How would you define good account management from your travel supplier? Well, if you ask the account managers' employer they would probably answer it very differently from the client on the receiving end of the service.
One would say they are there to maintain longevity of relationship, avoid the client going to bid, improve profitability and even sell additional products and services. The other, the customer, however would have a very different idea: navigate the bureaucracy of their parent company, be their eyes and ears, fight their corner, become a trusted partner and ensure the customer get the best service and performance they can, whether or not that's to the detriment of the employee's company or not.
Having been an account manager for a good proportion of my 25 years in this industry, I can tell you it's a very delicate balance indeed to get right. In the intervening years, I've seen it done, in my opinion at least, well and sometimes not so well. But what is common is the account management can make or break the profitability, success and ultimately longevity of a client/supplier relationship.
Account management — is it a science or an art?
If done well, it should be both.
The art requires the account manager to use acquired knowledge, express it creatively, manage stakeholders effectively, pick their battles well and influence clients.
The science is around data and evidence. When done well, precedent, benchmarking owning issues and solutions all provide the confidence to the travel buyer of an account manager who 'has their back'. Hunches, opinions gut feelings and anecdotes are fine but so much more powerful when backed up with hard-hitting empirical evidence. Better still when backed up with benchmarking against spend and sector peers — the kind of kryptonite which travel managers really struggle to get hold of.
Account managers need to be comfortable with numbers. The tell-tale sign for me of someone knowing their numbers is the ability to know where precision is required, and where it isn't. Someone saying 'Chris, your spend on this route last year was one hundred and thirty eight thousand, four hundred and thirty seven pounds and two pence' gives me no comfort whatsoever that someone is good with numbers whereas 'Chris your spend last year was circa £140k, an increase of 12% yoy and more than your peers on this route' gives me the opposite view.
Being comfortable forming ratios and averages as well as testing data (Is it right that the average business class fare is x more than economy?) also tells me that someone is very comfortable and agile with finance.
Language is critical too. If you want to be seen as a consultant and trusted adviser, rather than an operative, then language should be considered to be very important. 'I guess' and 'I think' are words which should never be used. Replace them with 'In my opinion, the data suggests…' and 'My recommendation is...' These phrases are far better at instilling confidence.
A match made in heaven?
I have seen a number of occasions where a customer will 'select' an account manager. However, in all but the largest of clients, I strongly disagree with this approach. I far prefer to state the required outputs, behaviours and experience required to perform the job and have the supplier offer the right candidate. That way, if outputs aren't delivered, the supplier can be held truly and solely to account, plus it says to the supplier 'I trust your opinion', which is no bad thing at the outset of a relationship.
Account managers need to:
- Be able to wear multiple hats and spin plates, lots of them
- Be agile and flexible
- Never take their eyes off the agreed end strategy, no matter what distractions come their way
- Be willing to challenge and be challenged
- Be prepared to change regularly — a fresh pair of eyes
- Be knowledgeable but not afraid to say when they don't know
- Be results oriented — provide the sound bites of successes
- Be a very good communicator — long periods of silence is not a good trait in an account manager
- Have sound business judgment, to help your customer look good
- Be credible — carry the credibility to stand in for the customer and be their eyes and ears
- Know the data at least as well as the travel manager
Customers should:
- Be comfortable being challenged by their account manager
- Provide clear direction and instructions
- Provide feedback on performance
- Consider the account manager in continuity planning — many an account manager has gone on to be a very successful travel manager
Finally, it's time to know when to have a change and this can often be a positive thing. Changing account manager provides a break for both sides and is not necessarily a failure for either party.
In conclusion, I have yet to see a world class performing travel programme which doesn't have happy, motivated and energised account management at its heart, so it's really worth the time invested on both sides.