Speech by SMS Sim Ann at the STB-Natas Travel Agent Industry Forum

SPEECH BY MS SIM ANN, SENIOR MINISTER OF STATE, MINISTRY OF CULTURE, COMMUNITY AND YOUTH & MINISTRY OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY AT THE STB-NATAS TRAVEL AGENT INDUSTRY FORUM ON 15 NOVEMBER 2017, 2PM AT SUNTEC CONVENTION CENTRE

Mr Steven Ler, Acting President, National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS),

NATAS Executive Committee members,

Ladies and Gentlemen,  

Good afternoon.

1.             I am delighted to join you today, at the second edition of the STB-NATAS Travel Agent Industry Forum. At last year’s Forum, STB and NATAS launched the Travel Agent Roadmap, which aims to help our travel agents become designers of travel experiences. 

2.             The Roadmap outlined strategies and initiatives in the three key areas of business transformation, technology and manpower, to help travel agents transform and stay ahead of competition. One year on, it is timely for us to come together and take stock of the progress that we have made, and explore how we can continue to break new ground together.   

Continued relevance of the travel agent industry amidst a shifting tourism landscape

3.             Singapore has close to 1,200 travel agents, who are important players in the tourism ecosystem, connecting Singapore to the world. Singapore received a record 16 million visitors Singapore in 2016, and outbound travel from Singapore reached a high of 9.5 million trips, double what we saw a decade ago. Travel agents are also an important part of the Singapore economy, providing over 10,000 jobs spanning a wide range of domains.

4.             This sector is a vibrant and exciting one, but it is also changing rapidly. The consumer journey is increasingly digital, making it more convenient for consumers to plan and book their holidays independently and seamlessly. Consumer demands are also diversifying, with growing expectations for personalised service and experiential travel. Our travel agents need to evolve accordingly, by creating more customised and innovative content, and finding new ways to attract, recruit and retain talent. There continues to be great potential for our travel agents to do more, and do even better.

Government support for the transformation of the travel agent industry

5.             The Government has been supportive in helping our travel agents to grow and thrive in an increasingly competitive tourism landscape. Let me outline three key areas of focus.

6.             The first objective is to create a pro-business and pro-innovation environment. To this end, Parliament just amended the Travel Agents Act last week. We hope that these adjustments can foster more innovation and reduce regulatory burdens, enabling our travel agents to focus their energies on meeting consumer needs. For example, one of the adjustments is to exempt entities which offer walking tours and cycling tours from needing a travel agent licence. In addition, tours with passenger transport provided, for instance coach tours, can apply for a new niche licence, which comes with a lower minimum financial requirement. With a lower barrier to entry, existing and new players will find it easier to offer more exciting and unique travel products.

7.             Our second objective is to raise industry standards and continue to uphold the reputation and integrity of the travel agent industry. The vast majority of our travel agents conduct business responsibly, but a small minority of errant travel agents have sullied the image of the industry from time to time. We have thus also strengthened consumer safeguards to minimise travel agent malpractice. For instance, before granting or renewing licenses, STB will consider additional factors, such as whether the individuals involved with the travel agency are suitable to hold the licence. When investigating errant travel agents, STB will now have enhanced enforcement powers, and can impose administrative financial penalties promptly in cases of minor contraventions. 

8.             The third area of focus, which is also the focus of today’s Forum, is capability development. As we take steps to foster a more pro-business environment, we also want to equip our travel agents with the relevant tools to harness growth opportunities.

Good progress made in the transformation journey

9.             I am pleased to share that we have made good progress since the Travel Agent Roadmap was launched last year. We have seen greater development and adoption of innovative technology solutions, which help to improve efficiency and vibrancy in the tourism landscape. On the manpower front, we have been exploring how best to drive talent recruitment, upskilling, and retention. Today’s Forum is also a key part of our efforts to encourage thought-leadership and share best practices, which we hope can help spur business transformation.

