Introducing the latest myCWT product and service enhancements
Building on our digital, omnichannel myCWT platform, our new products and services will simplify travel management for you and your employees – anytime, anywhere, anyhow.
Note: Featured services may not be available in your country at this time. Please reach out to your CWT representative for more details.
Hear from Chief Product Officer, Erica Antony as she shares the key product highlights of 2024, along with the key areas driving innovation.
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2040: Baseline, Boom or Bust
As we enter an era of rapid transformation and unprecedented challenges, it is essential for travel managers, meeting & event planners, and corporate decision-makers to look ahead and frame our current strategic thinking with a clear vision of the future. Business travel and meetings and events (M&E) are poised for significant change over the next decade and a half, driven by a complex interplay of sustainability goals, technological advancements, evolving work models, and geopolitical dynamics.
In this paper to mark the 10th anniversary of our Global Business Travel Forecast, we explore, for the first time, a long-term vision of the future and potential trajectories through three distinct scenarios, each offering insights into how these forces should affect policy-making, budgeting and priorities. By examining these scenarios, we can better understand the diverse possibilities that lie ahead and the strategic imperatives required to thrive in each potential future.
Based on trajectory data analysis and interviews with industry leaders, behaviorists and climate tech founders, this forward-looking approach enables us to anticipate changes, strengthen our strategies, and make informed decisions that align long-term objectives. It is through this lens of foresight and adaptability that we can build resilience, seize opportunities, and navigate the complexities of the future.
We invite you to reflect on the insights presented, and consider how your organization can prepare for the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead. Together we can ensure that travel and meetings remain catalysts for growth, scalability and sustainable practices.
- Scenario development is both an art and a science
- Megatrends Shaping the Future of Business Travel, Meetings and Events
- Sustainability goals the new crux of corporate policy
- Technology Revolutionizes Travel Management
- Modern work models spark new travel patterns
- Changing demographics open doors to new opportunities
- Three Scenarios: Base case, boom and bust
- Future-proofing strategies
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CWT GBTA Global business travel forecast 2025
When it comes to pricing, global business travel has finally reached an enduring, higher baseline. Prices will continue to rise in 2025, but only moderately, so expect a period of normalized growth.
However, this pricing environment, one of marginal gains and price regularity, is fragile. Global leisure travel has now realized a lot of its pent-up demand, while corporate travel has been resurgent, with 2024 edging at preCovid levels.
There are many factors at play, whether its volatile oil prices, labor costs and constraints, inflationary pressures, and geopolitical factors. As this elevated baseline edges upwards, albeit marginally, travel budgets will come under increased scrutiny, especially as travel patterns and attitudes change.
It’s why business travel can’t be viewed in a silo, and the true value to an organization must be fully realized. This forecast can help with those calculations.
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Capitalize on emerging technologies in corporate travel
Technological advancements are accelerating at an unprecedented pace. How will emerging innovations like Generative AI, blockchain, and self-sovereign identity (SSI) transform corporate travel?
BTN and CWT probed global CEOs, travel managers, industry consultants and tech experts on the promises, questions, and expectations these innovations raise and how they are set to reshape traveler experience, cost control and service delivery in corporate travel and events.
Download and discover
- The technologies that will have the greatest impact on corporate travel in the next 2-5 years
- How these emerging technologies are poised to control costs, enhance service and security, and boost efficiency
- The critical challenges, opportunities, risks and roadblocks each innovation raises
- What travel managers, buyers and experts anticipate from these innovations
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CWT appoints Karen Farrell as Senior Vice President, Talent & Rewards
CWT, the B2B4E travel management platform, has appointed Karen Farrell as Senior Vice President, Global Talent & Total Rewards. In this role, Karen and her team will develop and lead talent acquisition and talent management strategies, as well as spearhead the company’s learning and development, compensation, and benefits efforts. Reporting into Catherine Maguire-Vielle, Executive Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer, Karen will also build strategies and initiatives that position CWT for even greater growth and impact by planning for the workforce needs of today and tomorrow.
