| Journal: TWUK | Section: |
| Title: | Issue Date: 06/11/00 |
| Author: | Page Number: 108 |
| Copyright: Other |
MEET THE TRAINER:
Jo Curtis, key account manager, Hertz Leisure
Education and career path: Westwood High School for Girls, London. I joined Hertz in 1993 to work as a reservations agent. I became business travel co-ordinator from 1993-98 and then global distribution system help-desk co-ordinator and hotel sales executive before becoming leisure sales executive in 1998, with responsibility for training. Ibecame key account manager for the southwest in January this year responsible for managing accounts in the region which includes training all the agents.
Outline your training programme: a combination of product knowledge and global distribution system training. The technology is in place to enable agents to book using global distribution suppliers or via our reservations number and in training we encourage them to call our trained team on the agents priority booking line.
Favoured training style: I prefer working with small groups of around six agents and I encourage them to shout if they don’t understand anything. There’s always time for questions and objections at the end of my presentation, which I keep brief but to the point.
Top training tips: never overload your audience with information. Decide what main points you want to get across and stick to them, keeping it as entertaining as you can. It is also vital to build up a rapport so they are interested in what you have to say.
One thing agents should take away from a training session: confidence that Hertz car rental is easy to understand and to sell.