10.         Let me share some success stories with everyone.

11.         Dynasty Travel is a familiar name to many of us. Dynasty is developing a mobile application, which prospective customers can utilise to make travel bookings, provide reviews and feedback, and to contact Dynasty during emergencies. This helps Dynasty to walk with its customers every step of the way, rectify on-ground issues quickly, and gain a better sense of consumer preferences. In the long run, this will allow Dynasty to make better recommendations and tailor travel experiences to different needs, building customer loyalty in the process.  

12.         Another example is Anywhr, a relatively new entrant that only operates online. Imagine the surprise element of not knowing where you will be travelling to until the day of your departure, yet feeling assured that you will not be heading to the same city you just visited! Anywhr’s online platform allows travellers to provide key parameters and preferences, such as the number of travellers, travel dates, recently visited cities, and budget. Based on these preferences, Anywhr will then handle the rest of the planning and booking, letting you know what to pack, and even provide some local currency in a sealed envelope for their customers. This is a good example of emerging business models with innovative value propositions, which cater to customers who seek a different travel experience.

13.         These examples are just two out of over 30 projects that STB is supporting under the Business Improvement Fund (BIF), with a further 27 more proposals under assessment. We also supported more than 10 projects under the Experience Step-Up Fund (ESF), which supports travel agents who are keen to develop new projects that improve the visitor experience. This is five times more than the previous year. where we only saw a total of 8 such projects supported under both funds. The cost of implementing these projects ranges from $50,000 to $500,000, with up to 70% funding support by STB. The increase in uptake is encouraging, and reflects a growing willingness to invest in technology and other business improvements. I encourage our travel agents to use these grants. 

New initiatives to further support our travel agents

14.         Building on the positive momentum thus far, I am glad to share that STB and NATAS are spearheading further initiatives to encourage capability development within the travel agent industry.

15.         Firstly, we are launching the Business Transformation Playbook today, which includes examples of innovative business models and successful case studies of companies that have distinguished themselves from their competitors, or which have reinvented themselves. It also contains a self-assessment kit to help travel agents to take stock of their current business models, and consider possible gaps and opportunities for innovation and change. We hope travel agents will find this Playbook useful and be inspired to consider adopting new business models. 

16.         For travel agents who feel ready, we welcome you to apply for STB’s new Business Transformation Through-Train Programme. STB will call for applicants for the Programme’s pilot run in the first half of 2018. This is an action-learning programme which will guide companies through different stages of their business transformation, from ideation, research to implementation. Travel agents on the Programme will receive training on various topics including data analytics and change management, receive mentorship, and eventually launch their new business model. 

17.Recognising that attracting and retaining talent continues to be an imperative for the industry, STB and NATAS will also roll out the e-Learning version of the Onboarding Guide today, and launch an Internship Guide. The Onboarding Guide was introduced in March this year. It provides an overview of the Singapore travel industry and the value proposition of travel agents, as well as how employees can acquire the necessary skills. The Internship Guide is in turn targeted at travel agents – we wanted to share with everyone what prospective interns typically look out for, so that the internship programmes can be fine-tuned accordingly to attract and retain talent.

18.         On the technology front, we will also be looking into the development of a “green lane” to further support our travel agents in technology adoption. This initiative will identify and pre-qualify a set of technology solutions for funding support, covering administrative solutions like human resources and accounting, and travel agent-specific solutions like booking and reservation systems. Travel agents who wish to adopt pre-qualified technology solutions will be able to enjoy expedited funding approval, and implement them more quickly. 

19.         We also launched the Tourism Innovation Challenge for Travel Agents in May this year, to catalyse the development of new technology solutions curated specifically for travel agents. The winners have just entered the prototype phase and their solutions will be launched next year. When you visit the Technology Showcase later today, be sure to visit the Innovation Challenge booths for an exclusive preview.

Encouraging our travel agents to tap resources to harness growth potential

20.         STB and NATAS will continue to develop and implement various capability development initiatives, but we also need our travel agents to join us in this journey. There is a wide range of resources available, and significant growth potential in the travel agent industry that remains untapped. I encourage you to find out more about the Roadmap’s initiatives, seek out the opportunities that lie amidst the challenges, and tap these resources to reach new highs.

21.         I wish you all the best in your journey towards becoming designers of travel experiences, and a very fruitful Travel Agent Industry Forum.  Thank you.

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