All are the subject of the third TTG Tomorrow’s Travel Leaders conference, taking place in London on November 25.
Split into three sections focusing on Life Stories, Growing Your Career and Taking the Lead, the day is aimed at helping and inspiring young achievers in travel on their way to being the industry’s leaders of the future.
Speakers from companies including Thomas Cook and Virgin Holidays will share their career experiences, sparking discussions with delegates, while a workshop session in the afternoon will see conference-goers working together on developing and planning new business ideas in travel. Leadership advice will come from Tim Williamson of Development Squared, who will discuss the business’s unique programme taking aspiring leaders from the UK to mentor businesses in Swaziland.
The day will also showcase some of the former success stories from TTG’s 30 Under 30 initiative. The programme, which began in 2012, has now seen some of its number from previous years take on senior positions throughout the industry – including Simon Applebaum, managing director of Attraction World – who is speaking at the conference – and Lee Haslett, sales director of Virgin Holidays.
TTG Media managing director Daniel Pearce, who is chairing the conference, said: “The Tomorrow’s Travel Leaders Conference is a day for every young person working in the travel industry today.
“Only through aiming for the top of the tree will you get there. In our third Tomorrow’s Travel Leaders conference we hope to give our delegates the tools and inspiration, drawn from fascinating experiences and learnings from across travel, that will drive them to develop their careers further.”
Speaker line-up
Donna Allcock, channel manager, Travelsupermarket:
The first graduate of TTG’s scholarship to Leeds Beckett University, Donna’s 22-year career in travel has taken her from Thomas Cook to Travelsupermarket.com
Simon Applebaum, managing director, Attraction World:
Appointed managing director of Attraction World in March 2016, Simon was among the first intake to the TTG 30 Under 30 scheme in 2012 while working at Affinion Travel.
Claire Cronin, customer director, Virgin Holidays:
Former senior vice-president of marketing at NetJets and chief of staff at Barclaycard, since 2014 Claire has spearheaded brand positioning strategy for Virgin Holidays.
Steve King, chief executive, Black Swan:
Black Swan is a fast-growing UK start-up that uses artificial intelligence to predict human behaviour.
Jamie Queen, group marketing director, Thomas Cook:
Jamie is responsible for marketing strategy across all of Thomas Cook’s markets, and previously worked at Saga, AA and Budget Insurance.
Tim Williamson, director, Development Squared:
Former Tui UK customer director and board member Williamson has also worked as chief executive of Ireland’s Travel Department.
