Now, more than ever, managers, including those in travel, need to recognise future trends. This is because the pace of change is not getting any slower, and the ability to grasp future trends will help managers serve their companies and themselves well.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Mr Talwar; I learned we all can awaken the futurist in us.
The difficulty in recognising trends is not that you do not have a nose for it, it is, I believe, the lack of time and the stress we face in our daily grind. This prevents us from seeing the big picture and indeed from seeing what is on the horizon that can impact how we do business.

When I asked him how we can be better at predicting future trends, Mr Talwar told me: "Heads up - we need to get our nose out of the day and read a little, scan widely and think about the signals all around you: what's changing, what's ending, what's on the way up and down, how will big stories in the press affect us, for example, hypersonic travel, climate change, energy prices - force yourself to think about the risks and opportunities.

"How can I use these ideas to:

• Retain business - protect my current client base;
  
• Deepen relationships - create new products and services for existing clients;
  
• New markets - create new products and services for new potential customers;
  
• Cross-sell - taking existing products and services to other clients
  
• Expand markets - take existing products and services to brand new clients; and
  
• Drive change - introduce new ideas and change in the organisation."
  

He said being a good futurist required "passion for the subject, curiosity, intuition, creativity, a willingness to rethink what you believed only yesterday and the imagination to consider possibilities beyond your wildest dreams".
I hope you will take some time to awaken the futurist in you and I wish IT&CMA/CTW delegates a lot of insights into the future.

Raini Hamdi
Editor

HOW TO

Ways to select the right TMC
Carlson Wagonlit Travel multinational sales director of Asia-Pacific, Carla Compagno, gives the following advice to companies on how to select a TMC. PRUDENCE LUI reports.

When selecting a TMC, Ms Compagno recommends potential clients look at the scope of services the company can provide. That includes booking airline, hotel and car rental services, pre-, during and post-trip assistance, emergency
services, traveller profile management and traveller tracking as well as account management customer surveys.
The TMC should also have a good reputation and sound financialbackground. Moreover, a commitment to a long-term partnership with the local partners is essential.

"Without a doubt, the TMC's network has to have a strong presence in every location where its client works and operates, as well as understand and have experience in the local market. This helps it to negotiate with local travel suppliers for the best air fares and hotel rates.

"Corporates need to consider the efficiency and effectiveness of any TMC. Whether they are able to achieve your business objectives as well as provide a hassle-free travel experience, security and customer satisfaction should all
be considered."

Transparency is also a key consideration. "What am I paying for? An example is a transparent pricing structure, ie, a transaction fee model supported by a detailed profit-and-loss or all revenues from suppliers returned to the client. In fact, a risk and reward arrangement helps achieve mutual benefits and promote continuous improvement."
When working with a TMC, needs analysis is crucial.

Based on the 5Ps principles - policy, processes, product, participation and performance measure - a TMC has to provide consultation to address corporate needs, for instance, policy on business and traveller needs, service level agreement, key measures and target outcomes it wants to achieve.

The travel programme design should be based on needs and implemented on agreed strategies. TMCs must also be able to measure performance and monitor and control travel programmes. There should also be continuous improvement.

"Focus on your total travel spend on 'big pictures' rather than the agency fee. Make good use of financial management reports of total travel expense with a monthly scorecard, total spend analysis, spend mix based on different suppliers
of air tickets and rooms which show performance, top 10 airline spend and air spend by country."
She concluded: "Once selected, both the TMC and corporate client must show commitment towards a long-term partnership.

"Openness and transparency can be achieved by sharing critical information such as travel policy, company culture and beliefs, communication issues, company benefits and objectives."