BIZ102FC: Strategies of FCTG (Flight Centre Travel Group) Essay

This essay examines the strategies implemented by Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), one of the largest travel agency groups globally. It explores the company's current strategies, including those related to productivity, technological integration with Sabre, and customer-centric approaches. The essay identifies strengths such as a talented workforce and technological advancements, while also highlighting weaknesses like insufficient training programs and challenges in team collaboration and diversity management. Furthermore, the essay provides strategic recommendations for FCTG, emphasizing the importance of implementing comprehensive training programs focused on building a diverse and skilled workforce. The essay suggests applying Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to address employee needs and applying effective communication channels to enhance transparency, promote diversity, and increase accountability within the organization to achieve its goals by 2025.

Running Head: FCTG 0
Understanding People & Organizations
Strategies of FCTG (Flight Centre Travel Group)
Student Details:

FCTG 1
Introduction
In today’s competitive business world, every company desires to meet the needs of
customer along with reaching their objectives. It is important for companies to implement
strategy that helps them to reach towards success (Ahmed, 2019). In business, other than
strategic implementation there are other concepts as well to achieve business growth and
profitability which are objectives, evaluation, strategic vision, initiating corrective action and
strategy formulation at initial within a company. Companies also focus on the aspect of
corporate governance along with role of Board of Directors for executing and crafting
strategy effectively and efficiently in a highly competitive and dynamic operating
environment while also helping with creation of sustainable competitive advantage (Tapera,
2014).
“FCTG (Flight Centre Travel Group)” organisation is one of the largest groups of
travel agency operating in 23 countries with over 19,000 employees. The company has a huge
corporate travel management network spanning above 90 countries. Moreover, its operations
run 2,800 businesses within a global network where the FCTG is aiming to enhance the
reputation of the company for leading globally in the travel industry. It consists of the
company’s entrepreneurial culture, winning models, distinctive and famous brands. In terms
of expanding business, FCTG also aims at consistent growth for becoming the most
profitable and exciting travel retailer across the globe by delivering amazing experiences to
its key stakeholders such as their partners, employees and customers (Sabre, 2018).
The purpose of this essay is to know the importance of implementing strategies within
a business along with adapting concepts to make sure about the company on-going
profitability and growth. This essay will also focus on deconstructing the nature of group
behaviour in FCTG along with their use of motivation and self-awareness for team
development to achieve highly in businesses. In this essay, strategies will be identified the
company incorporated previously in their business along with its key strengths and
weaknesses to move towards 2025 with new strategies with effective implementation. Lastly,
reasons will be given for incorporating and implementing new strategies.

FCTG 2
Current Strategies implemented by FCTG
FCTG has implemented different strategies in order to manage its operations on a
global scale and ensuring effective collaboration between them which is a key to success of
the company. These strategies are importance since they affect different aspects of the
business allowing it to stay relevant even in adverse market condition. One of the key
strategies adopted by the management of FCTG is relating to increasing productivity of the
company on a global scale. Under this strategy, the company emphasis on providing training
all of its 19,000 employees and focusing on developing their skill set which allows it to
deliver effective services to its customers (Sabre, 2018). This strategy also gives significance
to delivery of customer services and removing any potential obstacles that might affect the
overall experience of customers.
As per this strategy, the skill set of employees must be high to make sure that they are
able to offer better services to customers. A talented workforce is the key strength of the
company which provides it a competitive edge in the market. However, one of the key
weaknesses of the company is lack of proper training programs to make sure that skills and
knowledge of its employees are developed to achieve its corporate goals (Martin, 2015).
Currently the company offers a two year traineeship program but it is not sufficient to ensure
that employees are able to develop their skills to meet its objectives.
Another key strategy of the company is merging with Sabre, the innovation
technology company in order to further improve its operations by using technological
advancements. As per this strategy, the company is able to build a strong product suite across
Australia and New Zealand since Sabre has upgraded over 1300 Flight Centre locations
which resulted in increasing conversions of the company (FCM, 2018). Due to this
integration, organisation is able to drastically reduce the time consumed in initial training of
Flight Centre staff. This strategy is the key strength for the company which is targeted
towards promoting efficiency and improving customer experiences.
Different strategies are implemented by the organisation for leisure improvement that
is also customer-centric and they are focused on reducing overall costs of the company. The
experience of the customers while using the services of the company is improved through this
strategy; however, this strategy is not effective due to lack of the skill set of employees who
find it difficult to fulfil the demands of customers (Tax, McCutcheon, & Wilkinson, 2013).
There are many short-term as well as long-term strategies implemented by FCTG as well.

