Fareportal Wins Outstanding HR Team in 2014 Global Business Excellence Awards

HR team recognized for its recruitment, talent management and employee well-being initiatives for over 2,500 employees across five countries

January 22, 2015 — Fareportal, one of the fastest-growing travel technology companies, announced today that its HR Team won Outstanding HR Team in 2014 Global Business Excellence Awards. Fareportal’s human resources team handles all functions from talent acquisition through performance management to employee well-being and company culture initiatives.

“Managing the HR function for Fareportal, one of the fastest growing travel companies in the world with more than 2,500 employees in five countries, is a herculean task,” commented this year’s Global Business Excellence Awards judges. “Fareportal’s HR team rose to the challenge and implemented a number of new initiatives for recruitment, talent management and employee well-being that have transformed the business. Staff satisfaction rose by 25% and global staff attrition has been maintained at the exceedingly low rate of 5%. With the new professional HR services behind them, staff are now more productive, focused and have generated some great innovations for clients.”

Global Business Excellence Awards, one of the world’s highest profile awards, pride themselves on having a large panel of independent expert judges who select winners according to strict criteria for each category and sector; focusing on financial results, innovation, customer, employee, investor and community benefits. The awards attract a wide range of entries from across the world, from large international companies such as Heathrow Airport, Microsoft, Portugal Telecom and Royal Bank of Scotland to dynamic and innovative start-ups.

“This award is particularly exciting for us, as it rewards our 75-person global HR team, who work tirelessly every day to ensure each of our employees globally feels fulfilled, challenged and happy at work and for that reason better able to serve the needs of our customers,” said Prev Venugopal, senior vice president and head of human resources at Fareportal, the parent company of popular online booking site CheapOair. “Every day we strive to create the perfect trip for our customers and this award provides confirmation that we are progressing in the right direction. The award also serves as an ideal opportunity to once again thank the team for their ceaseless efforts – it is the combined efforts of the HR team globally that really made this possible.”

About the Global Business Excellence Awards
The Global Business Excellence Awards are open to private, public and third sector organisations of all sizes, based in any country around the world. Entrants to the Global Business Excellence Awards do not have to be operating globally to enter the awards, entries are judged against other entries from the same country. There are four rounds each year with quarterly deadlines being the last working day of February, May, August and November and winners for each round hold their title for twelve months.
For more information and to find out how to register for the next round of the Global Business Excellence Awards visit http://www.gbeawards.com/

About Fareportal
Fareportal is a travel technology company that powers hybrid (online/traditional) travel agencies. Utilizing its innovative technology and company owned and operated contact centers, Fareportal has forged strong industry partnerships with over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels and 100s of car rental companies to serve millions of customers every year. With a portfolio of consumer travel brands including CheapOair and OneTravel, Fareportal’s airline partners benefit from access to a broad customer base that books high-yield international travel and add-on ancillaries at a rate higher than the industry average. To learn more, visit http://www.Fareportal.com.

CheapOair Wins 7th Annual International Service Excellence Awards

High-caliber customer service named as winner in the ‘Customer Focused Innovations of the Year’ category

January 20, 2015 — CheapOair, a leading hybrid (online/traditional) travel agency, announced today that its customer service contact centers won the ‘Customer Focused Innovations of the Year’ category in International Service Excellence Awards. Organized by the Customer Service Institute of America and International Council of Customer Service Organizations and now in its 7th year, the International Service Excellence Awards are the preeminent awards for the customer service profession, designed to recognize, promote and reward excellence, professionalism and outstanding achievement in the industry.

“CheapOair’s focus on their customers is clear. CheapOair employs highly trained professionals that work with customers every step of the way, as well as technology that is user-friendly and relevant to customer needs, providing customers with exactly what they are looking for while saving time and money,” said Christine Burke, executive director, Customer Service Institute of America.

CheapOair won the Customer Focused Innovations category, one of the most highly competitive categories in this year’s awards program, out of five finalists and 50 applicants. CheapOair was also named one of 12 finalists in the Contact Center of the Year category. CheapOair has seven contact centers globally, in Midtown Manhattan New York and Las Vegas in the U.S., three in Canada, one in the United Kingdom, and one in India. The final stage of the judging process included a site visit to the Manhattan contact center in November 2014.

“This global award validates our vision and strategy of offering our customers superior customer service to make their travel booking experience effortless, affordable and enjoyable,” said Werner Kunz, chief operating officer at Fareportal, the parent company of CheapOair. “Judged by customer service experts and with this year’s other winners including such industry heavyweights as DHL, Microsoft and Wells Fargo, this award showcases CheapOair’s excellent standards of customer service – and our unique focus on our customers.”

About CheapOair
CheapOair is the first hybrid (online/traditional) travel agency that enables consumers to book travel online, on mobile apps, by phone or live chat. CheapOair (http://www.cheapoair.com, 1-646-738-4820) bridges the gap between an online and traditional travel agency with certified travel agents available to help find deals and offers to destinations worldwide on over 450 airlines, 150,000 hotels, and 100s of car rentals. Partner airlines benefit from access to CheapOair’s broad customer base that books high yield international travel and add-on ancillaries at above the industry average. Follow CheapOair on Facebook and Twitter to learn how to travel the world for less.