Emirates Airline to attend a charity cricket match in the grounds of Windsor School between the airline and the Lords Taverners charity team. All the great and the good were due to attend the event and the guest of honour was to be Prince Philip (their next door neighbour). He swept into the ground and immediately worked the guests up into a frenzy of excitement by ‘chatting’ freely to all. He then headed off to his specially allotted seat and drank his usual bottles of brown beer. It was all very nice and a very English kind of event.
All went well until lunch. I was genuinely very honoured to find we had been put on the top table (of twelve place settings) just two seats away from the Prince with only Mike Gatting (the cricketer) and his charming wife between us. Prince Philip turned up last and then there was a rather long and embarrassing silence. Nobody was being introduced so I spoke up and told him who I and my wife were. It was as if I had thrown a hand grenade on the table. An audible gasp came from the Prince. He recoiled back and threw his hands in the air. His equerry finally appeared and manhandled me aside. “You NEVER speak to the Prince before being spoken to first” he muttered menacingly. “He will be in an awful mood now” he added. And so it was. Prince Philip sat down and would barely utter a word to anyone. Can this be the man who has made so many gaffes and unwise comment over the years I thought?
My wife reckons it was my fault. Do you? My view is that, in this modern world, politeness supersedes traditional etiquette. Needless to say that despite him being the husband of our Queen he will not be on my Christmas card list this year. Maybe someone told him about that toilet seat?
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Why small is becoming big in Business Travel.
In many of the key driver markets like the UK the desire by TMCs to move back into the SME market has grown and grown without any sign of let-up. A strange phenomenon one might think considering they have spent the last few years actively trying to get them off their books. There must be a good reason for this re-think and of course there is. It’s because of that good old trio economy, technology and supplier strategy. As a result there is never a better time to be a small customer in business travel.
You see the big organisations have lost the allure they used to have. They now become harder to win and are on longer contracts. They demand more and pay less and the suppliers have done their deals direct with them which make the TMC more marginalised than ever. At the same time the TMCs have caught up with each other to the point that a competitive edge to swing an account gets smaller. So, in the main, TMCs get to keep what they have got (especially with the advent of globalisation) and, if they actually lose something big it hurts real badly. It is often more expensive to lose an account than the benefit you get if you keep it, if that makes sense, which is another reason why little moves!
So what is left out there that is flexible, relatively easy to handle yet very valuable cumulatively especially to suppliers. The answer of course is the SME who demand a good deal but does not carry all those bespoke costs of a large client. If you win one then great, but if you lose then it doesn’t hurt much. TMCs can use all those fancy gizmos created for (and funded by) the major clients to provide added value for peanuts to SMEs. The SME also can be a great deal easier to handle in both operational and financial terms and TMCs resources can be flexed to move this business to the optimum point in their structure. Another consideration is that, in a growing market, the big TMC is beginning to realise that today’s SME is tomorrow’s mega client. Finally, TMCs still need suppliers and suppliers want the SME market but cannot afford to go after them so a consolidation point via an agent is very attractive.
So what is a SME supposed to do? Well, if I was them I would shop around. I would be less interested in the transaction fee I was being charged and more impressed in what supplier savings and efficiencies I would get. I would go to the big TMCs and ask what extra value they can give by sharing out some of those big client products benefits. I would then ensure that I would get agreed levels of service continuity and not have my team poached every time there is a staff shortage with a bigger client.
So simplicity, flexibility and small are all beautiful……for now.
The large corporations? If I was them I would sit on my ego and work out how to make myself more attractive and important again.
You see the big organisations have lost the allure they used to have. They now become harder to win and are on longer contracts. They demand more and pay less and the suppliers have done their deals direct with them which make the TMC more marginalised than ever. At the same time the TMCs have caught up with each other to the point that a competitive edge to swing an account gets smaller. So, in the main, TMCs get to keep what they have got (especially with the advent of globalisation) and, if they actually lose something big it hurts real badly. It is often more expensive to lose an account than the benefit you get if you keep it, if that makes sense, which is another reason why little moves!
So what is left out there that is flexible, relatively easy to handle yet very valuable cumulatively especially to suppliers. The answer of course is the SME who demand a good deal but does not carry all those bespoke costs of a large client. If you win one then great, but if you lose then it doesn’t hurt much. TMCs can use all those fancy gizmos created for (and funded by) the major clients to provide added value for peanuts to SMEs. The SME also can be a great deal easier to handle in both operational and financial terms and TMCs resources can be flexed to move this business to the optimum point in their structure. Another consideration is that, in a growing market, the big TMC is beginning to realise that today’s SME is tomorrow’s mega client. Finally, TMCs still need suppliers and suppliers want the SME market but cannot afford to go after them so a consolidation point via an agent is very attractive.
