Kathy Morgan, VP, NDC
With responsibility for driving NDC at Sabre, Morgan has witnessed it go from an initiative shadowed by mistrust and confusion to something many in the industry are now getting behind and seeing as a positive step. At the Phocuswright Conference 2018, Kathy will participate in an executive round table on airline distribution.
In a series of interviews with executives participating at the event in Los Angeles in November, PhocusWire finds out what makes them tick...
What assumption about travelers have you found not to be true?
That travelers are looking for the cheapest price. Travelers are looking for the best value – it is proven travelers will pay for things that help them get the experience they want, i.e. the most efficient schedule, the most comfortable seats, access to inflight services that allow them to be more productive, and should be offered access to products and services that help them achieve this in all channels where they shop for travel. As an industry we have to get away from focusing on the “cheapest” and start focusing on “best”.
What was your childhood aspiration?
My childhood aspiration was to be “the boss”. It didn’t really matter what I was the boss of, just the boss of something! I was the youngest of six kids so I spent my whole childhood getting bossed around and I was ready to turn the tides!
Who uses your product/service in ways that you never expected?
Hopper, a mobile-only OTA, is one of my favorite travel apps that uses Sabre data to analyze and recommend the best time to book travel for a given itinerary. We were the first technology partner to provide travel insights for Hopper, which is one of the fastest-growing travel apps ever. They’ve gained loyal users with an interesting hook: How often does a company see this kind of success by telling people when NOT to buy?
What single thing could improve the airport experience more than anything else?
A connected traveler experience. It’s crazy how many disparate data sources a traveler has to go to figure out where to park, what security checkpoint has TSA pre-check, current wait time at security, the gate where the airline club is located, where ride share providers pick up at a given airport, and the list goes on and on.
When did you realize this would be your career?
Honestly, I don’t know. It just kind of happened. I’ve been with the company for almost 30 years and I’ve had the opportunity to do so many amazing things and work with the greatest people that doing something else just never crossed my mind. I’m very blessed to have had the career I’ve had up to this point and look forward to many more years in this dynamic industry!
Think back to five years ago, did you envisage this is where you would be?
Definitely not! Five years ago NDC was in a very different place and it was surrounded by a lot of confusion and controversy in the industry and the future of NDC was very uncertain. To think that here I am, five years later, and my full time job is driving Sabre’s NDC strategy and roadmap is pretty remarkable.
REGISTER NOW! Corporate travel execs, tech vendors and others speak at The Phocuswright Conference 2018
What do you consider to be the most important invention in the digital world in the last 20 years?
Easy, the smartphone. We now carry a super computer in our pockets, giving us an always-on connection to the world, for better or worse. It has had far-reaching impacts on the way we travel, from how we get inspired to how we book our travel. Thanks to this invention, we rarely use paper for anything anymore. We have the ability to modify and change our plans with the click of a button or chat instantly with a human or robot.
What’s your must-have app?
Waze - not only does it solve a really basic need I have associated to my absolute lack of a sense of direction (the whole concept of North, South, East, and West baffles me!), I also try to fully optimize my schedule (read into this that I schedule more things than are actually possible in a given amount of time so I’m always running late) so the real time, user generated input on Waze has helped me avoid many speeding tickets and traffic situations that would have made me even later!!
Tell us something you dislike about your role in the company?
That I can’t make things go faster. I get frustrated that some things take more time than I want them to. Patience isn’t one of my strongest qualities!
Describe your desk and working environment?
Organized chaos. I work in such a dynamic part of the industry that I am constantly pulled in different directions, simultaneously, so my ability to truly manage everything in a perfectly structured, organized manner is impossible. I have to embrace the chaos and drive it. That definitely spills over into my desk and work environment. If you look at my desk everything is in neat stacks, and there is a degree of organization that makes sense to me, but I’m sure to others it’s just chaos.
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