CX Travel and Hospitality Exchange - Day 1
7:15 - 8:15
Registration, Breakfast, & Networking
8:15 - 8:20
Program Director's Welcome
8:20 - 8:30
Chair's Opening Remarks
8:30 - 9:15
Panel Discussion | Adopting the Inevitable: Embrace AI to Drive Efficiency, Loyalty & Growth or Fall Behind?
Sarah Curtis -
Digital Director,
P&O Cruises
Timo Järvelä - Vice President of Business Development, Finavia (Helsinki Airport)
Mirco Patroncini - Chief Technology Officer, lastminute.com
Matthias Brazel - Senior Director of Digital Ground Experience, Lufthansa
Since the mainstream adoption of Gen AI in 2022 (the year ChatGPT was released to the public), AI is both revered and feared. Nonetheless, now that the travel & hospitality industry has had a few years to acclimatise to the ever-evolving phenomenon, AI doesn't cease in presenting infinite opportunities for efficiency gains. Therefore, how do we embrace the inevitable?
• While AI continues to present a challenge for online travel agencies, replacing a core selling point of the sector, in a world where we have no choice but to accept AI's innovations, how can OTA's, airlines, airports, and cruise lines embrace AI to survive?
• Which parts of customer experience require humans and which parts of the business do customers trust AI to handle?
• Should you take the plunge and integrate AI into all aspects of your customer experience at speed or implement a phased transition with a blend of manual operation and automated systems?
9:15 - 9:45
Sponsor Presentation | How to Build Voice AI Agents that Actually Work: Powering Profitability & Personalisation
Simple AI share how their team designs, builds, and deploys enterprise-grade AI phone agents for iconic businesses. In this masterclass, they'll walk through the real-world process: from getting started and writing effective evaluation frameworks to QAing conversations and cloning lifelike voices that align with a brand. You'll learn practical techniques and hard-won lessons from deploying production agents at scale that sound realistic and drive measurable business results.
Sponsored by: Simple AI
10:25 - 10:55
1:1 Business Meetings
Exploring how AI can reduce friction at the many fragmented touch points along the customer journey including shortening security check times, offering efficient & tailored options, and knowing when to put customers on the loyalty flywheel.
11:35 - 12:05
Presentation: Managing Machines Like People: Turning AI Agents into Scalable Teams that Transform CX and Business Performance
Ewelina Kolodziej Tyczka -
Customer Service Director,
Thomas Cook
As AI rapidly evolves beyond chatbot pilots, forward-thinking organisations are beginning to integrate AI agents as true members of their customer service teams. At Thomas Cook, AI agents are not treated as tools, but as employees; recruited, onboarded, and performance-managed alongside human teams within a 58+ market operation. Explore how to operationalise AI within customer service by applying proven people management principles to digital agents.
• Learn how to define, evaluate, and "hire" AI agents as part of your workforce, ensuring the right fit for your organisation and the tangible benefits for customers and businesses
• Discover best practices for onboarding AI, including training data preparation, system integration, and performance measurement
frameworks
• Understand the importance of a dedicated AI management team and the skills required to continuously improve AI-driven customer service
12:45 - 13:15
1:1 Business Meetings
13:20 - 14:10
Networking Lunch
14:15 - 14:45
1:1 Business Meetings
14:50 - 15:20
Panel Discussion | The Comparison Trap: Levelling Up Your Customer Service to Stand Out & Establish Lifelong Loyalty
Post pandemic we've reached a new age where efficiency and personalisation are improving at speeds never before witnessed. Not only are customers comparing airlines, hotels, and travel providers on an international scale, they are now comparing their experiences to the likes of Amazon, Netflix, and Uber. Where one bit of customer service shapes the customers' perception of the next, the question is: How can your business overcome the comparison trap by stepping up to the mark and making its customer service unbeatable?
15:20 - 15:50
Sponsor Presentation | Crafting Customer Experience with AI: How Travel & Hospitality Scale Expertise, Empathy, and Brand Voice at Every Touchpoint
Understanding how human-feeling AI can drive smoother service, smarter recommendations and stronger customer connections is vital in today's tech-driven CX landscape. We'll uncover how to employ AI agents to provide real-time customer service and explore the possibility of AI acting empathetically whilst reflecting a company's brand tone to ultimately, make a customer feel supported.
Sponsored by: Sierra Technologies
Explore how you can design loyalty strategies that go beyond points and perks to build meaningful, long-term customer relationships. Participants will share insights on balancing personalisation, partnerships, and profitability whilst adapting to shifting customer behaviours.
16:30 - 17:00
1:1 Business Meetings
17:05 - 17:35
Presentation | Travelling from a Service to an Experience Economy: The Power of Storytelling to Sell Your Experience & Drive Customer Acquisition
Ganna Koval -
Vice President of Loyalty Programs, B2B, & Promotions,
Minor Hotels
Whilst in the early 20th century, customers selected providers based on product and service quality, customers now base their decisions on which provider will offer them the best experience. Nowhere is more pertinent than in an industry centred around experiences. So, firstly how do you implement storytelling into the marketing of your experience to acquire new customers. Secondly, how do you transform your products, services, and the entire customer journey into an unforgettable experience to establish long-term customer loyalty?
• Learn why the customers' preference for product and service has shifted towards experience and the opportunities that this opens up for the travel and hospitality space
• Develop ways to make different customer touchpoints more positively 'experiential' by generating an image of the customers' holiday by utilising the power of storytelling as a marketing tool
• Discover the ways that the experiential nature of travel and hospitality can be harnessed to create long-term customer loyalty
17:35 - 18:05
Panel Discussion | Luxury Vs Budget: How Can We Improve Our CX Strategies in an Age of Blurring Customer Bases?
Valentina Cesani -
Chief Customer Officer,
Rail Europe
Sinead Quinn - Director of Inflight, Ryanair
In a saturated travel and hospitality market, the lines between luxury and budget are blurring, with both taking customers from each other's bases as the cost of living rises and accessibility increases. With increasing expectations, customers expect seamless service, personalisation, and value at every price point. Leaders from both segments explore how luxury and budget brands can learn from each other's CX strategies and commercial approaches to drive innovation, profitability, and guest loyalty.
• How is value being redefined for each segment, and what can they borrow from one another to meet evolving customer expectations?
• Where is the optimal balance between budget's cost discipline and standardised delivery and luxury's differentiation and emotional connection to acquire customers and achieve loyalty?
• How are both segments leveraging technology differently to scale innovation and elevate customer satisfaction without eroding brand identity or margins?
