hom Nulty retired at the end of
December as president and CEO of Navigant International, one of the
largest agency groups in the country. I wish there was space to
reprint the full text of his farewell note to his colleagues
because it's the best summation of a travel career I've read. But
here are some excerpts:
"My 35-year travel industry career started out by accident, when
I responded to a newspaper ad in the classified section of the Los
Angeles Times for a ticket agent position with American
Airlines.
"Having just been discharged from military active duty, my major
objective back then was to get in a little free travel and,
hopefully, meet some stewardesses before I had to start looking for
a real job. Little did I know that I would quickly fall in love
with the industry and never really want to do anything else.
"What is it about the travel industry that has made so many of
us captives for life? It's not the airports, airplanes, hotels,
rental cars, cruise ships or computer systems. It's my firm belief
that it's the people and the exciting, ever-changing environment we
get to work in.
"People who are attracted to our type of work generally like
being with others and serving their needs. If they don't, they
usually don't last long in our business, as this quality is
critically important to our success. When you combine this
atmosphere, where people like people, with the exciting and always
changing travel environment, I just can't think of a better
industry to work in.
"In the recent years, things have been difficult for everyone in
our industry due to the economic cycle and the tragedy of 9/11.
These factors have forced us to take some actions that, under
better circumstances, we would have never considered.
"Having been in the industry for 35 years, I have seen these
economic downturns before and I know that they will not last
forever. The key to success during these trying times is to press
on by staying the course and by continuing to follow the company's
values; they have served us well in the past and they will help you
through these stressful times as well.
"As I'm certain you can tell, this has been more than just a job
for me. I have loved working in this industry. ... As a recovering
workaholic, I doubt I will be able to abandon the travel industry
immediately.
"I wish you all much success, and please know that I will be
watching your performance and celebrating all of your successes. I
will always take great personal pride in the fact that I was once
on your team."
Thom advises that he plans to write a book about his
experiences. If you'd like to contact him, his e-mail is [email protected].