Why involving employees pays off

Travelport, a global travel wholesaler, runs half of the world’s airline booking systems. It connects buyers and sellers of travel through innovative solutions designed to help travel companies lower costs, increase revenues and provide millions of travellers annually with exceptional travel experiences. This means that customer loyalty is always high on the agenda. The aim of this campaign was to exceed customer expectations despite having employees who were not natural advocates of the business. Travelport asked PR agency Kaizo to help it increase employee involvement in, and understanding of, the business.

Approach

The solution was to listen to what employees had to say. An innovative Net Promoter employee engagement survey asked for feedback from all 2,500 worldwide employees, and was followed up using Kaizo’s in-depth ‘Listening Lab’ workshops in company sites around the world. The strategy then centred on creating an Employee Adviser Group, which involved employees in solving the internal challenges identified by the survey.

Results

The results show that employee involvement really pays off. Travelport’s Net Promoter score has improved by 33 points (a 10 point increase is typically seen as world class) and hundreds of employees volunteered to join the Employee Adviser Group. By tapping into employees desire to be involved, an employee idea scheme identified over £2.5 million in cost savings – helping the company to achieve profit targets and pay a bonus.

Client feedback

“Travelport employees have responded very positively to our listening and involvement initiatives. The agency’s expert advice and systematic approach means we can reap the rewards of improved business processes and higher employee advocacy. We are particularly delighted that this innovative approach has been recognised in the PRCA Awards.” Chris Gardiner, director, corporate communications, Travelport.