Like many industries, Covid-19 had a huge impact on the travel sector’s workforce. With lockdowns bringing travel to a halt and little targeted support from the government, the travel industry saw something of a staff exodus.
For some this was down to redundancy or job loss as firms were sadly forced to close their doors. For others a combination of furlough fatigue and a fear of long-term instability drove them out of travel and into other industries.
Thankfully, travel is now firmly back on the agenda and the pent-up desire to get away has helped the industry bounce back even quicker than many anticipated. However, because of the shift in the workforce, some areas of the industry are facing staff shortages that are having a direct impact on service levels. In some instances, previously unheard-of last-minute cancellations have been triggered by even a small number of staff falling ill or being otherwise unavailable. As a result, there’s an understandable frustration from travellers as well as those servicing the industry, as more and more trips need rearrangement with up to 1 in 4 trips needing changes.
Up and down the supply chain, companies like Gray Dawes are supporting clients as much as they possibly can do in the face of these challenges. In a continuing effort to provide excellent service, here at Gray Dawes we’re running a series of initiatives focussed on supporting the development of talent in the industry.
University and college fairs
Gray Dawes recognises the need for additional representation of business travel across education in order to continue the supply of fresh talent into the industry. Given that it’s a multi-billion-pound industry, business travel is often overlooked, and certainly under-represented, in academia. As a result, the industry remains something of a mystery to those leaving education and embarking on career searches.
We’ve recently been invited to talk at a number of University and College fairs where we’ve spoken to students studying courses such as travel and tourism to give them a taste of the business travel sector and the fulfilling career it provides. It’s been a great opportunity to shine a light on the sector and give practical tips and advice to those interested in pursuing a career in the industry.
Apprenticeships
Gray Dawes has a long tradition of supporting talent in the industry with a comprehensive apprenticeship scheme. With apprenticeship positions across a wide range of disciplines (including business travel consulting, events, IT development, marketing and more) we’ve both nurtured new talent entering the industry and helped support existing colleagues looking for a change of direction in their careers within the business.
We really value the apprenticeship scheme as a win-win for both the individuals undertaking them and Gray Dawes as a business. Once complete, our skilled apprenticeship graduates have gone onto enjoy a range of job roles within the business and have benefitted from achieving a new qualification with on the job training.
New starters
Having recognised the potential uplift in our clients’ travel requirements, we were delighted to have started a healthy recruitment drive soon after the end of the restrictions that the pandemic had forced on travel.
In addition to our apprenticeship positions, we’ve been busily recruiting to cover additional positions across the business including in our operations, account management and sales departments. We’re currently recruiting for a range of roles and have welcomed over 25 new starters in the last few months.
The future is bright
We know there are currently frustrations around some service levels across a number of travel providers. Rest assured that the team at Gray Dawes is here to support all our clients’ travellers as much as we possibly can do. By bolstering our staff and supporting talent in the industry, we’re focussed on helping client’s return to travel in the most efficient possible ways and providing a consistent, future-proofed service offering.
FURTHER INSIGHTS
We’re bringing you all the latest business travel trends and topics from our very own industry experts.
Each bite-size session will offer insight, how-to’s and top tips on subjects such as building traveller confidence, implementing a sustainable travel policy, creating successful corporate travel programmes and more!
Traveller Toolkit
To help you navigate the changes of business travel, we’ve created the brand-new Traveller Toolkit. This invaluable online resource is packed full of easy-to-use guides and checklists for every stage of every journey. We detail exactly what you need to know and do before, during and after your trip in a post-pandemic, post Brexit world.
You can even check the travel restrictions and health status of your destination with our comprehensive COVID-19 Country Tracker, updated five times daily to ensure you have the very latest information to help keep you and your travellers safe.
Travel is changing. With common sense and a good TMC behind you, travellers can have the confidence to once again take to the skies. It’ll soon be back business as (un)usual.