Back in the fold
It’s good to be back, and that’s meant in a number of ways. Firstly, after a few months of being purely digital, it's great to be back on your desks in print form. (Grab a cuppa, get comfortable, and enjoy a much-needed screen break.) Secondly, as the new Editor. I'm delighted to be back in the sector where my career as a travel journalist began 25 years ago. I remember it was a steep learning curve - travel is a complex and multi-faceted industry, particularly in your corporate corner - but you were a friendly, welcoming bunch and helped me understand and appreciate the ways of the business travel world. In the last few months I've been getting to grips with it all again, only this time we all are.
The pandemic crisis has knocked us all sideways, personally and professionally, and we're all having to grasp new ways of doing things. Tuning in to webinars and virtual conferences, especially in the early days of the lockdown, it was heartening to watch you and your partners - TMCS, suppliers, consultants - pull together to tackle the new challenges, sharing advice and information openly and freely, even with rivals. Inspired by this ethos, in this issue we've invited industry experts to share their insights and offer guidance on how to navigate some of the key challenges, from traveller safety (p12-14) to volatile pricing (p44-45).
Right now, the whole business travel community is united with one goal - to restore confidence in travel - and this issue is devoted to making that happen. I'm sure we'll start seeing signs of it soon. I, for one, can't wait until we can all meet again. I'm looking forward to catching up properly with some familar faces, and meeting new ones, and not just in boxes on screens. Then it really will feel good to be back.