INSIGHTS
Strategic account management with Eleanor Neethling
Eleanor has been in the travel industry for over 25 years, with the last 10 years dedicated to FCM. Her journey began in South Africa, but six years ago, she booked a one-way ticket to New Zealand, and hasn't looked back since. With her dedication to creating incredible customer experiences and deep understanding of the industry, Eleanor has become one of our go-to account managers.
It's a team effort
Eleanor's shelf of industry knowledge is well-stocked. Managing corporate travel accounts for various industries—technology, insurance, government, healthcare, and construction. But her role is not about booking flights and hotels, it goes deeper.
My role sees me managing the overall travel program. Making sure that it runs smoothly, working with procurement or travel managers to build relationships, and hosting regular business reviews and insight meetings.
This means, she relies heavily on a team of dedicated travel consultants who make the day-to-day travel arrangements.
I might not be booking the flights myself, but I make sure our consultants are equipped and informed to handle the complex needs of our clients. Seeing our consultants rise to the challenge of booking travel to less common destinations and providing exceptional service is rewarding. It gives them a challenge to look outside the box and offer alternatives to travel.
Patient relocation from North to South NZ and back
When most people think of corporate travel, they imagine busy airports, conference calls from hotel rooms, and the occasional client dinner. But Eleanor and the team see much more than this. One of the unique challenges the team manage is patient relocation, a service that blends the complexities of medical care with the logistics of corporate travel.
This isn’t your typical business trip. We’re helping move patients between hospitals all across New Zealand, often for long-term treatments like cancer care. The logistics are complex, but the team is dedicated to meeting every request with respect.
Managing everything, from flights and transfers to accommodation. It’s about making sure patients and their families are looked after and feel supported, especially considering they're already in a stressful situation.
The secret sauce
Eleanor's secret sauce to account management is a mix of responsiveness, reliability, and open communication.
While we all are busy people, our customers are also busy people. So, it's important that we make ourselves available to them and understand their needs. Being available, listening, and keeping the lines of communication open is key. If customers feel heard and know their requests are being actioned, they're happy, and the team is happy.
One example of this level of support was a recent business review for a client. Eleanor went into the meeting with all the answers, anticipating questions about high international travel costs and pre-emptively sourcing the details.
Their employees had been travelling all over, from New Zealand to places like Boston, Austin, and Cancun, and I know the procurement team would want to know why. It turned out their travellers were attending important medical conferences, which was driving the costs up. Most importantly, though, I had all the answers for them right then and there, and we could move on to the next topic.
More bang for your buck
When it comes to helping clients optimise their travel programs, one of Eleanor's focus is on identifying and delivering practical, cost-saving solutions.
Right now, the majority of our customers are very cost-conscious and are looking for ways to save money. I have been working with our customers to discuss strategies and then converting those ideas into real savings.
Whether tweaking Platform to align with their travel policy, enforcing rate caps, or setting strict guidelines for air travel, it's normally about guiding them to look where they can save big just through simple adjustments. Our clients also leverage our reporting, which gives them real-time visibility into their travel programs, allowing them to make their own changes in real-time.