Article

Priceline Group: We are a platform for experience

Maelle Gavet, executive vice president, global operations, The Priceline Group, discusses her company's strategy during a fireside chat at the Shoptalk event held in mid-May in Las Vegas.

June 10, 2016 by Judy Mottl — Editor, RetailCustomerExperience.com & DigitalSignageToday.com

The Priceline Group's brands are not only competing against external industry players, they are also competing against internal organization brands, and yes, that's a very good thing when it comes to innovating, growing as a company and enhancing and advancing customer experiences.

"We love competition, it's in the DNA of the group," said Maelle Gavet, executive vice president, global operations, The Priceline Group, in a fireside chat during the Shoptalk event held in mid-May in Las Vegas.

Gavet is responsible for driving global operational strategy and connections across The Priceline Group and its six major brands: Booking.com, priceline.com, KAYAK, agoda.com and OpenTable.

The company's decentralized structure creates the internal competition aspect, she explained, and it's working well.

"It's a tough job balancing scale and entrepreneurship with innovation and disruption. But we keep the entrepreneurship spirit. It's working well, just look at our stock price," said Gavet, who stepped into her role just about a year ago.

A key to the success is empowering employees and Priceline's view of itself as being more than a travel company.

"We are a platform for experience. We take out the friction. We're a technology company," she said, adding that the mobile app opportunity is a key innovation in eliminating customer friction points. Just imagine, she said, using the phone to book flights, rooms, check in at hotels, opening hotel doors, ordering room service, booking spa appoints and other tourist activities.

"It's a bold vision and it's all moving along at once," she said.

Prior to joining The Priceline Group, Gavet served as the CEO of OZON, Russia's leading e-commerce business. Prior roles include serving a principal at The Boston Consulting Group. In her current role she also serves on the company's Group Management Board.

Looking forward Priceline is already eyeing emerging technologies such as AI and VR.

"We are looking at this, it will provide a different customer experience and a one of a kind experience," said Gavel. "Business is about people more than anything. If you build the business well you can have the conversation about technology and innovation."

About Judy Mottl

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Judy Mottl is editor of Retail Customer Experience and Digital Signage Today. She has decades of experience as a reporter, writer and editor covering technology and business for top media including AOL, InformationWeek, InternetNews and Food Truck Operator.

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