TDC leadership conference kicks off at Club Med Magna Marbella

Transat Distribution Canada (TDC) is welcoming owners and managers of franchised and affiliated agencies of the TDC network, the regional managers of Transat/Travel agencies, the members of the TDC management team as well as many preferred partners this week at Club Med Magna Marbella in Spain’s Costa del Sol.

All are taking part in the National Leadership Conference, on now until March 27.

The kick-off was given by TDC General Manager Karine Gagnon at a welcome cocktail on March 23, hosted by Manulife, in the presence of all the participants, special partners, and speaker and executive coach Cloé Caron.

“It's always exciting to feel the energy of everyone together, and this year, with this revamped version, it's particularly exhilarating,” said Gagnon, as reported in a press release. “We focused on three main elements to maximize the experience of each participant: individual reflection on business objectives, a longer conference to better structure their reflection, and the ongoing support and advice of our executive coach Cloé Caron.”

Gagnon reiterated the importance of personal and professional development at TDC.

“Each of our members is different, none has the same profile or the same business needs. So, we had to refine our approach even further to equip them so that they could specifically get what they needed from this event. We, therefore, offered them a virtual reflection session, combined with a Playbook, a follow-up document allowing participants to collect their thoughts via a structured approach, reviewed and approved by our coach Cloé Caron.”

During the welcome cocktail on March 23, Cloé Caron addressed participants.

“Your franchisor is giving you a priceless gift: the gift of time for guided reflection, with coaching if needed. Someone from outside your business who can support you and help you ask the right questions to move forward more effectively and try to plan for the obstacles that may arise as much as possible,” Caron stated in the release.

A la carte meetings

The first day of activities was largely devoted to partners business reviews, individual meetings between owners and managers and preferred partners.

“Allowing these players to meet, to take stock together of the state of their business relationship, and above all, how they can improve it to achieve their mutual objectives, is high on our agenda this year. The reason is simple: selling travel products is the basis of what we do,” stated Gagnon.

“These business reviews have been planned and thought out in advance by both parties, to be as beneficial as possible. Our wish is that everyone comes away with a clear action plan to optimize the business relationship, and if I trust the feedback from yesterday's corridor, we have achieved our objective.”

In order to maximize participants' time, business partner reviews are presented alternately with TDC Talks, short presentations in the style of TED Talks, as well as individual meetings with members of the TDC leadership team for those who wish to do so.

 “Our TDC Talks cover seven topics that affect the daily lives of our members, whether it's marketing and artificial intelligence, cost management, or social media,” stated Dianne Jackson, director of franchise and affiliate members, in the release.

“The on-site presence of the TDC Talks presenters, seven experts in their fields, allows participants to deepen their reflection and address questions more specific to their reality.”

In attendance is Joseph Adamo, president of TDC and Transat's chief sales and marketing officer, who emphasized the evolution of Air Transat's fleet and airline network, the scope of the Transat brand in the market, and the impact it has on the travel agency network and customer loyalty.

Other boldfaced names from Transat attending this week include Renée Boisvert, vice-president, tour operator products and sales; Alain Brouillard, senior director of finance, and Julie Bilodeau, senior director of organizational development and talent management.

 “It's true that the agendas for these events are full: we want our members to get their money's worth,” added Jackson.

She noted the importance of networking and the exchange of best practices for members.

“It will be even easier for our members to network this year, since they will be able to make appointments with all the participants via our mobile application during our Dialogues cocktail like it was the case last night, and every other night this week,” she said.

Don't miss a single travel story: subscribe to PAX today!  Click here to follow PAX on Facebook.