“Karen’s breadth of experience in the talent and rewards sector, alongside her global experience with large corporations, are fundamental to this important role,” said Catherine Maguire-Vielle, Executive Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer. “As the CWT business evolves, so does the need for innovative talent strategies. With Karen’s results-driven ethic and deep sector knowledge, we’re excited to welcome her into the team and successfully continue to grow the business with a talent and rewards-first approach.”
Karen joins CWT from Boehringer Ingelheim, where she had a 20+ year career in various HR roles, most recently as Vice President, Total Rewards U.S., where she led the attraction, retention, and orientation strategy for the business, with responsibilities spanning compensation and mobility services, health and welfare benefits, fleet management services, and change and project management.
She holds a Master of Science in Human Resources and Organizational Development from Manhattanville College in Purchase, New York and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Cedar Crest College in Allentown, Pennsylvania.
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.
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The power of honest feedback, long-distance leading and women who inspire – Meet Belinda Hindmarsh
Belinda Hindmarsh was recently promoted to a new role as SVP, Chief Operating Officer of RoomIt and China. She will spearhead the commercial development of RoomIt, CWT’s global hotel distribution division, CWT’s operations in China. In her 20+ career Belinda has held various international roles in marketing, supplier management and commercial roles in the travel space.
We chat to Belinda about developments that will shape the hotel industry, the challenges of working abroad and the strong women who inspire her.
Can you tell us about your role?
Since I joined CWT in 2018 to lead the global sales effectiveness team, I have had the pleasure to work with many teams across the company in several roles. At the beginning of this new year I moved back to a familiar space: working with the hotel team RoomIt and the China team. In my former role I was already working closely with both teams, leading market development of our strategic markets, including China. Prior to joining CWT, I spent over a decade with the Expedia Group, largely in hotel related roles, hence moving back to be part of the RoomIt teams feels a lot like “returning home” to something I know and love. Earlier in my career I worked as a Station Manager running airline operations for Aer Lingus in various countries across Europe. This role brought me to Rome, where I eventually settled down and established my family life.
What are the most important trends and developments that will shape the hotel sector in 2022 and beyond?
The hotel industry is destined to evolve as business travelers return to the road, bringing new dynamics and challenges to solve for. For one, average daily rates are forecasted to rise with reduced capacity and hotels tackling operating price increases and staffing shortages. Personalization and customer loyalty will both play a key role in customer acquisition and retention. It will be an important year for hotels to rethink what services their corporate guests are looking for and how to meet the needs of the new corporate traveller.
For example, two changes I have noticed in the last 6 months on the road stand out. Firstly, the increased frequency of guests that no longer rely on the hotel to provide food and beverage services. More and more guests use their delivery apps to have their favourite snacks and drinks delivered directly to the hotel. This definitely has an impact on the hotel F&B balance sheet and for some hotels resulted in the creation of dedicated delivery areas with the concierge outside the hotel or at reception.
Secondly, fewer guests are requiring a daily housekeeping service including fresh towels. This is to avoid further risk of COVID infection. This second trend has a positive impact for hotels, reducing housekeeping costs and also supporting hotel sustainability objectives. It will be interesting to see how hotels will continue to evolve their service offering this year for corporate travellers and leverage their loyalty programs and personalization to stay aligned with. What their customers need and expectations are.
How do you maintain a good work-life balance?
Rome may be an amazing city for tourism, but it is not exactly a major business hub. At times this has presented its challenges in establishing a sane work life balance, particularly in the early years after my daughter and son were born. If I look back, constant re-establishing of routines and some sacrifices were made to allow me to continue to work in the international job market. That said, I was mostly lucky to have had leaders who believed in me and gave me the space and freedom to manage my weeks as needed and focused on impact and results versus where I was located. Having honest upfront conversations is important and has made being a working commuter for over 18 years now, that much easier! Holidays would be the second call out for a good work-life balance. I am a big believer that we are all more innovative, effective, and healthy if we take time out each year to disconnect.
