WIT IDEAS LAB

A forum for opportunities, smart ideas and real solutions

(Open to all WIT delegates and ITB Asia participants)


DAY THREE, OCT 22, 2009
Ballroom 2, Level 2, Suntec Convention Centre
8.00-8.30 Signing In
8.30-9.00 Tough Love: Positioning Your Business For The Recovery

You’ve done the changes, made the cuts, taken some painful decisions. Now how do you position your company for the day of recovery because make no mistake, it will come? How do you ensure your company emerges stronger and in fit, fighting shape to face a new future? This panel will share insights and views from leaders in respective sectors on how they have tackled the challenges and made the changes for the better.

  • Patrick Imbardelli, CEO, Pan Pacific Hotels Group
  • Karthik Siva, Chairman, Global Brand Forum
  • Simon Nowroz, President & Managing Director, Asia, Travelport GDS
  • Hedy Mok, Managing Director, Euro Tours & Travel
Moderator: Don Birch, China Opportunity
9.00-9.40 The Changing World of Travel Distribution & Marketing

A panel of experts shares insights on the big picture of travel distribution and marketing and talk about changes in respective sectors and how they will impact your business, whether you are a hotelier, airline or travel agency.
  • Ram Badrinathan, General Manager-Asia, PhoCusWright Inc
  • Brett Henry, Vice President Marketing, Abacus International
  • Martin Symes, CEO, Wego.com
  • Anthony Ku, Regional Vice President, Asia Pacific, Trust International
  • Sascha Hausmann, Chief Operating Officer, eRevMax
Moderators: Erik Munoz, Vice President Sales, Asia-Pacific & Middle East, Hospitality & Yeoh Siew Hoon, Producer, WIT-Web In Travel

9.40-10.20

 Stormy Skies, Part 2

In Part 1 at WIT, we heard from airlines and their needs from the various distribution channels. In this session, we gather the different players in the channel in front of an airline customer. How can partnerships be strengthened in these turbulent times and is there a better solution ahead?
  • Chris Wilding, Vice President, Airline Distribution Marketing, Sabre Travel Network
  • Pamela Ho, Head, Partner Distribution, Zuji
  • Gordon Locke, Vice President, Airline Marketing and Strategy, Sabre Airline Solutions/Sabre Travel Network
  • Ho Hoong Mau, Director, Airline Distribution Division, Abacus International
Moderators: Yeoh Siew Hoon & Gerry Oh, Regional Vice President, SE Asia & Australia, Jet Airways (India)
10.20-11.00
 The Middle Kingdom: Changes In The Value Chain
No, this session is not about China. It’s about the world of intermediaries, the critical element in the travel value chain that’s having to change as consumer habits evolve with technological advances. Find out how each player, whether it’s a Destination Management Company, an Online Travel Agency, a Travel Management Company or an Outbound Tour Operator, is coping with convulsing change in their sector.
  • Laurent Kuenzle, Managing Director, Asian Trails Group
  • Gregory O’Neil, President Asia Pacific, BCD Travel
  • Adrian Currie, Chairman, Agoda
  • Aileen Clemente, President, Rajah Travel, Philippines
  • Vinay Gupta, Founder, Via, India
Co-moderators: Brett Henry, Vice President Marketing, Abacus International & Timothy O'Neil-Dunne, Managing Partner, T2 Impact

Note: Programme correct at time of publication and is subject to change.

DAY FOUR, OCT 23, 2009
Ballroom 2, Level 2, Suntec Convention Centre
8.00-8.30 Signing In
8.30-9.00







 Tough Love: Ideas To Transform Your Business For The Future: Hans Lerch, Vice Chairman, Hotelplan, Switzerland

He's got over 40 years of experience in the global travel and tourism industry. As the former CEO of Kuoni Travel Group, Hans Lerch was responsible for managing businesses from Europe to the Americas to Asia. He's seen the tour operating landscape change in that time, and he has managed Kuoni through those changes. Now Vice Chairman of the Board of Hotelplan, Switzerland, and responsible for expanding the travel and tourism interests of Migros Group, Lerch will share ideas on how you can transform your business for the future.
9.00-9.50 Opportunity Markets: Specialise or die or, even better, do some good in the process
Ideas on how you can specialise and make a difference to not only your company's bottomline but for the bigger picture.

Moderator: Evan Lewis, Vice President Communications, Accor Asia Pacific
  • Community tourism: Bruce Hancock, Director of Operations, Asian Oasis
  • Accessible tourism: Lim Kin Chew, Senior Lecturer/Research Fellow, School of Science & Technology, SIM University, Singapore
9.50-11.00
Open Space/Group Workouts

In this session, three workshops will be held simultaneously and you get to choose which group you want to belong to. Each workshop will be championed by a leader who will present as well as facilitate discussions. Each group will then make a five-minute report at the end of the session. Be prepared for a little chaos and, hopefully, some magic to happen.

Taming The Social Beast, Part 2 – Morris Sim, CEO, Circos.com & Desmond Chong, Director, Business Development, Corporate Segments & Solutions, Abacus International
Social media is transforming the way people communicate, and with it, how
consumers shop. Savvy brand owners are already taming the social media
"beast" to improve their business. You can, too. This workshop will teach
you some of their secrets, from unifying your brand messaging to keeping
your brand relevant to creating a new channel of distribution in social
media. People are talking about you, it's time to listen and take action.

Fat Dumb and Lazy (or, in other words, how to cut fat in distribution) – Timothy O’Neil Dunne, Managing Partner, T2 Impact
Not your company. Cutting costs left right and center. People and excess.
But what about distribution? Have you applied the knife to your distribution
costs? Today distribution costs more than airlines will make in profit. What about
you? How much are you really spending and can you do something about it? In this session, Timothy will bring some of his experience in changing distribution by lowering costs and increasing value in the relationship between you and your customers. Agencies, airlines and hoteliers as well as those involved in any form of
distribution both content and product need to attend

Innovation for Free including Marketing on a Zero Budget  – Ivan Wong, CEO, Maple Commerce
Who says innovation is expensive? Often, necessity is the mother of creativity and if you know where to look, you can find some pretty cool stuff out there that’s free to use. Get some tips on the free tools out there from this leading consultant in Google Ad Words and Search Engine Marketing, who will also share some cool viral ideas that are happening in social networks. Also, come prepared to contribute your ideas. For magic to happen, sharing must take place.

Note: Programme correct at time of publication and is subject to change.