{"id":38769,"date":"2014-11-03T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2014-11-03T05:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/american-express-doit-imposer-son-tempo-guillaume-col-dg-damerican-express-voyages-daffaires-20141103.html"},"modified":"2016-04-07T13:34:40","modified_gmt":"2016-04-07T12:34:40","slug":"american-express-must-set-its-own-pace-guillaume-col-dg-of-american-express-voyages-daffaires","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.voyages-d-affaires.com\/en\/american-express-must-set-its-own-pace-guillaume-col-dg-of-american-express-voyages-daffaires","title":{"rendered":"Decision-maker: Guillaume Col, CEO of American Express Business Travel"},"content":{"rendered":"

How did your career path lead you to become General Manager of American Express Business Travel for France, Belgium and the Netherlands?<\/h2>\n

Guillaume Col -<\/strong>\u00a0I love a challenge. My career path has been essentially focused on business development, sometimes starting from scratch. The American Express brand is an extremely powerful asset in the market, and therefore a considerable asset. The American Express customer portfolio is very similar to the one I had in the world of transport and logistics. The decision-makers are often the same, and I know many of our current and future clients... I have also often worked in the business travel sector as a consultant, advising hotel chains, airlines and rail companies... I was attracted by this aspect, which means that I can bring my skills, my network, my dynamism and my desire to grow the business.\u00a0<\/p>\n

How do you see American Express as a brand?<\/h2>\n

G. C. - <\/strong>It's a brand that has a history, that means something to our customers. There are few global brands like American Express, which everyone knows. It's a huge asset for our customers, both travel managers and business travellers. The promise of a brand that can rely on a global network is security. I used to be a very keen traveller, and when I found myself stranded in China or Brazil with a local agency, I realised how important the network was... There are few players in this sector capable of offering the same advantages as American Express Business Travel.<\/p>\n

American Express Business Travel also stands out in the market thanks to the unique positioning offered by the other entity: American Express cards...<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>We have many partnerships with American Express Cartes, and I think that the joint venture will continue in this direction. The solutions offered by the card represent a crucial asset for these large companies, where payment issues are sometimes complex. Our competitors are forced to enter into partnerships, without necessarily having the necessary control. The joint venture has put up certain barriers between the two entities, but these are healthy barriers, because we are two different entities. This does not prevent commercial cooperation, and American Express' interest lies in bilateral synergy, even though we are talking about two different businesses, with specific constraints.<\/p>\n

Have you already defined your priorities, or even a roadmap, as the new Chief Executive?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>My priorities are very clear, and focused on my customers: serving them and building their loyalty by offering them the best, and winning new ones. It's a long-term approach. Our business operates on long cycles, so I set myself a mission over several years. Technology is also a key issue. Major investments are already planned with the joint venture. But my priority in the French market is our customers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What does France represent in the American Express Business Travel strategy?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>It's one of our biggest markets worldwide, both in terms of volumes of travel and headcount. We have many large customers who travel all over the world, and who require specific management. France is therefore at the heart of our strategy, and the market potential is extremely significant.\u00a0<\/p>\n

EVP, the major French event organised by American Express Business Travel, has been moved to January. Should we expect any further changes?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>It's primarily a question of timing, linked to the creation of the joint venture. Our ambition is to breathe new life into the EVP format, through the content of the presentations, their style and the speakers chosen.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

How can you expand your business in this relatively sluggish French market?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -<\/strong> By being the best from an operational point of view. The level of investment and motivation of our teams is exceptional, and our quality of service excellent. We have some very good arguments to make. We also need to offer customers the products they need in terms of technology. We are fortunate to be able to count on substantial investment capacity, which is not the case for all the players in the market. We listen to our customers to find out what direction they want us to take - it's not a question of developing solutions in-house and then imposing them on the customer! Travel managers and travellers have needs. It's up to us to adapt our offer to meet them.<\/p>\n

This lack of adaptation to the company's internal processes is a recurring criticism of large TMCs...<\/h2>\n

G. C. - <\/strong>Precisely. That's why we're in the process of talking to our customers and thinking with them about what they need. What interests me is meeting the customer's needs over the long term rather than imposing on the market a solution that has been thought out in-house but doesn't meet expectations.<\/p>\n