Who motivates or inspires you in your professional and/or personal life?
There isn’t one particular person that inspires me, it is the stories of many, that continue to inspire me on a regular basis. Just this week I learnt about Rwandan referee Salima Mukansanga who is making history as the first woman to officiate an African Cup of Nations football game. There are many others who spring to mind too. Nadia Nadim for instance, who escaped from Afghanistan to Denmark, learnt to play football in a refugee camp and today plays for the Danish women’s national team. In short, there are many role model women, from all walks of life, who have had to overcome major obstacles to do what they wanted to do or what they believed in. It can take courage and resilience to do the things you truly desire and to be who you want to be. Those who make it happen, always leave me inspired.
Image credits: CWT
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CWT unveils initial focus of $100 million technology, innovation and product investment plans
CWT, the business-to-business-for-employees (B2B4E) travel management platform, today announced plans for its $100 million investment in the myCWT travel management platform and innovative product offering, as it moves forward with the implementation of its previously announced recapitalization plan. Hinged around people, platform and purpose themes, the 2022 investment plans center on optimizing CWT’s digital-first proposition, achieving traveler experience excellence and providing truly integrated solutions.
The first tranche of investment is allocated towards new capabilities coming to market in the next six months as follows:
- responsible travel initiatives helping travelers and travel managers achieve more purposeful travel and travel programs – in response to 67% of CWT global customers stating that their company’s sustainability goals are more important since the pandemic
- platform connectivity enhancements to ensure a seamless and productive digital experience for travel managers and their travelers – reflective of the increased role technology plays in increasing traveler confidence as they resume traveling
- broader content to further expand the breadth of travel choice and trip options – ensuring greater flexibility, to fit evolving travel program needs
On the back of new features released in the myCWT platform late last year, first fruits of the new investment plan this quarter include the introduction of carbon footprint indicators. Thereafter CWT has an ambitious calendar and cadence of new capabilities, set for delivery throughout the rest of year.
“We are laser-focused on honing our digital-first proposition, delivering integrated solutions that delight travelers and demonstrate experience excellence” said John Pelant, EVP and Chief Technology Officer. “It gives us the opportunity to accelerate platform development and innovation, while continuing to deliver the most advanced digital products and experience available in corporate travel today.”
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.
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CWT becomes the first travel management company to reach 200k followers on LinkedIn
As CWT celebrates its 150th year – tracing its heritage back to 1872 and the introduction of the first sleeper car to European railways – and its part in making travel more accessible to millions of people, here we celebrate the achievement of being the first travel management company to surpass 200,000 followers on LinkedIn, a professional social media network that makes companies and their employees more accessible.
Social media and sites like LinkedIn have made it simpler and faster to inform audiences and provide access to communities for two-way communication direct with clients, prospects, current and potential employees, and a whole host of other stakeholders who have an interest in keeping up with what’s happening in an organization. They enable a mechanism for qualitative feedback and an ‘always on’ means of contacting companies. But success and milestones don’t come by luck. It is down to a dedicated team of 12,000 CWT people who make the company a success, including the 200 or so CWT Social Media Ambassadors who help generate a buzz about CWT and the industry, and a small communications team to finesse messages so they’re suitable for this key network and audience.
At CWT, we embrace LinkedIn as a key communications tool for the clear benefits it offers. As well as sharing what’s going on at the company, we can use it to attract and find great talent to join our teams, reach people far beyond any geographic boundary and engage and celebrate innovative partnerships like the ones recently announced with ZYTLYN Technologies and Tracker Software Technologies that assist and simplify travel for our client’s travelers. We can celebrate and recognize the achievements of our people and give them deserved kudos. And we can simply enjoy the fact that travel is back after a lengthy hiatus.
So, while social media often gets a bad press, it is there to be used as a tool in your armoury, and what a useful tool that can prove to be.
