Tools of growing TQ3 offer many management services

By Graeme Kennedy

Friday 7th June 2002

GREG HAMILTON: Corporates can warrant using sophisticated services of a travel manager

Corporate travel manager TQ3 is looking for more growth and rolling out new products following the company's recent acquisition by Australasian travel giant Flight Centre, says new managing director Greg Hamilton.

Mr Hamilton said TQ3, already one of New Zealand's top three business travel managers and estimated to be No 1 with its sales combined with Flight Centre's The Corporate Traveller, planned to add further management services to clients with its new tools.

Flight Centre earlier this year bought Internet Travel Group (ITG), which owns TQ3, incentives and conferences subsidiary The Events Centre and software development arm Lumina Technologies.

ITG was Australasia's biggest listed corporate travel management company with $A330 million turnover before it was delisted with the sale which brought significant synergies to the two companies and huge value to Flight Centre in having a global company in its portfolio, Mr Hamilton said.

The group operates worldwide with TQ3-branded TUI Business Travel in Europe an Maritz Corporate Travel in the US to provide 1300 offices in 57 countries.

Mr Hamilton said TQ3 had recently launched the latest version of its travel software Lumina e-3, a booking tool which allowed clients to make reservations in-house with their own travel policies built in and provided more control of data and on-line reporting.

"And we will soon launch our new product, Optimiser, which is a travel-management system designed to drive cost out of our customers' business," Mr Hamilton said. "Clients are no longer looking for an agent to get them from A to B. They want a travel manager to look at the total picture, manage their travel budgets, drive costs out and maximise their investment in travel - Optimiser does all that.

"The market is well defined now. We once all used to be travel agents, then some became corporate agents and others into specialised corporate travel management and the market will continue to develop niches so that players have to be strong in their own fields, whether corporate or leisure, and have the technology which is vital to the changes taking place."

Mr Hamilton, who took the top job after two years as TQ3 business development director, said that while major overseas companies might spend up to $4 million on travel each year, larger New Zealand corporates spent more than $500,000 - an amount big enough to warrant using the sophisticated services of a manager.

"Companies are becoming more aware of what a travel manager can do," he said. "Globally, having a travel-management programme is accepted as the norm and a lot of New Zealand companies have picked up on that although more could be doing it - and saving money.

"We have focused on adding value for customers, value that helps them drive costs out of their business and it is all about using technology through management services.

"And having an international presence through the TQ3 branding brings huge value in servicing global clients, enhancing our buying power and assisting clients when they are overseas. It also gives us access to the latest travel-management technology, which typically comes out of the US.

"But we must continue to add value for our clients at a competitive price and with a high quality of service."

Mr Hamilton said e-commerce was making travel a commodity product - at least for simple point to point domestic and transtasman bookings, although expertise was needed for more complicated transactions.

"About 75% of clients are doing the simple bookings themselves and making significant savings but for the others they need the expertise of a consultant," he said.

"That's where the travel industry is going - this is traditionally a people business but technology is being used where appropriate to drive costs out of the business.

"It is all about using technology through travel management services."

Mr Hamilton said his company's vast buying power put it in a strong position to ensure the best deals from airlines and other suppliers. "We represent the needs of our customers and, with that buying power, we will ask them to do the right thing by our clients."

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