So what is a SME supposed to do? Well, if I was them I would shop around. I would be less interested in the transaction fee I was being charged and more impressed in what supplier savings and efficiencies I would get. I would go to the big TMCs and ask what extra value they can give by sharing out some of those big client products benefits. I would then ensure that I would get agreed levels of service continuity and not have my team poached every time there is a staff shortage with a bigger client.
So simplicity, flexibility and small are all beautiful……for now.
The large corporations? If I was them I would sit on my ego and work out how to make myself more attractive and important again.
Thursday, 1 July 2010
Paupers in Paradise
One of the most unusual things about working in the travel industry is that you can sometimes experience activities and lifestyles totally out of proportion with your personal wealth, or in this case, lack of wealth.
Many years ago when Judith and I, recently married and poor as church mice, had just such an experience. It nearly resulted in a quickie divorce on the grounds of emotional cruelty as I will explain.
We were in our mid twenties and had an enormous mortgage. I had a relatively junior sales job with British Caledonian Airways working in the head office department that supported their West Africa routes. They had just started operating to Abidjan, the capital of the Ivory Coast and all the operators and hotels in that country wanted a slice of the new business that the service would generate from the UK.
As I mentioned earlier we were broke but, like most airline people (except striking BA cabin crew) we got great flight discounts and perks including free tickets on new routes for ‘familiarisation’ reasons. A very kind and enthusiastic contact in Intercontinental Hotels came up with a complimentary room in their 5 star hotel in Abidjan city centre. This hotel was known at the time as the most prestigious and luxurious hotel in Africa. So off we went to what we expected to be a cheap but heavenly holiday.
It had started so well with a black hotel limousine picking us up at the airport and whisking us to the hotel. Mind you the driver looked pretty appalled when he saw our beat up old cardboard cases and various plastic Woolworth bags. The hotel GM came out to greet us and escort us to a special top floor suite and took about half an hour to explain all the amenities including introductions to our personal butler. The first and last time we ever saw him as I will explain.
When he left Judith strolled over to the fridge and was about to open a can of coke when I picked up the room service and mini bar price list. Stop! I yelled as that drink alone would have exhausted half of our daily food budget. It got worse from then on and we clearly could not manage such food and drink costs In fact it got so bad that we spent some evenings sitting in the bar sipping one beer between us and eating every last free pretzel and pistachio nut in the place. At one stage I ended up sauntering around the coffee shop waiting for someone to leave their table. As soon as they got up we slipped into the still warm seats, ate anything left and ordered a small snack using the tip money that had been left. I still feel guilty about that!
On the final evening of what was a miserable and hungry week the hotel General Manager invited us to dinner at their ‘signature’ restaurant that revolved around the top of the hotel tower. He insisted we try some of their special cocktails before dinner and Judith took enthusiastically to one called a ‘Tipsy Elephant’ which was a lethal mixture of three spirits. These on a half starved stomach could have only one effect. This peaked when the waiter brought out a plate with a fresh, live and uncooked lobster to get her approval before preparing it. To his horror she grabbed the offered lobster, put it on her plate and pulled a claw off. ”Look” she slurred. “It’s undercooked”! I quickly tried to explain that she must have caught sunstroke and wheeled her away as she yelled “I am not going to stay here to be insulted” or something similar.
We thought that would be the end of the nightmare but the worst was saved for the end when we went to check out the next morning. We were presented with our very meagre bill and I handed over my one and only credit card whilst praying we had not exceeded its credit limit. As feared the clerk started looking concerned and kept tapping entries into her computer. She then looked up and said she was sorry but we would need to wait for the duty manager to talk to us about our bill.
We sat squirming for a few minutes and noticed curious glances from various other members of staff who knew about our bill. Finally the manager arrived with a very serious expression on his face. “Do you not like our hotel” he asked. “Yes, it is lovely” I replied whilst trying not to be intimidated. “Do you not like our restaurants”? “Where have you been eating” “Is our food not to your standard”?