Here’s to many more milestones for CWT, and if you’ aren’t following already, head to our page on LinkedIn and hit that follow button.
Image credits: CWT
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CWT wins ‘Best Agency 2021’ at Iberia Fitur Agency Awards
CWT Meetings and Events, the global M&E division of CWT, the Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform, has won ‘Best Agency 2021’ at the Iberia Fitur Agency Awards 2022 event. Decisive in this win, was CWT M&E’s robust management of all aspects of attendee and partner travel at the 2021 MotoGP World Championships, including hotel accommodation, ground transportation and baggage handling.
With complex global travel restrictions to navigate throughout the event which spanned 18 countries over eight months, CWT M&E’s Barcelona and Jerez teams were recognized for their excellent travel logistic management and onsite race track support across the 18 MotoGP races, hosted across Europe, America and Western Asia.
“We are delighted to be recognized as an integral agency partner to Iberia, for the hard work and dedication of the CWT Spain team,” said Antonio Roig, Senior Director Customer Management Spain, Italy & Greece at CWT. “This award is a testament to the successful cooperation, effective service, and focus on our suppliers and customers during uncertain times. The CWT Spain team will continue to lead the field in this way.”
The Iberia Fitur Agency Awards, now in its thirteenth year, recognises the work of travel agencies, companies and other organisations with which Iberia partners, and go to great lengths to support the airline’s connectivity with the world.
Caption to featured image: The award was presented to Antonio Roig (in the middle), Senior Director Customer Management Spain, Italy & Greece at CWT
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.
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3 ways to help employees travel with confidence
The GBTA CWT Global Business Travel Forecast predicts rising prices across air, ground and hotels in 2022, leading many travel buyers to focus on savings. But price alone won’t always lead your program to success.
Ultimately, you’ll need to strike a balance between employee wellbeing, your company’s performance, and the environment.
While eager to hit the road again, many travelers need additional reassurance around wellbeing and safety. Here are three steps to equipping your travelers with the knowledge they need to get back to business.
Stay ahead of the curve
CWT’s Return to Travel Dashboards are designed with the travel manager in mind. They provide daily COVID-19 risk and travel restriction information from multiple sources in one location, combined with globally consolidated CWT-booked travel data.
Also, our trip approval services are simple to implement and even easier to use. They provide effortless travel management as you set the rules and we manage the bookings. Plus, employee wellbeing is supported as trips are reviewed and approved before booking. Best of all, it provides a personalized experience giving employees the confidence to return to travel.
Checklists and tools
Ensure you are providing tools that keep your traveling employees in the know about cancellations and potential dangers when traveling. The Return to Travel Checklist is designed to help travelers prepare for, and minimize, risk during their trip.
CWT Travel Essentials allows travelers and travel arrangers to find up-to-the-minute information about travel advisories, restrictions, and procedures of a destination country. It is accessible via myCWT web, app and the CWT global website.
And with just one click travelers can contact their CWT counselor anytime, anywhere.
Simplify the booking process
Travelers want a simple and individualized business travel booking experience that matches what’s on offer when they travel for leisure. myCWT is an omni-channel platform and, with the added benefit of profile integration, offers personal preferences. The platform gives travelers an effortless booking experience, providing flexibility, booking functions and information at their fingertips.
CWT continues to launch new features within myCWT to simplify travel management for you and your traveling employees.
