4.3 Careers in the Travel Trade
Meagan A. McGuire
A variety of career paths are available for individuals interested in working for or with travel trade companies. Each travel trade role is distinct in the marketplace, yet many commonalities exist among travel trade employees. People who work in the travel trade typically enjoy traveling and their employment often provides them with many opportunities to do so. These employees are often service oriented and are enthusiastic about sharing their passion for travel with others. Due to the nature of travel distribution, employees of travel trade businesses are relationship-focused and place high value on mutually beneficial connections with their travel product suppliers, partners, and clients.
About Michael
Michael Cassis “has been a part of the Australian and New Zealand Travel Industry for over [20] years. Having worked as a front line retail agent, wholesale agent, and in product and marketing distribution roles, he has extensive experience across all facets of the travel trade landscape” (Linkd Tourism, n.d., para. 1).
As Cassis explains (personal communication, November 29, 2023),
I think my greatest success in tourism stems from the varied roles I’ve been fortunate enough to have done over my career. Our industry is huge—arguably the largest globally—encompassing aviation, cruise, other transportation (trains, cars, etc.), hotels and accommodation, travel agencies…. [T]he list is endless. Think about it, even Rideshare drivers are part of our mammoth family. So this means there are lots of doors you could choose to open, depending on where your passion lies.
For me, I started as a retail travel agent who wanted to specialize in selling USA (and mostly Disney) holidays to Australian customers. I felt specialist travel agents were scarce, and given the complexity of travel to the USA from Australia (most Australians visit 2-3 states on an 18+ night trip, when visiting America), that this would be a strong business proposition. I still feel that speciality is necessary—and post-COVID this seems to be a trend more travel agents are pursuing—but my career ended up taking a slightly different approach due to the doors that opened.
My role as an agent gave me the chance to see more of the world than I’d dreamed of, and I became excited by the notion of finding the key themes and products that would resonate with traveler demographics. So I ended up pursuing a role in sales and marketing which allowed me to not just sell a holiday to one traveler, but the aspiration of a destination and product to many.
My biggest learning over my career is that there is no one best and only way in tourism. Every company. Every destination. Every customer. They all behave differently. Tourism is about taking people away from their home for a period of time. Some choose to immerse themselves in local culture. But most bring with them their own presumptions and predispositions. So just because a local might think their local brewery is the best place to go, it doesn’t mean a tourist from Germany, with their multitude of beer gardens, will agree. So to succeed in travel, you need to put yourself in your visitors’ shoes, not force them into yours.
Michael is currently the Strategic Director for Linkd Tourism, a leading Distribution, Sales, Marketing and PR Agency in Australia and New Zealand. He has worked for other major Tourism Boards and tourism products in his career including Flight Centre, the Walt Disney Company, and Destination Gold Coast.
According to the Bureau of Labor statistics (2023), there were 46,200 people working as travel agents in the United States in 2021, down from 82,000 in 2019, likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020 and drastically disrupted travel worldwide. However, the employment of travel agents is projected to grow 20% from 2021 to 2031. Worldwide, over 2 million people are employed as travel agents and the market size for the industry segment is $475 billion U.S. dollars (Statista Research Department, 2024).
For business travel, a 2023 global survey of travel managers found that 89% liked or loved their career choice; 81% also felt they had either great or decent work-life balance in their job (GBTA & Cvent, 2023). Below is the expected compensation in 2023 for travel managers based in the United States and the European Union.
As corporate travel rebounds post-pandemic (Caputo et al., 2023), expanded specialty roles emerge:
- Duty of Care Officers: manage risks facing business travelers through training, tracking systems, and emergency protocols
- Supplier Diversity Managers: ensure agencies and corporate clients support minority-owned vendors from airlines to hotels
- Sustainability Coordinators: help travelers and companies minimize carbon footprints through eco-conscious booking choices
- Ancillary Sales Agents: sell add-on products like extra leg room and travel insurance tailored specifically to company travel policies
- Data Analysts: Transform reams of corporate booking information into strategic insights using analytics tools
Evolution in corporate and leisure priorities will continue to expand opportunities for careers in supporting travel management and distribution.
Careers in the travel trade require a passion for travel, strong written, verbal, and interpersonal skills that aid in forming relationships with buyers and sellers alike. Skills and experience in sales and marketing, negotiations, computers and technology, budgetary oversight, organization, and time management are all essential to a successful career path in this industry.
Attributions
- Figure 4.11: Michael Cassis, Strategic Director, Linkd Tourism © Michael Cassis Used with permission.
- Figure 4.12: Expected 2023 Compensation for U.S. and E.U. Based Travel Managers by Cvent and GBTA is released under CC BY 4.0
individuals within organizations responsible for developing, implementing, and ensuring compliance with duty of care policies and procedures related to employee travel safety and security.
professionals tasked with promoting and managing diversity and inclusion initiatives within corporate travel procurement processes, including sourcing and contracting with minority-owned, women-owned, or small businesses.
individuals or teams responsible for developing and implementing sustainable practices, policies, and initiatives within organizations, including those related to corporate travel and tourism.
individuals or departments within travel companies responsible for promoting and selling additional products, services, or upgrades to customers, such as travel insurance, seat upgrades, or car rentals.
professionals who collect, analyze, and interpret data and statistics related to travel industry trends, consumer behavior, market dynamics, and performance metrics to inform decision-making and strategic planning.