Bindu Surendran
Senior Principal, Services & Delivery, Sabre India
Accomplished Aviation Professional with over 27 years of experience
If you could tell us about your journey in short and how did you choose to be a part of the travel industry?
Coming from a defence background and staying in an Airforce base, seeing Aircraft take off and land throughout the day always excited me. I was very sure, if not Airforce, I will pursue my career in the travel industry. To be able to fly in different aircraft, visit new places, indulge in the unique cultures of every place, meet new people, and build connections have always been attractive to me. My first job was indeed in airline airport operations and the journey continued for 25 years working in different roles with immense learnings. I joined Sabre in 2019 after walking a mile in the customers’ shoes, and it does help me understand the customer business needs and expectations better!
Being in the dynamic world of travel and reaching the top position of honour and responsibility – how difficult or challenging has it been for you? Being a woman has ever added to the difficulties?
I would be in defiance if I said that I haven’t faced challenges. Being a daughter to wonderful parents and a mother to two boys, I had to sail through many bumps and strive hard to establish a work-life balance. Like many working mothers I had to sacrifice family time (specially being around my kids) to prove myself at work and succeed. When I started my career, there were limited opportunities for women as we were perceived as being less productive and competent than men. Due to fewer women in the leadership position, it used to be very difficult to express or share the challenges faced by women employees but that didn’t stop me from moving forward – No, I started focusing on learning & development, self-awareness, dedication, teamwork & communication.
“As I always say, everything comes with a price. What you pay is your choice. If you want to pursue what you love, then there must be passion. Passion to prove yourself in a world where you are valued for what you deliver. “
How do you foresee the future of the travel sector in India?
India has a promising travel and tourism market. I believe, people will continue to travel extensively throughout the world and explore travel opportunities that come their way – both domestic and International.
The change I foresee is that travel will become more convenient and comfortable with new technologies. Innovation will change the travel experience. Modern travellers really want personalized experiences that they can control. With the fast evolution of technology, more and more channels are opening for making travel happen and the latest technologies like Artificial intelligence, Robotics, Contactless Payments, Virtual Reality, chatbots etc are helping the consumer much better than before.
Travelling by Airline with a focus on lower prices will not be the first choice of travellers, instead, it will be about safety and more – like the Airlines focusing more on covid protocols & maintaining hygiene. Destinations that have managed to control the spread of the virus will undoubtedly become more popular. Social distancing will be the main criteria when deciding on a destination. With more low-cost airlines launched in India, we can see an increase in domestic travel to just avoid international restrictions. Read more
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This industry story published in Traveller’s World features our team member, Bindu Surendran