BUSINESS travel agents need to be more proactive and provide a better service for corporate travellers if they are to keep in business, the 21st Century Travel Forum heard.
Some business travel managers told the forum that they were unhappy at the levels of service provided by their business travel agents.
New Holland International UK travel manager Dennis Bailey said:”Itake it as given that travel agents can answer the telephone in two rings and can book a ticket at a low fare.
“But I want someone who can think for me and be flexible.”
Halliburton travel manager Robert Daykin said:”Travel agents need to be more proactive and constructive. That is what customer service is about.
“Ticketing, pricing, answering the telephones – all the other things that most people measure travel agencies by are not the real measures of value. If travel agencies are not providing the value, why are we employing them?”
Another business travel manager, who refused to be named, said:”I have a contract with the agent to do a job. I have to be accountable for the money that I spend. I expect a certain standard from my agent, and I’m afraid that standard is not being met.”
Guild of Business Travel Agents manager Mike Riddle said the answer lies in better training. “There is now a growing awareness that colleges have to focus more on customer service and career guidance,” he said.