A back-to-the-floor visit by Tui boss David Burling could lead to a faster rollout of technology in Thomson shops and more consultation with retail staff on future projects.
Burling, chief executive for Tui’s northern region, said his visit to Thomson’s Stevenage branch had prompted him to reassess technology in shops.
“The visit really made me rethink, in particular about the need to roll out new technology as soon as possible,” he said.
“We have great people but at times the tools and technology they work with could be better. We have plans for this but we need to see if we can accelerate the plans.”
Tui launched its Connect system in stores in April 2015 which allows agents to identify clients’ booking history, for example, the type of holidays they have previously booked either on the phone, online or in store.
In addition, Burling said the visit had underlined the importance of feedback from shop staff in relation to company strategy.
“We are working on a couple of new confidential projects and, as a result of the visit, I now want the project leads to talk to our retail staff more as we develop the retail strategy,” he said.
Burling was the first member of Tui Group’s executive committee board to make a back-to-the-floor visit and chose the Stevenage branch to honour travel adviser Ellen Davey, who has just celebrated 50 years with Thomson.
“I was so intrigued to learn about Ellen’s experiences,” he said. “What I was most impressed with was the loyalty our customers show to her.”
During his visit Burling helped the team with a honeymoon booking and spoke to customers, including a couple who booked a cruise on Thomson Cruises’ latest ship Tui Discovery.