FCTG 3
The operations of the company are improved and their overall costs are reduced by short-term
strategies in which decisions are made by the management regarding selection of suppliers
and accommodation of employees and customers to reduce cost incurred in these activities
(FCTGL, 2019).
On the other, long-term strategies are focused on transforming the business by
expanding operations in new markets allowing the company to reach new customers. These
strategies are relating with making huge investment in the business by the top level
management to ensure that they are able to transform current operations by utilising efficient
mechanisms to achieve corporate goals. The key strength of these strategies is that they
enable organisation in tackling major challenges relating to changing customer perception to
offer them services as per their demand (Latham, 2013). Without an effective focus on team
development, the management of FCTG finds it difficult to achieve short as well as long term
goals. Team collaboration is crucial in the organisation without which different departments
of the company are not able to work collaboratively. However, diversity management is a key
factor without which it becomes difficult for FCTG to manage effective team collaboration.
Employees are often demotivated in the workplace and they find it challenging to reach out to
the top level management to discuss and overcome their challenges (FCL, 2020). This shows
that there are both strengths and weaknesses in the strategies adopted by FCTG.
Strategic recommendations for FCTG
Based on the analysis of the current strategies of FCTG, it can be analysed that there
are many gaps in these strategies that creates obstacles for the company while it move
towards achieving its goals in 2025. There are necessary changes implemented by
organisation in relation to team development and understanding the significance of self-
awareness, emotional intelligence (EI) and motivation. First strategy is implementation of
training programs which are targeted towards building a talented workforce that is diverse
and capable of delivering high quality service to customers (FCTG, 2019). In order to cater to
the demand of customers all across the globe, it is important that the company hire employees
from different cultural backgrounds in its team and they must work collaboratively in order to
accomplish corporate goals. This cannot be achieved until the organisation and its
management implement policies of self-awareness among its employees that will allow them
to assist their current capabilities and make decisions which are in the benefit of enterprise
(Rego, Sousa, Marques, & e Cunha, 2012). The company should understand the needs of its

FCTG 4
employees in order to motivate them in the workplace which is crucial for them to develop
their professional competencies.
In this regards, Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory can be applied by the
organisation which categorises needs of employees in five different sections including
physiological, safety, belongingness, esteem and self-actualisation needs. The needs of
employees in different divisions should be evaluated to make sure that the management
fulfils them in order to increase their job satisfaction. As per this theory, an employee cannot
be motivated by the particular need after it is fulfilled. The management should make sure
that they have proper understanding of their employees through self-awareness and effective
communication to promote their motivation level (Jerome, 2013). This goal cannot be
achieved without a strong focus on EI of employees and managers since it allows them to
understand each other’s emotion and take decisions based on those emotions and reasoning
which led to better outcomes.
Another key strategy is implementation of effective communication policies across
different divisions of the company to make sure that its workers are able to interact with top
level management during decision making. This strategy will help the company in moving
towards its goal in 2025 because it will allow it to build high performing team that work
dedicatedly towards achieving company’s objectives. Effective communication also foster
strong understanding of EI between employees and the managers since they are able to share
their feelings and ideas to make decisions which are in their interest (Friedman & Westring,
2015). This strategy will tackle a key weakness of the company that is relating to lack of
diversity in the workplace.
If the company is not able to handle diversity in the workplace, it leads to increasing
conflict in the workplace making it difficult for employees to give their best to the
organisation. Currently, FCTG has adopted a diversity policy that is committed towards
encouraging diversity in its top level management while also eliminating discrimination from
the workplace (FCL, 2020). However, this policy is not effective when it comes to promotion
and handling of diversity making it easier for employees and managers to bypass these
guidelines. This issue can be tackled through effective communication strategy that will
increase accountability of managers by making it easier for employees to report their actions.
This will also increase awareness among employees regarding their rights which are crucial
for building trust between teams and encouraging professional commitment towards work