By this time I was getting very embarrassed and annoyed as people were beginning to stop and listen. I asked him directly why he was asking us so many questions. “Well”, he said “we have never had any guests who are on our VIP “all inclusive” basis spending next to nothing!
Judith’s head turned slowly and menacingly towards me. “Can you explain what you actually mean by all inclusive she asked. Certainly madam, he replied, it means you could have eaten or drunk anything you wanted free of charge for the duration of your stay in our hotel.
She nearly physically attacked me there and then. I did not know I muttered. Wait until I get you alone she replied icily as her tummy rumbled. I paid for my error over the following months but I learned one important lesson. Never go anywhere you cannot afford and also listen carefully when someone makes you an offer you will not want to refuse.
Many years ago when Judith and I, recently married and poor as church mice, had just such an experience. It nearly resulted in a quickie divorce on the grounds of emotional cruelty as I will explain.
We were in our mid twenties and had an enormous mortgage. I had a relatively junior sales job with British Caledonian Airways working in the head office department that supported their West Africa routes. They had just started operating to Abidjan, the capital of the Ivory Coast and all the operators and hotels in that country wanted a slice of the new business that the service would generate from the UK.
As I mentioned earlier we were broke but, like most airline people (except striking BA cabin crew) we got great flight discounts and perks including free tickets on new routes for ‘familiarisation’ reasons. A very kind and enthusiastic contact in Intercontinental Hotels came up with a complimentary room in their 5 star hotel in Abidjan city centre. This hotel was known at the time as the most prestigious and luxurious hotel in Africa. So off we went to what we expected to be a cheap but heavenly holiday.
It had started so well with a black hotel limousine picking us up at the airport and whisking us to the hotel. Mind you the driver looked pretty appalled when he saw our beat up old cardboard cases and various plastic Woolworth bags. The hotel GM came out to greet us and escort us to a special top floor suite and took about half an hour to explain all the amenities including introductions to our personal butler. The first and last time we ever saw him as I will explain.
When he left Judith strolled over to the fridge and was about to open a can of coke when I picked up the room service and mini bar price list. Stop! I yelled as that drink alone would have exhausted half of our daily food budget. It got worse from then on and we clearly could not manage such food and drink costs In fact it got so bad that we spent some evenings sitting in the bar sipping one beer between us and eating every last free pretzel and pistachio nut in the place. At one stage I ended up sauntering around the coffee shop waiting for someone to leave their table. As soon as they got up we slipped into the still warm seats, ate anything left and ordered a small snack using the tip money that had been left. I still feel guilty about that!
On the final evening of what was a miserable and hungry week the hotel General Manager invited us to dinner at their ‘signature’ restaurant that revolved around the top of the hotel tower. He insisted we try some of their special cocktails before dinner and Judith took enthusiastically to one called a ‘Tipsy Elephant’ which was a lethal mixture of three spirits. These on a half starved stomach could have only one effect. This peaked when the waiter brought out a plate with a fresh, live and uncooked lobster to get her approval before preparing it. To his horror she grabbed the offered lobster, put it on her plate and pulled a claw off. ”Look” she slurred. “It’s undercooked”! I quickly tried to explain that she must have caught sunstroke and wheeled her away as she yelled “I am not going to stay here to be insulted” or something similar.
We thought that would be the end of the nightmare but the worst was saved for the end when we went to check out the next morning. We were presented with our very meagre bill and I handed over my one and only credit card whilst praying we had not exceeded its credit limit. As feared the clerk started looking concerned and kept tapping entries into her computer. She then looked up and said she was sorry but we would need to wait for the duty manager to talk to us about our bill.
We sat squirming for a few minutes and noticed curious glances from various other members of staff who knew about our bill. Finally the manager arrived with a very serious expression on his face. “Do you not like our hotel” he asked. “Yes, it is lovely” I replied whilst trying not to be intimidated. “Do you not like our restaurants”? “Where have you been eating” “Is our food not to your standard”?
By this time I was getting very embarrassed and annoyed as people were beginning to stop and listen. I asked him directly why he was asking us so many questions. “Well”, he said “we have never had any guests who are on our VIP “all inclusive” basis spending next to nothing!
Judith’s head turned slowly and menacingly towards me. “Can you explain what you actually mean by all inclusive she asked. Certainly madam, he replied, it means you could have eaten or drunk anything you wanted free of charge for the duration of your stay in our hotel.
