Returning to the bustling floors of World Travel Market (WTM) London this week, the Institute of Travel & Tourism’s (ITT) Future You Summit placed the spotlight firmly on the rising generation, delivering a message grounded in audacity, curiosity, and authentic personal connection.
Strategic risk-taking emerged as the dominant narrative of the summit, urging prospective professionals to shed self-doubt when stepping onto the career ladder.
Hays Travel’s head of learning and development Angela Riseam-Smith detailed the independent agency’s diverse pipelines, from high-street branch sales to head-office postings in finance and human resources.
Emphasising that leadership is grown from within, she echoed the sentiments of Hays’ COO Jonathon Woodall-Johnston and head of retail Paula Barrett, both of whom are former trainees.
Riseam-Smith declared: “Never be afraid to take risks. Never stop learning. The landscape evolves constantly, and your mindset must follow suit.”
The leaders of tomorrow
That appetite for calculated leaps was vividly reflected by alumni of TTG’s 30 Under 30 Tomorrow’s Travel Leaders initiative.
India Barker recounted joining Blue Bay Travel a mere 48 hours after returning from an extended sojourn in Sri Lanka, relying on sheer enthusiasm to offset a lack of formal experience before rising to her current post as sales team leader.
Meanwhile, language graduate Julia Ross recalibrated her sights from luxury Italian specialists to Latin Routes, becoming Business Development Executive.
Ross exhorted her peers by saying: “Take a risk and get out of your comfort zone.”
Fellow panellist Amaan Shakir, now partnerships executive at Avis Budget Group, willingly accepted an entry-level post despite prior professional experience just to break into the trade. Shakir said: “Don’t be afraid to step back to move forwards.”
Transforming the future through tech
Addressing digital transformation and automation, travel technology coach Emily Edwards dispelled lingering anxieties surrounding artificial intelligence.
Edwards opined: “Our industry is really people-focused, and people want to deal with humans, not robots. Find out more about the people you meet. It is about human connection and collaboration. Collaborate, collaborate, collaborate!”
Marking its 70th anniversary with refreshed branding, ITT simultaneously launched Career Compass, a digital repository featuring video case studies, alongside progressive initiatives backing LGBT+ entrants and practical AI training.
With its forthcoming conference slated for Bahrain, and parallel initiatives unveiled alongside Travel Massive and Travel Weekly, the gathering proved that nurturing resilient, adaptable talent remains the industry’s most vital strategic imperative.