Aren't customers more volatile than in the past?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -<\/strong> It's all relative: I come from air and sea freight, where invitations to tender are issued every three months! The business travel market is a long-term business, with a real professionalisation of the purchasing function, which means that we are challenged more often. This is healthy. Customer relations at American Express Business Travel are generally long-term, especially as changing travel agency is often complicated and risky... To change agency, you have to look at a very different project. So we have to position ourselves upstream of each customer's needs, think about the added value we can bring, and adapt our technological and commercial response to the demand.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Guillaume<\/p>\n

You are the first CEO to take up your post since the creation of the joint venture with Certares... What changes will this bring to your management?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -<\/strong> I have the advantage of arriving at the moment of creation. It's also a time when business travel is back at the centre of the company's concerns. American Express Business Travel is all about business travel. Our sole objective is to develop this activity. We are therefore focusing all our efforts on this. Our shareholders are very familiar with this business sector, and want to breathe new life into the company. Of course, the creation of the joint venture also brings with it new financial resources with the 900 million dollars...<\/p>\n

By gaining new resources, aren't you losing a certain amount of autonomy?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>On the contrary, the joint venture allows us to develop business travel and I have all the autonomy I need to do my job...<\/p>\n

In practical terms, what will the creation of this joint venture change?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>To offer the solutions needed by today's major groups, you need a huge amount of resources and a global network. There are very few of us on the market who can offer that. And it's going to take some time for that to change. We're going to use that time to make ourselves a key player in the market. This is a sector that is undergoing major transformations, in terms of user needs, the tools available, data... To support and benefit from this transformation, we need to be able to draw on significant resources and a global network. And we have the resources and the network to do it. Some players miss the turning point in their market, and become isolated dinosaurs. I believe that the joint venture is precisely the opportunity to avoid missing this major turning point. The resources are put in at the right time, and on the right subjects: technology and network growth. Will our competitors take this step? I don't know. But I do know that the JV is the right opportunity to make this shift. There are major technological investments to be made, and this is the right time to look for the best partners and opportunities to transform the business travel experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Do you think that this 'shift' is all the more crucial because the big TMCs have been slow to take the last major step, online?<\/h2>\n

G. C. - <\/strong>We are convinced that we now have a unique formula: we have a new flexibility that gives us the agility required by the market, and we want not only to be at the forefront of trends, but above all to create them.<\/p>\n

So these new resources will mainly be devoted to the technology sector?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>It will be for technology, but not only that. As well as collecting and analysing data, we will also be investing in partnerships, acquisitions and our network... A global presence is important for our customers, particularly in Asia and Africa, for example. So we're going to have to strengthen our presence in certain regions.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In addition to the joint venture, your appointment comes after several difficult months internally. What stage have you reached in the company's restructuring?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>I'm looking to the future, and my objective is to grow the business and attract new talent to us... I'm confident, we're off to a good start. There are a lot of positive signs. We have an extremely dynamic sales force that is performing well. But because we weren't systematically communicating our successes, not enough people were aware of them. That's going to change.\u00a0<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Isn't the role of an agency overshadowed by the possibilities offered by the new alternatives available on the market?<\/h2>\n

G. C. - <\/strong>When everything goes smoothly, you may wonder why you don't use an online agency, which is apparently more economical. In reality, implementing a travel policy always results in lower costs. And unfortunately, travel often goes badly, there are lots of unforeseen events... And when the CEO of the company finds himself stuck in a Chinese airport, outside the opening hours of the local agency, that poses a serious problem. The tools and power of the network are useful. The travel agency is ultimately the subject you never hear about in a company, until there's a problem and things go wrong. And I've had bitter personal experience of this in another life...<\/p>\n

How do you see the future of the business travel agency?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>It involves thinking about the creation of added value, and therefore discussions with customers. Responding to invitations to tender at the last minute by slashing prices is not a viable strategy. Generations Y and Millennials will account for half of the working population, and social networks have invaded all age groups. Against this backdrop, we need to adapt our offering to respond to these new practices.<\/span><\/p>\n

Is the business travel agency model about to be reinvented?<\/h2>\n

G. C. -\u00a0<\/strong>Yes, completely. This is also the case in many industries, where digital transformation has had a decisive impact. It's up to us, as travel agents, to find our place in the value chain. It exists, it's important, but things are changing fast. We need more and more mobility, to make decisions easier. There are a lot of concrete things to put in place for travellers, but also for Travel Managers, who need to know where their travellers are, ensure their safety and get the best prices. American Express Business Travel is fairly powerful in the market, and has to set its own pace. It's up to us to invent the travel agency's place in the value chain, as a TMC.<\/p>\n

Interview by Florian Guillemin<\/em><\/p>\n