She nearly physically attacked me there and then. I did not know I muttered. Wait until I get you alone she replied icily as her tummy rumbled. I paid for my error over the following months but I learned one important lesson. Never go anywhere you cannot afford and also listen carefully when someone makes you an offer you will not want to refuse.
Saturday, 26 June 2010
A different approach to TMC negotiations?
I think one of the most disappointing outcomes from contract negotiation is that between corporations and TMCs. You can practically guarantee that one side or the other, or in time both, are not enamoured with the end results. The corporation wants total priority and service delivery at the lowest unit price whilst the TMC spends its time trying to figure out how to comply whilst clawing back profitability elsewhere in the deal or through caveats.
Another disappointment is that many of these negotiations are so combative. It is almost like trying to play a game of poker where the TMC has to play with his cards face up and the corporation with theirs to their chest. How can you get a good result when the beginning is riddled with various levels of speculation and possibly deceit? There really must be a better way.
I would really like to see such methodology turned 180 degrees. The RFP should be changed to an IFB (information for bidders). This IFB would say ‘look, this is what we think we really want’ and ‘here is a list of the important things in priority. Can you think of anything you could add to improve our service and savings? Here are the problems we currently have and how can you help resolve them’. The corporation would then receive an inflow of pertinent and creative ideas rather than getting a load of bland ‘comply/not comply’ answers to a bunch of sometimes irrelevant questions.
Having narrowed the field down to those TMC that have shown the right level of flair and innovation one could then move on to what they are hoping to achieve from winning the contract in both money terms and ongoing partnership. This would be much better than dragging in a TMC that has been cut to the bone and is frankly going to favour the client that brings more revenue and longevity.
Having now discovered what both parties want it is time to sit down together and thrash out how both can be achieved with as little compromise as possible. I can think of lots of ways to doing this in a way that protects commits and rewards.
Otherwise I guess people can continue what they are doing now. Issuing an RFP the size of a small book to TMCs who will be initially judged on how they answer a bunch of questions that really do not address the real issues. After all, the large TMCs can answer the questions any way they think you want to hear them and are probably already handing numerous Fortune 500 companies who asked the same.
So there we have it. Naïve? Workable? Or both?
Your guess is as good as mine!
Another disappointment is that many of these negotiations are so combative. It is almost like trying to play a game of poker where the TMC has to play with his cards face up and the corporation with theirs to their chest. How can you get a good result when the beginning is riddled with various levels of speculation and possibly deceit? There really must be a better way.
I would really like to see such methodology turned 180 degrees. The RFP should be changed to an IFB (information for bidders). This IFB would say ‘look, this is what we think we really want’ and ‘here is a list of the important things in priority. Can you think of anything you could add to improve our service and savings? Here are the problems we currently have and how can you help resolve them’. The corporation would then receive an inflow of pertinent and creative ideas rather than getting a load of bland ‘comply/not comply’ answers to a bunch of sometimes irrelevant questions.
Having narrowed the field down to those TMC that have shown the right level of flair and innovation one could then move on to what they are hoping to achieve from winning the contract in both money terms and ongoing partnership. This would be much better than dragging in a TMC that has been cut to the bone and is frankly going to favour the client that brings more revenue and longevity.
Having now discovered what both parties want it is time to sit down together and thrash out how both can be achieved with as little compromise as possible. I can think of lots of ways to doing this in a way that protects commits and rewards.
Otherwise I guess people can continue what they are doing now. Issuing an RFP the size of a small book to TMCs who will be initially judged on how they answer a bunch of questions that really do not address the real issues. After all, the large TMCs can answer the questions any way they think you want to hear them and are probably already handing numerous Fortune 500 companies who asked the same.
So there we have it. Naïve? Workable? Or both?
Your guess is as good as mine!
Tuesday, 15 June 2010
Global Travel Programmes – Delivering?
It has been quite a few years now since the advent of globalisation, or should I say attempted globalisation, became the trend. TMCs amalgamated, acquired and re-launched just so they could offer a solution that crossed all geographical boundaries.
Maybe now is the time to asses whether the global travel programme strategy delivered what it should have and if all the stakeholders got what they wanted or perhaps, in some cases, feared. It is a huge subject which won’t be fully covered by my few paragraphs but I really do think it worth some scrutiny and debate as many companies are still considering taking this route.
