In Teeth of Sandy, Agents & TMCs Take Charge

As Hurricane Sandy pounded its way up the East Coast, travel agencies and travel management companies did what they do best – springing into action to take care of their travelers in advance of and throughout the storm.

With the massive storm expected to stretch from Bermuda to Maine, including well inland, its impact is being felt across the country. As of Sunday evening, the hurricane had caused airlines to cancel over 6,800 flights.

On the business travel side, few companies anywhere in North America could expect their travelers or travel programs to escape unscathed, said Goran Gligorovic, executive vice president of Omega World Travel in Fairfax, Va.

As soon as carriers began waiving rebooking penalties, client companies started recalling travelers whose appointments could be rescheduled, said Lea Cahill, chief operating officer for Atlas Travel in Boston.

Identifying needs in advance
Travel agencies and management companies focused on pinpointing those clients who would most need their services during the storm and in coming days.

Atlas Travel pulled reports from clients and travelers to predict Tuesday and Wednesday travel volume in and out of the affected areas and airports to set staffing levels, Cahill said.
 
Omega took similar precautions. The first step was to separate itineraries and reservations that were the least likely to be affected. “If you were traveling anywhere in the Midwest or the East or flying transatlantic, you could expect trouble,” Gligorovic said.

Being proactive
“We started watching itineraries and flight cancellations and protecting our travelers on alternate flights as soon as cancellations were announced. We called travelers to give them alternative arrangements before they even had a chance to call us,” Gligorovic said.

Timing made it difficult for many companies to recall travelers who were already on the road, Gligorovic said, although companies that could get travelers home before the storm did so.

Emergency teams in place
Valerie Wilson Travel in New York implemented its emergency plan on Friday, “in order to maintain high customer service levels while making sure our staff remains safe,” co-president Kimberly Wilson Wetty told Travel Market Report.

“Our emergency plan includes running a report to see which clients would be traveling this week and next [and] communicating with those clients to discuss travel plans and make adjustments as needed,” Wetty said.

The agency, whose volume is 55% corporate, requested additional staffing and support from its 24/7 emergency service, in addition to determining the best way to “utilize the entire VWT network to support our clients.” This included relying on those agents who can work remotely and forwarding calls to branch offices.

On a management conference call on Sunday, the agency decided to close five Metropolitan New York area offices while maintaining a skeleton staff.

Volunteered with gusto
Atlas announced on Friday that it would monitor after-hours and emergency call volume and was prepared to boost telephone service to normal weekday capacity for the duration of the emergency.

By Saturday morning, the first emergency call team was in place. Atlas kept staffing levels up through the weekend and into Monday.

“Our agents volunteered with gusto, because that’s what people do when things happen,” Cahill told Travel Market Report. “When people ask what can your travel agent do for you, this shows you exactly what a travel agent can do. They can be there for you.”

Looking ahead
What happens after today depends on the storm and how hard it hits airports and other travel infrastructure.

“The concern will be how long will it take to get travel patterns back in order from all the delays, cancellations and getting equipment where it is needed,” Wetty said. “The recovery process is what often takes longer than one anticipates.”

Wetty’s biggest worry? “Not knowing how long will the storm last – because as much as you can be prepared and have a plan in place, there are still some things [and] circumstances you can’t control. So, you need to be flexible and be on-call to handle the unknown.”

Showing their worth
Travelers and businesses are sure to appreciate the services of their travel advisors in the days ahead.

“It is at times like this when we have the opportunity to shine and show our clients the importance and relevance of having a travel advisor,” Wetty said.

On the business side, Gligorovic said, “this is the kind of situation where you see the value of a managed travel program. Travelers in an unmanaged program are on their own. If they don’t have an agency or a TMC on their side, all they can do when a flight is cancelled is call the airline.

“In the case of a storm like this, Rule 240 doesn’t apply and carriers don’t have to do anything to help,” Gligorovic said. “If you’re booked on United and they cancel your flight, they’re not going to tell you about that alternative flight on American. We’ve all been protecting our travelers and contacting them with alternative arrangements.”

Marilee Crocker contributed to this report.