Horncastle Executive Travel, based in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, joined the GBTA last May and attends its first conference this year. Managing director Peter Drummond explains what he expects to get from the event.
We joined the GTBA in get some more insight into the industry as a whole.
The guild has some topical speakers at these events and we look forward to hearing what the airlines have to say for themselves. Also, I understand it’s a pretty social event. So far, I have only been to formal meetings where everyone rushes in and rushes out and no one actually gets to know each other.
The theme of Profits depend on People is a good one because that is the way it has to be. But some companies do not realise that.
Training is important but it has to be part of the whole process of choosing the right people and motivating them. Horncastle is a people company. We have generous profit-share schemes. What our people put in, they get out.
I strongly believe it is the recruitment that is vital. You have to select the right people, pay them properly, make sure they are capable and then develop them from that.
We can bring a lot to the conference because we’ve got more exposure to overseas environments and overseas thinking than most companies because we are partly Scandinavian owned and have very close partnerships with agents around the world.