Was it worth telling so many overseas offices to leave their existing suppliers and TMCs for the much expected global good of the company? Did those companies really gain global benefits and what price did it cost in terms of disruption, relationships and country budgets? Frankly, was it worth the hassle and, if so, can that worth be truly quantified to everyone’s satisfaction. Is there a case for scrapping the concept or is the dream of global control, buying power and service worth continuing with? Here are my initial observations both for and against.
I would argue that from a straightforward procurement perspective the case for globalisation is very weak. This is simply because, like many corporations almost all airline suppliers do not operate the same way and are almost quaintly traditional in their thinking. If you squeeze airlines they will admit that each country has their own cost centre and even head offices have to ‘sell’ a global deal to them. In almost all cases individual global locations can veto deals on the basis that it will create low fare precedents for insufficient regional benefits. Why should my country give a silly deal that will hurt my pricing strategy and bottom line even if it does benefit offices in another continent? This will only be solved by cross subsidisation or immoveable directives.
Interestingly enough TMCs have responded to the challenge much better and have found differing internal ways to solve the problem. They too have a different range of challenges particularly in the areas of common fees, fares, services and product ranges. Different markets have varying capabilities of GDS, M.I, market sophistication and standards and to expect the same services to be available in London as in Laos is simply unlikely and possibly unwelcome.
From a corporate perspective I think there is the same age-old issue between buying a commodity and a diverse service. This one really has to get cracked and I can count those that have succeeded on one hand, with a finger or two to spare. Everyone needs to agree the expected benefits, communicate them and benchmark results. Easier said than done as corporate head offices spending most time looking at what should be the compelling concept rather than the nitty gritty deliverability and cost both financial and practical.
In summary, if it is all about negotiating power I have severe doubts. If it is about measurement of what everyone is doing then O.K. but it may not be popular. If it is about provision of global support at times of crisis like war or volcanic ash then it is worth its weight in gold. Finally, if it is positioning for a future time when suppliers buy into the programme and global subsidiaries do what they are told (for whatever reason) then go for it now.
p.s. I define a global programme as one which covers a corporation in all their operating countries. This is entirely different to a Strategic programme which only covers two/three of an organisation’s main or driver markets. If you look at most companies you will find 80% plus of their travel comes from these two or three areas. I wonder sometimes why some find a need to spend time on the hugely fragmented 20%.
Strategic deals work well, especially between UISA/Europe and I have seen sizeable gains made by savvy organisations. Most airlines can cope with giving deals where there are good new business prospects at both ends of a route.
Maybe now is the time to asses whether the global travel programme strategy delivered what it should have and if all the stakeholders got what they wanted or perhaps, in some cases, feared. It is a huge subject which won’t be fully covered by my few paragraphs but I really do think it worth some scrutiny and debate as many companies are still considering taking this route.
Was it worth telling so many overseas offices to leave their existing suppliers and TMCs for the much expected global good of the company? Did those companies really gain global benefits and what price did it cost in terms of disruption, relationships and country budgets? Frankly, was it worth the hassle and, if so, can that worth be truly quantified to everyone’s satisfaction. Is there a case for scrapping the concept or is the dream of global control, buying power and service worth continuing with? Here are my initial observations both for and against.
I would argue that from a straightforward procurement perspective the case for globalisation is very weak. This is simply because, like many corporations almost all airline suppliers do not operate the same way and are almost quaintly traditional in their thinking. If you squeeze airlines they will admit that each country has their own cost centre and even head offices have to ‘sell’ a global deal to them. In almost all cases individual global locations can veto deals on the basis that it will create low fare precedents for insufficient regional benefits. Why should my country give a silly deal that will hurt my pricing strategy and bottom line even if it does benefit offices in another continent? This will only be solved by cross subsidisation or immoveable directives.
Interestingly enough TMCs have responded to the challenge much better and have found differing internal ways to solve the problem. They too have a different range of challenges particularly in the areas of common fees, fares, services and product ranges. Different markets have varying capabilities of GDS, M.I, market sophistication and standards and to expect the same services to be available in London as in Laos is simply unlikely and possibly unwelcome.
From a corporate perspective I think there is the same age-old issue between buying a commodity and a diverse service. This one really has to get cracked and I can count those that have succeeded on one hand, with a finger or two to spare. Everyone needs to agree the expected benefits, communicate them and benchmark results. Easier said than done as corporate head offices spending most time looking at what should be the compelling concept rather than the nitty gritty deliverability and cost both financial and practical.