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Pivoting national sales meeting to a hybrid event
Brief
- Originally scheduled as a 3.5-day meeting for sales leaders
- With COVID-19 guidelines limiting event sizes in the host state of Minnesota, client wanted other solutions to bring the sales team together
- As the pandemic continues to unfold, we consulted with the client to convert the annual event to a hybrid meeting
Solution
- Hosted a 2-day hybrid meeting, broadcasting from the main stage to regional hubs with virtual accessibility
- Developed an extensive mobile app to encourage engagement and networking
- Mailed gift bags to all attendees before event to increase excitement
Result
- More than 600 attendees joined the meeting in-person and digitally
- Livestreamed from one main stage and 5 regional hubs
- Mobile app engagement was huge success with attendees sharing photos on the social wall before and during the event
- 50% year-over-year savings from previous in-person event
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3 pillars of adaptive leadership
Several themes will define the long-term future of travel that will prove as seismic as the decades previous. They’re the subject of a new podcast episode featuring CWT’s CEO Michelle McKinney Frymire to mark CWT’s 150 years in travel. Emphasized are some of the key issues of our time from immediate imperatives like global vaccine equity and accelerating sustainability practices, to the advantages of building for a future that cleverly combines human expertise and technology. What stands out is that planning for 2025 and beyond requires adaptive leadership at all levels, and in organizations of all sizes in all industries.
Leading for the long-term
Humbled – if not devastated – by a seemingly relentless pandemic, increasingly frequent manifestations of climate change, and personal loss and sacrifice, travelers are acquiring a new consciousness. They are perhaps more aware than ever of what matters in life and what doesn’t.
Michelle was no stranger to adapting in recent times. She was at the helm of completely restructuring the company for the future with $350 million dollars of new equity, including a $100 million dollar investment in new technology and innovative products. Global uncertainty is going nowhere fast (you can read more about how to plan for it in our 2022 Global Travel Forecast) so looking further to 2025 and beyond, here are three pillars of leadership shared in the podcast:
Beyond profit
The change in focus from solely profit to profit plus purpose is going to be truly meaningful and impactful. Companies that are focused solely on profit are going to lose ground, where they have competitors who are creating a strong connection and identity for their employees. Smart leaders are placing emphasis on collaboration, teamwork and connection for their employees.
Teamwork 2.0
People all over the world have shown that we can work in different ways that better meet the needs of employees. What we call ‘hybrid’ now will become the norm for how we work and live. That’s going to drive different needs for travel and an elevated need for remote workers to connect with their teams, come together to collaborate and to innovate, but also to remember why they’re doing what they’re doing, “I think about our own purpose, and how much it resonates for me and for our 12,000 employees; that unlocking the power of human connection is what we really do. We have so many employees who really connect with that.”
Recipe for longevity
A strong identity coupled with speedy decision-making that empowers cultures, treating talent as a resource that’s scarcer than capital, and building for scale with data rich platforms and really great technology: If you can bring all those together, you really can build organizations that are going to be successful for the long-term.
Listen to CWT CEO Michelle McKinney Frymire on how to future-proof for 2025 and beyond.
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CWT appoints Rachael Sullivan as Vice President, Human Resources
CWT, the Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform, has appointed Rachael Sullivan as Vice President, Human Resources. Based in Minneapolis and reporting to Consuelo Corridori, CWT’s Senior Vice President of HR, Rachael will be the global HR business partner for CWT’s Finance and Commercial teams, helping them to further strengthen their organizational capabilities and implement effective people strategies.
“As travel continues to recover, talent attraction and retention are at the top of our agenda,” said Consuelo Corridori. “At the same time, we are focused on creating a culture that fosters new ideas and innovation, and keeps our teams around the world motivated and inspired to deliver the best experience for our customers. Rachael has an impressive track record in helping large organizations establish HR programs that drive change and accelerate business performance, and I’m delighted to have her join our team.”
With more than 20 years in HR leadership roles, and more than 10 years partnering with C-suite executives, Rachael has extensive experience in designing and delivering transformative strategies, building organizational capabilities, and enabling inclusive and highly engaged cultures. Since 2006, she has held roles of increasing responsibility and complexity at Medtronic, most recently as Senior HR Director. She provided HR leadership across multiple sites in the US and Europe, as well as partnered with teams in various Asia Pacific markets including China. Prior to Medtronic, Rachael held HR leadership roles at Accellent and Boston Scientific Corporation.
