Most businesses don’t use strategies – which can hold them back from reaching their fullest potential. Director of Firebird, Ian Finlay,...

Last week, the CAA entered into a major, and many would say long overdue, consultation on the future of ATOL . This news will most likely come as no surprise to anyone in the travel industry. The failures of Monarch and Thomas Cook, followed by the COVID pandemic have made it impossible for the CAA to avoid making changes. Refund issues have stalked travel businesses throughout the pandemic. The drip drip of stories detailing unpaid refunds, cancellation fees and court battle

The long awaited Global Travel Taskforce report is in… It’s not a magic wand for the travel sector or individual travellers, but it does give the promised framework. Monday 5th April saw a wave of disappointed noises from many in travel; they’d hoped an announcement that day would pave the way for travel to cleanly reopen in May. It didn't. Focus then shifted to Monday 12th April when the Global Travel Taskforce was due to report. Surprisingly, news has come in three days ear

This blog was originally a comment piece in Travel Weekly on 10th March 2021 Our industry has been through the toughest 12 months in its history, and we are far from out of the woods, albeit that there is a brighter light now shining. Every travel business has been impacted. Every travel employee affected. And every traveller has had their plans disrupted, cancelled or placed on hold. Encouragingly, the rate of vaccinations in the UK means that all adults should have the opti

Over the past few weeks a number of people have asked me what I think comes next for the ski sector. Whilst I no longer run a ski business, I have clients who are still very much involved in ski and I talk on an almost daily basis to operators, suppliers and people working in the sector. There’s always a danger in hypothesising about the future, especially when so much uncertainty remains, but inevitably I have views on the subject! The challenges for the ski sector in 2020 h

Guest Column for BTN - 14/12/20 Just 12 months ago, the outlook for the new decade with a new year called 2020 held so much promise. Now, after a year that seems to have lasted forever, how optimistic dare we be? When gazing into the future we usually consider macro-economic factors, geopolitical issues and current trends, be they tech-driven or otherwise. Looking to 2021 requires us to really focus on the customer. How will companies and organisations change their behaviours

Digital transformation is not about having a well staffed IT department stuffed with boffins. It relies on business leaders driving change