In summary, if it is all about negotiating power I have severe doubts. If it is about measurement of what everyone is doing then O.K. but it may not be popular. If it is about provision of global support at times of crisis like war or volcanic ash then it is worth its weight in gold. Finally, if it is positioning for a future time when suppliers buy into the programme and global subsidiaries do what they are told (for whatever reason) then go for it now.
p.s. I define a global programme as one which covers a corporation in all their operating countries. This is entirely different to a Strategic programme which only covers two/three of an organisation’s main or driver markets. If you look at most companies you will find 80% plus of their travel comes from these two or three areas. I wonder sometimes why some find a need to spend time on the hugely fragmented 20%.
Strategic deals work well, especially between UISA/Europe and I have seen sizeable gains made by savvy organisations. Most airlines can cope with giving deals where there are good new business prospects at both ends of a route.
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Peril on Planes 2
I thought it topical to publish this today as it is my birthday as it was on the day this event happened. What a present it was!
What with all the plane journeys I have undertaken over the years I think I have been relatively fortunate in that a) I am still here and b) I am still not afraid to fly. One hears that flying is safer than driving a car but see how much that reassures you when you have one engine gone on a two engine aircraft somewhere over mid Atlantic. I can assure you that statistic is of little help as I personally discovered.
I was flying with my boss between Heathrow and Miami on an American Airlines 767. We had been put in seats 3 A and B in a nearly empty first class cabin and I had just tucked in to my favourite caramel topped ‘Ben an Jerry’s’ ice cream and settled down to watch ‘The Mask of Zorro (sad I know) on the in-flight screen. All seemed very well.
My feeling of well-being was shattered when we noticed there were some very scared looking cabin crew shuffling around. Something had clearly spooked them and this impression was confirmed when they delved into a storage container behind my seat and brought out a survival manual and a first aid box. I spontaneously wondered how the contents of the medical box would help if we plunged 35,000 into the ocean. It would take quite a few sticking plasters and gauze to patch us up after that I thought.
No announcements were made so one of us sidled up to a pale cabin attendant, identified us as being in the travel business and offered our assistance. She then explained about the engine malfunction on the starboard side resulting in it having to be shut down and that the remaining port engine could possibly malfunction too “at any time”.
We started to gradually reduce height whilst the captain talked on his radio to the authorities about our situation and requesting an airport to try and land at. I had heard that twin engine transatlantic aircraft are required by law to be no further than two hours flying time from an airport so I assumed we would be heading for Canada or northern USA. The instruction came that we should instead fly to Bermuda which was by no means the closest. I can only assume they sent us there because we would do less damage if we crashed. You se Bermuda airport is bordered on three sides by lagoon and the immediate area is sparsely populated.
The captain finally had to make an announcement. This was greeted by a stunned silence punctuated by the occasional scream. It certainly created a surreal atmosphere on the aircraft. The crew read, and re-read their emergency manuals, a few passengers demanded drinks. Many folk wrote short letters to their loved ones in case they may be discovered ‘afterwards’. To my shame I made them re-start the in-flight entertainment as I wanted to know if Zeta and Antonio lived happily ever after. I could not go to meet my maker without knowing that. Could I?
For some reason I could not stop thinking about that awful joke about the beautiful woman who, on hearing they were going to crash, stood up, took all her clothes off and told the stranger sitting next to her to “make me feel like a real woman for the last time”. “I will” he said, stood up, took off his shirt and said “here, iron this”. I looked at my boss sitting next to me and thought no. It would not be the same!
Anyway, we finally neared Bermuda and, by this time all preparations had been made. The crew had been great and even moved a frail old lady from the back of the aircraft to seat 1A in the hopes of getting her out quick. We offered our help again and this time they gave us a task. I thought it might be to take some ‘heroic’ position like opening the doors but it turned out we were to be used as human barricades! You see they were worried by too many people charging the exit and as we were both “large gentlemen” we were ideally suited for the task. There we were, possibly minutes from death and insulted over our weight. I vowed to go on a diet if we made it.
The captain told us his strategy. Basically we were between a rock and a hard place. If we successfully landed on one engine there would not be enough reverse thrust to stop by the end of the runway. If we tried to start the damaged engine on our final approach and failed it might have an equally catastrophic result.
In the end he went for the latter option and the time had come. We all got into the brace position and those that believed prayed. Incredibly the engine started and the AA pilot did the perfect textbook landing. The fire trucks wound their way back to their sheds looking like a swarm of slightly disappointed red bugs and one of the crew came on a speaker saying “thank you for flying American” I am not sure whether she was being ironic or not. Meanwhile I was asking around to see if anyone knew the ending of the Mask of Zorro.
