Front and Back Office Systems: Technology

1. Front and Back Office Systems: Technology Unit 9: Retail Travel Operations

2. Aims and Objectives: At the end of this session you will be able to: • Identify computerised systems used by retail travel agents • Describe the different procedures and documentation involved in selling travel services • Explain the impacts of technology on retail travel operations

3. Front and Back Office Systems • Front office procedures are to do with selling products to customers • Back office procedures are to do with suppliers of the products and the running of the office: • Following up bookings • Making payments • Banking • Ordering brochures, stationery and currency

4. Computer Systems used: Travel agents use a variety of systems: • Viewdata – this is an interactive screen system that is used to access tour operators reservation systems • Computer Reservation System (CRS) – each tour operator, ferry company, airline etc. has a CRS system which is accessible through the Viewdata system. However Viewdata in most cases has now been replaced by GDS systems

5. Computer Systems used: Global Distribution Systems (GDS): These are more sophisticated developments of CRS services. They usually combine several computer reservation systems from different suppliers, as well as offering other travel services • Examples are: Galileo, Amadeus, Worldspan and Sabre

6. Technology used: • Technology is obviously used through the different computer systems (GDS, CRS etc) on a daily basis • Technology is also used in staff training – agents can log onto websites provided by tour operators and suppliers of travel products and carry out online training • Introducing new applications can be very expensive, however some very useful

7. Technology used: • Introducing new applications can be very expensive, however some are very useful • An example would be Carbon Tracker introduced by a company called Travelport • This technology allows the carbon footprint for travel by car hire, rail and air to be calculated for journeys under 2.5 hours long

8. Impacts of Technology: • As travel agents invest in new technology they should in return increase their sales volumes • Bookings can be made more quickly with new systems • More up to date information on availability should be possible • Administration procedures are less likely to go wrong due to human error and are lss time consuming than manual methods

9. Impacts of Technology: • Some people think that retail travel agents will disappear from the High Street as everyone will book over the internet • Many industry experts think that retail travel agencies who do survive will have to offer a personal service (dynamic packaging) • with expert knowledge of destinations and products • booking components separately to give the customer exactly the holiday they want

10. Impacts of Technology: • There will always be people without access to the internet who prefer personalised service or can’t cope with booking their holiday arrangements • Where travel agents are booking products that do not carry commission, they are charging service fees. • Where a fee is charged the service offered has to be excellent otherwise customers will go elsewhere