Rachael has a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.Sc.) degree in Psychology from the University of Minnesota in Duluth, Minnesota.
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.
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CWT and ZYTLYN Technologies Align to Forecast Customer Travel Demand
CWT, the Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform, and AI predictive analytics company ZYTLYN Technologies have embarked on a pilot initiative to effectively predict forthcoming travel demand to and from specific routes as well as at a global level. Overlaying CWT historical booking patterns onto ZYTLYN’s unique AI-driven Prediction Platform, the pilot will provide micro and macro level demand forecasting insights, allowing CWT to make astute decisions about future supply requirements, capacity planning and resource management.
“Being able to accurately predict travel demand in near real-time, whilst complex, fluid contextual factors such as COVID are at play, enables CWT to be even more intuitive in its customer offer, ensuring a highly-customized product, service and experience mix relevant to the individual traveler’s current and near future needs,” said Patrice Simon, CWT CTO Data and Analytics.
“We are excited to support CWT, one of the world’s biggest travel platforms and brands. While business travel is recovering fast, it is an ideal time to leverage new proven technologies that provide data driven predictability to uplift revenues, lower costs and build more resilience” said Houman Goudarzi, ZYTLYN’s Co-Founder & CEO.
CWT and ZYTLYN’s pilot agreement will begin February 2022 and will initially run for three months.
Caption to featured image: Patrice Simon (CWT CTO Data and Analytics) and Houman Goudarzi (Co-Founder & CEO ZYTLYN Technologies)
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.
About ZYTLYN Technologies
ZYTLYN Technologies is a predictive analytics and AI company, helping customers address their most urgent retailing and eCommerce problems and opportunities with granular, qualified, and actionable predictive insights. Its Prediction Platform gives customers the ability to optimize decision making through predictive demand, competitor, consumer, market insights. -
A day in the life of Special Assistance Coordinator, Rina Spence
Rina Spence is one of the Customer Care Managers in the Special Assistance Coordinators (SAC) department at the American Airlines headquarters near Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. She has at least two dozen coordinators on her team and has been a Special Assistance Coordinator Manager for three years.
I am responsible for…
Helping people in need. Our customers always have new and unique needs, and I learn something new every day about how we can adapt to help them. Our focus is the customer and ensuring they get the best possible service based on their itinerary and needs. While we can’t help with every request, we work hard to accommodate as many requests as possible and offer alternative options if needed.
How we work…
Our goal is to take care of the customer and make sure they can complete their journey with minimal to no disruption due to their disabilities or special assistance needs. Many of our special assistance coordinators work varying shifts, and we work through challenges together to take care of our travelers. Several team members have been in the SAC department for over 20 years and have a wealth of knowledge about how to support different kinds of requests, whether it be for one person or a group of Paralympians needing assistance with their equipment and transfers. Currently, we have more than 65 American Airlines special assistance coordinators based in the US, and more team members at our international offices to provide global support to our customers.
How do our special assistance coordinators work with CWT?
During the booking process, the CWT agent make notes on a customer’s special request form, such as for wheelchair, oxygen, and lift assist. If there are questions or additional requests, the agent coordinates with the Special Assistance Center directly to ensure the customer’s travel record documents the customer’s needs so the airport knows what to anticipate to support the customer during their travels.
What a special assistance coordinator does day-to-day…
We wear a lot of different hats to support our customers from the time they book their flight to arrival at their destination. Some of our most common requests are for help with the logistics of traveling with wheelchairs, service animals, and medical equipment. We also ensure these customers and those with vision, hearing, or other disabilities have the support they need to navigate the airport and flight experience as smoothly as possible. In addition to supporting a customer during their travel with American, we also collaborate with our joint business partners to make sure the customer has the support they need throughout their journey, even if part of their trip is with another airline.
A typical day for a special assistant coordinator begins with signing in for the shift…
We start the day by taking calls to coordinate wheelchairs and other needs for customers, including helping agents and customers accurately submit requests to make sure the customer has what they need on the day of travel. We also spend time speaking with customers who have questions about our policies to help them understand what they need to comply.
