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8 August, 2023

TravelManagers talks all things cruise for its first virtual national training day

TravelManagers’ first-ever virtual national training day has been deemed a major success by those who attended, with more than 150 participating personal travel managers (PTMs) joining online to receive updates from a variety of cruise suppliers as well as TravelManagers’ in-house cruise and training teams.

Organising the training day was a collaborative effort by TravelManagers’ cruise product manager Lia Malone, business partnership managers (BPMs) Melinda Rowe, Alison Banks and Maggie Bootsman, and training co-ordinator Jessica Lyster. Working remotely in different states as part of the national partnership office (NPO) team, Malone said they set out to create a virtual format which they intend to replicate for future training days.

“We’re happy to have achieved our goal, and that so many PTMs were eager to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the training session,” she added.

Each participating supplier shared a wealth of knowledge with participants, as well as providing a generous selection of prizes.

“It was wonderful to have so many suppliers gathered for a single training session,” Malone reports, “including Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, Silversea, Scenic & Emerald Luxury Cruises, and Virgin Voyages (represented by Travel the World).”

CLIA endorsed the event as accredited training, meaning that PTMs were able to obtain CLIA points for attending the training session.

Screenshot of attendees (Supplied)

“As homed-based consultants, many PTMs fit their work hours around personal commitments such as school drop-offs. The virtual format meant that we could have PTMs from all over Australia, and even some who were travelling overseas, taking part,” Rowe explained.

PTM Carl Retschlag, who is based in West Perth, WA, described the training day as well-planned, upbeat and engaging, with the ideal amount of time allocated for each cruise partner to highlight latest offers, provide updates on new ships and explain incentive programs.

“It was one of the best training events I have attended, and I’m looking forward to attending future virtual training days that I wouldn’t be able to attend in person. There was even a virtual lunch break that made me feel I was getting out of the office and catching up with other PTMs on a social level – I loved it.”

Fellow PTM Maria Furnari also praised the training day’s virtual format, which allowed more PTMs to take part: “it was a great way to hear from a number of different suppliers in just a matter of hours, and I’m already looking forward to the next one!”

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