Key Travel is a leading travel management company dedicated to providing services specifically to the not-for-profit sector. The company works with charities such as The Salvation Army, Save the Children and Tearfund by organising flights, accommodation and visas for people travelling abroad who work with the charities. Key travel also works with academic institutions including universities and organisations such as Research Council UK. Key Travel also works with faith networks to organise missionary travel and with local schools and colleges. When did you start your current role?August 2007 Have you completed an MBA?Yes Order the following sources of advice/information by value to you: 1.    In-house2.    Analyst3.    Consultant4.    Vendors5.    Peer Group Technology strategy and spending What is the major transformational IT project that has been recently completed, or is underway at your organisation?We recently delivered a new integrated quality programme which added capabilities to our internal point of sale platform. What impact will it/does it have on the organisation?This project automatically delivers customised documentation to our customers based on travel requests, improves operational performance by 10% through process automation, and provides customer-specific configuration flexibility which enables organisations to control and validate what information we capture on their behalf. What new strategic technology deals has your organisation struck and with whom?We are in the final stages of a five-year multi-million pound contract that will supply distribution and technology services to us globally. Name your strategic technology suppliers?Amadeus, Microsoft, Atriis, Trainline, Salesforce, Avaya, Capita, and Softcat What is the IT budget?£1m What is the strategic aim of the CIO and IT operations for the next financial year?Our strategic aim for this year is to revolutionise our customers' experience. This takes the form of many different actions including a total website redesign, review of our customer-facing booking platforms amidst rapid industry changes, and developing core multi-channel competencies. Transformation achievements Would you describe the CIO role as a transformation leader in your organisation?Absolutely. Given that travel is such a technology-intensive industry it's essential for the CIO to lead transformation. Describe the transformations you have led / been involved in, how did they transform operations, customer experience or the organisation?We are in a state of continuous transformation! Some significant transformations include the deployment of a global Avaya phone system, creation of an in-house development team, development of a new transaction processing platform ,which recently won a travel industry award for innovation, and the integration of acquired businesses in the UK and in the US. These transformations have been a combination of improving our competitive advantage, profitability, and customer experience. Our new transaction processing system enables our staff to source the right content for our customers from a multitude of suppliers quickly, resulting in lower transaction times and improved content value to customers. We empower customers to complete phone and e-mail originated transactions online if they choose, which allows them to transaction with us in whatever way they prefer. Scale has unlocked efficiencies given we operate a global platform with little incremental overhead. Beyond technology, can you describe a business transformation programme that you own or contribute to?My department will play a pivotal role in our shift to become more multichannel. This is not simply an IT project, but rather involves how our customers' desire to interact with us is evolving. This evolution, combined with changes in suppliers' distribution priorities, means we need to determine how can most successfully align the business to address these changing circumstances. What key technologies are being considered to enable transformation?Both CRM and BI capabilities will are essential for our transformation. What percentage of your applications / infrastructure is run from the Cloud?About 15% of applications How is the use by employees of their own technology, use of mobiles and social networking impacting operations, customer experiences or the organisation at present?Very little at the moment, although I would expect this to become more of a positive influence as we focus more intently on our customer experiences. Do you have a plan in place for how to deal with shadow IT and BYOD. How do you influence and engage executives, place the right controls around employee choice and engage with the organisation on this issue?We have an evolving policy in place about what's permitted and what is not permitted that employees must review and accept bi-annually. This helps inform our staff about what's appropriate based on changing risks, technologies, and our own internal capabilities. Where do you seek transformational inspiration from?Transformational inspiration comes from a variety of sources including my staff and peers, customers, travel industry forums, technology groups and websites, conferences and exhibitions, business magazines, competitors, other industries. The CIO role in the business Who  do they report to?CEO Does the CIO have a seat on the board?No How often do you meet with the CEO?Weekly Does your organisation have a digital leader and what is the difference in their responsibilities to yours?We do not yet have a digital leader The IT department How many staff make up the IT team?(What is the split between in-house/outsourced staff)17 internal, 1 consultant Describe the CIO’s management team, do you have direct reports that develop the relationship and services between the business and IT?Two of my managers are directly linked with the business. One is responsible for operational training and quality while another is responsible for the development of operations strategy across the business. How many log-in accounts do you issue across you organisation?250 What is the primary technology platform?Amadeus (GDS), Agresso (ERP), and an internally-developed transaction processing platform