A special assistant coordinator moves from inbound calls to customer requests…
They receive many different types of requests and work with the appropriate departments to make sure a customer receives the information they need. Customers submit questions about topics ranging from traveling when prone to seizures, how to travel internationally with a service dog, specifics on face covering requirements and types of portable oxygen containers that American Airlines accepts.
After lunch, special assistant coordinators help with more calls and emails…
They jump back in to help with inbound phone calls. Customers may call for help checking on a passenger who’s traveling by themselves and needs assistance, or help locating a lost item that may have been left on a plane.
They may meet with a peer to discuss the types of customer questions we’re receiving about COVID-19 testing requirements. They discuss the ways we’re communicating with customers through our pre-departure emails to customers and our Prepared for the Air resource online to make sure they understand what they need to do to travel.
Near the end of the day, our special assistance coordinator wraps up with a few final calls…
They assist a customer who has questions about transporting their elderly parent who has Alzheimer’s and how ‘American’ can help them during travel. They may also answer more questions about seats and medical needs while traveling.
As a special assistance manager…
I check in with my team throughout the day to ensure our workflow runs smoothly so we can respond to our customers in a timely manner. I help with unique situations and policy questions. At the end of the day, we want to make sure our team members were able to assist as many customers as possible.
I reflect on the customers we were able to support at the end of each day. I’m thankful for our team, and I’m proud of the great work we do to we help our customers when they fly on American Airlines.
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CWT global customer team leadership and 2022 priorities under new leadership announced
CWT, the Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform today announces the strategic aims and leadership team for its global customer team, under the newly appointed leadership of Nick Vournakis, EVP and Chief Customer Officer. With overall responsibility for delivering CWT’s B2B4E experience to its business travel and meetings & events customers, CWT’s customer business unit is tasked to maintain CWT’s global customer growth rate, whilst aligning seamlessly with CWT’s TX organization to service travelers through their chosen channel – from pre-trip to safe return.
“We enter the new year with a healthy balance sheet, a renewed commitment and investment in our technology platform, and with an unparalleled passion to exceed the expectations and needs of our customers,” said Nick Vournakis, EVP and Chief Customer Officer “The customer leadership team are primed for delivering greater client efficiencies, value offerings and personalization this year and beyond.”
Effective immediately, the core leadership team of the Customer unit are as follows:
- Ian Cummings heads up the global Meetings & Events business, and will continue to serve existing customer needs – whether virtually, or in-person and grow new business.
- Robin Handley will lead the newly formed Customer Effectiveness organization, focused on helping client retention, growth and profitability.
- Gregory Harkins will continue in his role, leading Defense & Government customers, as CWT maintains its leading position in providing travel management services to the US military and government.
- Tammy Morgan will lead CWT’s Regional Key Accounts and will be responsible for developing CWT’s national customers across the world.
- Raphael Pasdeloup will assume Nick Vournakis’ prior responsibility of leading our Enterprise Customers organization. Organized around industry verticals, Raphael’s team will continue to manage key global, multinational, and national customer relationships, expanding these across the full width and breadth of CWT’s offering.
- Darren Toohey will continue to lead CWT’s Global Sales Organization, focused on growing CWT’s business globally and across key industry verticals.
CWT is a leading global partner in business travel, meetings, and events. Operating across six continents, we deliver sustainable, tailored solutions that help organizations connect, engage, and thrive in an evolving world. Our myCWT platform integrates advanced technology with human expertise to simplify travel and enhance traveler and attendee experiences. Extensive global coverage, seamless data integration, AI-driven analytics, and carbon-conscious travel tools enable businesses to optimize their travel and meetings programs while delivering measurable value.
With 150 years of industry experience and a deep commitment to partnership, CWT collaborates with clients to shape the future of business travel and events, making them more efficient, responsible, and impactful.