FCTG 5
(Kang & Hustvedt, 2014). This strategy will also promote transparency and it will allow the
employees to contribute in decision making process.
Conclusion
Based on the above observations, it is concluded that FCTG is leading brand that has
quickly captured a large market share due to its effective strategies. Company relies on its
positive reputation to manage its operations on a global scale. There are various strategies
implemented by FCTG in order to achieve its goals while moving towards 2025 that enables
it to tackle different challenges. The company has implemented a strategy to increase
productivity of its employees by offering them training and guidance during work. It has
merged with Sabre in order to provide better accommodation facilities to its customers
making it easier for them to rely on its services. Short-term operational strategies and long-
term transformation strategies are also introduced by the organisation in order to reduce its
operations costs by offering better services to its customers and making calculative
investments. The company has also introduced programs in order to develop skills and
knowledge of its employees while also managing diversity.
Although, there are many strengths of these strategies; however, there are key
weaknesses that are necessary to be addressed by the company to accomplish its future goals.
Two strategies are recommended for FCTG that will allow the organisation to fill these gaps
and accomplish its goals in 2025. The first strategy is offering better training to its employees
and fulfilling their needs through self-awareness, EI and motivation. The second strategy is
implementation of efficient communication channels that are targeted towards maintaining
transparency and promoting diversity in the workplace. These channels will increase
accountability on managers by making it easier for employees to share their ideas and issues
that will lead to better outcomes. These strategies will provide a competitive advantage to
FCTG that will sustain its growth in the future.

FCTG 6
References
Ahmed, A. (2019, November 5). The Importance of Strategic Implementation. Retrieved
from Bizfluent: https://bizfluent.com/about-6453292-importance-strategic-
implementation.html
FCL. (2020, October 17). Diversity Policy. Retrieved from FCTGL:
https://www.fctgl.com/investors/governance/diversity-policy-2/
FCM. (2018, August 1). FCTG & Serko partnership to deliver an online booking revolution.
Retrieved from FCM Travel: https://www.fcmtravel.com/en-au/resources/press/fctg-
serko-partnership-deliver-online-booking-revolution
FCTG. (2019). FLT Annual Report. Retrieved from FCTGL: https://www.fctgl.com/wp-
content/uploads/2019/10/FLT-Annual-Report-FY19.pdf
FCTGL. (2019, April 26). STATEMENT TO AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE.
Retrieved from FCTGL: https://www.fctgl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/190426-
Flight-Centre-Travel-Group-Amends-FY19-Guidance.pdf
Friedman, S., & Westring, A. (2015). Empowering individuals to integrate work and life:
insights for management development. Journal of Management Development, 34(3),
299-315.
Jerome, N. (2013). Application of the Maslow’s hierarchy of need theory; impacts and
implications on organizational culture, human resource and employee’s performance.
International Journal of Business and Management Invention, 2(3), 39-45.
Kang, J., & Hustvedt, G. (2014). Building trust between consumers and corporations: The
role of consumer perceptions of transparency and social responsibility. Journal of
Business Ethics, 125(2), 253-265.
Latham, J. (2013). A framework for leading the transformation to performance excellence
part I: CEO perspectives on forces, facilitators, and strategic leadership systems.
Quality Management Journal, 20(2), 12-33.
Martin, A. (2015). Talent management: Preparing a “Ready” agile workforce. International
Journal of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 2(3-4), 112-116.

FCTG 7
Rego, A., Sousa, F., Marques, C., & e Cunha, M. (2012). Authentic leadership promoting
employees' psychological capital and creativity. Journal of business research, 65(3),
429-437.
Sabre. (2018, March 6). Sabre selected as global technology partner to Flight Centre Travel
Group. Retrieved from Sabre: https://www.sabre.com/insights/releases/sabre-
selected-as-global-technology-partner-to-flight-centre-travel-group/
Tapera, J. (2014). The Importance of Strategic Management to Business Organizations.
Research Journal of Social Science & Management, 3(11), 122-131.
Tax, S., McCutcheon, D., & Wilkinson, I. (2013). The service delivery network (SDN) a
customer-centric perspective of the customer journey. Journal of Service Research,
16(4), 454-470.