Women in Travel: It's Flight Centre's Jess Anscombe!

We chat with Jess Anscombe, Flight Centre Travel Group Brand Leader on getting out of your comfort zone, working with people who challenge you and being a ‘Goddess in the Boardroom’, in conjunction with the inaugural Women in Travel Awards in November.

I saw an ad for Flight Centre – at the time I had never heard of it as it was tiny in the UK – and thought it would be fun, but definitely not a career. However, I was excited and curious about this amazing company started by a man who bought a bus and drove around Europe.

People who work in travel are genuinely passionate about their customers’ experience and will go above and beyond to share their expertise, create memories and look after their customers before, during and after their trip. They are also incredibly good fun. And in my experience, strategies are stronger and successes greater (and sweeter) when you work closely with people you trust to challenge you, collaborate with and then empower to deliver on their piece of the puzzle.

I also think if you spend your life striving for perfection, you may be waiting a long time and miss a lot of opportunities. I have learnt there is no such thing as waiting for the right time or being ready for the next step. Putting yourself outside of your comfort zone and overcoming the fear to try something new always makes you stronger, both as a leader and as a person.

In terms of being a woman in the travel industry, I genuinely believe the are no limits to what you can achieve. Within Flight Centre we have several initiatives to help empower women and give them the support to progress inside and outside of the company. The Goddess in the Boardroom leadership course is designed to develop future senior women and this can only strengthen the industry.

Travel Weekly is proud to present the inaugural Women in Travel Awards in Sydney on 17 November, and are calling on women from any level across the industry to enter.

You don’t have to be nominated to enter, it’s open to all women at any level, and entries are FREE. ENTRIES CLOSE TODAY, FRIDAY 14 OCTOBER!

To enter:

1. Register free at www.womenintravel.com.au/awards

2. Choose a category (View criteria for each of the 18 categories here: women-in-travel-criteria-categories)

3. Submit by Friday 14 October

Or, if you know or work with any exceptional Women in Travel, be proactive and acknowledge excellence in their field by nominating them to enter.