Meet the MD: Andrew Windsor, Thomas Cook Retail

Imagine the scene – 18 years old, repping in France for a camping and caravan company when a pregnant customer goes into labour. You don’t speak a word of French, and, to top it all, the customer has no insurance.

This was the situation I found myself in 17 years ago when I took my first foray into the travel business as an overseas rep for a camping company, Keycamp Holidays.

I’m glad to say I managed to avoid a very messy situation by using sign language and pictures to explain the situation to French officials and get the customer admitted to hospital. Phew!

But if you think this early taste of the travel industry had me hooked for life, you’d be wrong. In fact, after studying history at Manchester University, I joined the management development scheme at Midland Bank.

It was here I came across the single biggest influence on my career to date, in the shape of the then managing director of Overseas Banking Operations, Peter Middleton.

Peter was amazingly motivated and really made you feel valued. He also had a charming informality and an ability to communicate with anyone in any situation. So, when Peter was appointed chief executive for Thomas Cook and asked me to join his management team, I didn’t hesitate for a second.

I am a big fan of the radical changes that Peter brought to Thomas Cook in the late 1980s. Out went the old hierarchical structure – the directors’ dining room was closed and privileged car parking spaces withdrawn – in favour of a structure and culture which really started to value all the people in the organisation, not just a select few.

My strong belief that everyone deserves respect and the right to be treated equally goes right back to my schooldays, and Peter’s management style really reinforced this view.

To truly understand what makes any organisation tick, you need to get stuck in.

Both myself and my management team are regularly out in our branch network, meeting the people who, to our customers, are Thomas Cook. After all, it’s our staff that make the company.

One thing I don’t think anyone could accuse me of is beating around the bush, and my father was a major influence in this respect.

If something was wrong, he would tell you straight, and I’d like to think that this open, honest approach has rubbed off on me.

I believe in letting people know exactly where they stand and, in return, I expect them to be honest and direct with me.

And if there was any wooliness left in me, then my time spent at B&Q certainly put an end to that.

At B&Q people didn’t pull any punches. I think we can sometimes tend to focus too hard on being nice to each other at the expense of getting the job done.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m certainly no ogre. But if you need to have a row to get a decision made, or be outspoken to promote debate, then just do it. Get it all out in the open, then put it behind you and get on with the job.

But the over-riding principle for me is that work should be fun.

Much as I enjoyed my time working at B&Q, I really couldn’t get excited about selling drills, but I can and do get excited about selling holidays.

I want everyone who works at Thomas Cook to feel the same, and this means creating the right style of communication, the right atmosphere, the right culture, and even the right buildings to make this possible.

I will never forget that my father slogged his guts out all his life and then died a year after retiring.

This really makes me believe in the fact you do need to enjoy what you are doing today as tomorrow may never come.

CURRICULUM VITAE

1988: first joined Thomas Cook, after two years on Midland Bank’s graduate training scheme.

1991: became general manager for travel industry sales. Created a new umbrella wholesaling business to service the travel trade.

1992: became general manager (south) for Thomas Cook.

1994:director of operations for B&Q.

1995: returned to Thomas Cook as commercial director.

1992: promoted to operations director.

1997: appointed to current role of managing director for Thomas Cook UK retail and direct businesses. Responsibility for implementing a five year strategy across Thomas Cook’s shop and bureaux network and Thomas Cook Direct.

Never be afraid to try something different. If you show you are able, and willing, people just trust you to get on with it, and you’ll reap the rewards to boot.

Don’t hold grudges. Life’s too short.

Give even the strangest ideas a fair hearing. You’ll be surprised how many of them actually go on to make a real difference.

Don’t be a victim. If there are obstacles in your way, don’t sit there whingeing about it, do something about it. Even if the obstacles can’t be shifted, you can always find a way around them.

And finally, have fun!