Flight Centre’s business travel division Corporate Traveller UK has bolstered staff by 20% in a six-month recruitment drive.
An additional 46 travel consultants have been employed in response to demand for client servicing following a 30% rise in turnover last year.
The travel management company has also almost doubled the size of its business development team with the appointment of 20 additional business development managers across the UK, as it continues to seek further growth in 2013.
New training programmes to support employee development have been launched by the agency, which specialises in clients spending £50,000 to £2 million on business travel a year.
The company’s novice training programme has been extended from two to eight weeks. A new business development manager ‘accreditation pathway’ is structured as online modules, instructor-led training, team leader-led training and experiential development over two years.
UK general manager Graeme Milne said: “A core element of our approach to servicing is that consultants work in small teams of no more than six based in a location close to the client, providing expert high-touch personal service via phone and email.
“Rather than expand a team as new business comes in, we will set up a new team, and we never use call centres.
“Our business model has proved to be so successful that we needed to increase staff numbers significantly over the last six months.
“However, around 30% of new consultants came from non-travel backgrounds, so we needed to ensure they were fully trained not only in products and services, but also equipped with the right skills to deliver the level of customer experience excellence which we are known for.”