I often think of that flight but strangely not always in a negative sense. There was a lot of bonding and human spirit shown. I also wonder what happened to those letters that were written and if any got shown. They would have said so many important things that only get revealed at times like that. Finally I learned never to tell my wife I watched the film rather than wrote her a letter!
What with all the plane journeys I have undertaken over the years I think I have been relatively fortunate in that a) I am still here and b) I am still not afraid to fly. One hears that flying is safer than driving a car but see how much that reassures you when you have one engine gone on a two engine aircraft somewhere over mid Atlantic. I can assure you that statistic is of little help as I personally discovered.
I was flying with my boss between Heathrow and Miami on an American Airlines 767. We had been put in seats 3 A and B in a nearly empty first class cabin and I had just tucked in to my favourite caramel topped ‘Ben an Jerry’s’ ice cream and settled down to watch ‘The Mask of Zorro (sad I know) on the in-flight screen. All seemed very well.
My feeling of well-being was shattered when we noticed there were some very scared looking cabin crew shuffling around. Something had clearly spooked them and this impression was confirmed when they delved into a storage container behind my seat and brought out a survival manual and a first aid box. I spontaneously wondered how the contents of the medical box would help if we plunged 35,000 into the ocean. It would take quite a few sticking plasters and gauze to patch us up after that I thought.
No announcements were made so one of us sidled up to a pale cabin attendant, identified us as being in the travel business and offered our assistance. She then explained about the engine malfunction on the starboard side resulting in it having to be shut down and that the remaining port engine could possibly malfunction too “at any time”.
We started to gradually reduce height whilst the captain talked on his radio to the authorities about our situation and requesting an airport to try and land at. I had heard that twin engine transatlantic aircraft are required by law to be no further than two hours flying time from an airport so I assumed we would be heading for Canada or northern USA. The instruction came that we should instead fly to Bermuda which was by no means the closest. I can only assume they sent us there because we would do less damage if we crashed. You se Bermuda airport is bordered on three sides by lagoon and the immediate area is sparsely populated.
The captain finally had to make an announcement. This was greeted by a stunned silence punctuated by the occasional scream. It certainly created a surreal atmosphere on the aircraft. The crew read, and re-read their emergency manuals, a few passengers demanded drinks. Many folk wrote short letters to their loved ones in case they may be discovered ‘afterwards’. To my shame I made them re-start the in-flight entertainment as I wanted to know if Zeta and Antonio lived happily ever after. I could not go to meet my maker without knowing that. Could I?
For some reason I could not stop thinking about that awful joke about the beautiful woman who, on hearing they were going to crash, stood up, took all her clothes off and told the stranger sitting next to her to “make me feel like a real woman for the last time”. “I will” he said, stood up, took off his shirt and said “here, iron this”. I looked at my boss sitting next to me and thought no. It would not be the same!
Anyway, we finally neared Bermuda and, by this time all preparations had been made. The crew had been great and even moved a frail old lady from the back of the aircraft to seat 1A in the hopes of getting her out quick. We offered our help again and this time they gave us a task. I thought it might be to take some ‘heroic’ position like opening the doors but it turned out we were to be used as human barricades! You see they were worried by too many people charging the exit and as we were both “large gentlemen” we were ideally suited for the task. There we were, possibly minutes from death and insulted over our weight. I vowed to go on a diet if we made it.
The captain told us his strategy. Basically we were between a rock and a hard place. If we successfully landed on one engine there would not be enough reverse thrust to stop by the end of the runway. If we tried to start the damaged engine on our final approach and failed it might have an equally catastrophic result.
In the end he went for the latter option and the time had come. We all got into the brace position and those that believed prayed. Incredibly the engine started and the AA pilot did the perfect textbook landing. The fire trucks wound their way back to their sheds looking like a swarm of slightly disappointed red bugs and one of the crew came on a speaker saying “thank you for flying American” I am not sure whether she was being ironic or not. Meanwhile I was asking around to see if anyone knew the ending of the Mask of Zorro.
I often think of that flight but strangely not always in a negative sense. There was a lot of bonding and human spirit shown. I also wonder what happened to those letters that were written and if any got shown. They would have said so many important things that only get revealed at times like that. Finally I learned never to tell my wife I watched the film rather than wrote her a letter!
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