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MINNEAPOLIS, USA -EQS Newswire - 2 September 2020 - CWT,the Business-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform,today announces a new operating structure aimed to accelerate innovation,transformation and growth. With immediate effect, Patrick Andersen isappointed President, RoomIt & Commercial, Niklas Andréen isappointed President, Traveler Experience & Customer, and MichelleMcKinney Frymire is appointed President, Strategy & Transformation,Chief Financial Officer.
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Patrick Andersen - President, RoomIt & Commercial
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Niklas Andréen - President, Traveler Experience and Customer
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Michelle McKinney Frymire - President, Strategy & Transformation, Chief Financial Officer
The three newly createdglobal operating units these leaders will oversee comprise:
- RoomIt &Commercial: Global Supplier Management,RoomIt, Marketing, Product, Partnerships, External Communications, andSolutions Group;
- TravelerExperience & Customer: TravelerExperience, Global Sales, and Customer Engagement, including oversight of allindustry verticals;
- Strategy &Transformation: Finance, Technology, Talent &Performance, Enterprise Projects and Strategy.
Along with thesechanges, Kelly Kuhn, an outstanding leader throughout her thirty-plus yearcareer at CWT who has delivered market share growth and strong performance asChief Customer Officer over the past four years, has decided to step back fromher operating role to assume the newly created role of Special Advisor, whileremaining on the Executive Leadership Team.
Lauren Aste, ChiefLegal Officer, Catherine Maguire-Vielle, Chief Human Resources Officer, JohnPelant, Chief Technology Officer, and Chris Vukelich, Strategic Advisor, remainin their roles and on the Executive Leadership Team.
CWThas taken a number of additional steps to weather the challenges of thepandemic and position for the future. The company recently announced asuccessful capital raise of $250M, backed by strong support from itsbondholders, lenders and shareholders. Given the need to re-align resourcing intoday's market conditions but also to protect employees, operating costs havebeen managed mainly through temporary furloughs and pay reductions, and morerecently also through voluntary programs offered by the company that havereceived strong interest from employees globally.
Commentingon developments, CWT President & CEO, Kurt Ekert, said: "As wenavigate and emerge from the impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic, we do sofrom a secure financial base, with a talented and aligned team, and looking toexpand our industry leadership position. We have used the quieter lockdownperiod to progress a number of innovations and initiatives, with a focus ondeveloping and delivering material value to our clients and their travelers. Icommend my CWT colleagues across the world for their customer-focus andspirit."
The issuer is solelyresponsible for the content of this announcement.
About CWT
CWT is aBusiness-to-Business-for-Employees (B2B4E) travel management platform.Companies and governments rely on us to keep their people connected - anywhere,anytime, anyhow - and, across six continents, we provide their employees withinnovative technology and an efficient, safe and secure travel experience.
CWT Specialist Operations
- CWT Energy, Resources, & Marine provides travel management solutions for many of the world's leading companies in the oil & gas, mining, offshore, marine, and alternative energies industries.
- CWT Meetings & Events is CWT's meeting & events division. It delivers innovative, high-quality projects for its clients across all industry sectors globally. Its creative know-how helps it deliver awe-inspiring events, and its logistics expertise guarantees professional meeting services, group travel, and compliance.
- CWT SatoTravel is the largest provider for global corporate travel services for the US military and civilian government agencies.
- CWT Solutions Group is the consultancy arm of CWT. Solutions Group drives value and growth to its clients' businesses by helping them to extract more value from their travel and expense program through state-of-the-art technology and business travel knowhow. Its innovative approach focuses in four key areas to achieve true ROI: travel and expense strategy, data insights, supplier management, and travel services outsourcing.
- RoomIt by CWT(TM) is the hotel distribution division of CWT. Every day it matches travelers with the right room at the right rate, and every minute over 125 hotel rooms get booked. It also provides travelers with the amenities and loyalty programs they want, while helping organizations control their budget and improve travel oversight.
CWT Executive Leadership Team (@ 2 September 2020)
- Patrick Anderson - President, RoomIt & Commercial
- Niklas Andréen - President, Traveler Experience & Customer
- Lauren Aste - Chief Legal Officer
- Kurt Ekert - President & Chief Executive Officer
- Kelly Kuhn - Special Advisor
- Catherine Maguire Vielle - Chief Human Resources Officer
- Michelle McKinney Frymire - President, Strategy & Transformation, Chief Financial Officer
- John Pelant - Chief Technology Officer
- Chris Vukelich - Strategic Advisor
Presidential Appointee Biographies
- Patrick Andersen, President, RoomIt & Commercial
Patrick joined CWT in 2008 and has over 30 years' experiencein global travel & logistics, with various international leadership rolesat Deutsche Post Worldwide and DHL.
Patrick also serves as a Non-Executive Member of the Boardat Global Minnesota, and MNSNAP, and is on the Board of Overseers for theCarlson School of Management. He studied management at the London BusinessSchool.
- Niklas Andréen, President, Traveler Experience & Customer
Niklas joined CWT in 2018 and has over 20 years' experiencein global travel, tourism and technology, having held various internationalleadership roles at Travelport and consulting positions with Accenture,Connecta and Monitor Company. He has started two businesses and served as anAdvisory Board Member of the Cornell University Center for HospitalityResearch. Niklas current serves as an independent board member of B&BHotels Group, an international hotel chain. He holds an MSc in BusinessAdministration from the Stockholm School of Economics and is a Wharton ExecutiveEducation Aresty Scholar.
- Michelle McKinney Frymire, President, Strategy & Transformation, Chief Financial Officer
Michelle joined CWT in 2019 and has 18 years' travelindustry experience, with CFO roles at Starwood Vacation Ownership and DeltaTechnology (a division of Delta Airlines), and financial leadership roles withContinental Airlines and Delta Air Lines. In addition, she held CFO positionsat several private equity portfolio companies. Michelle currently serveson the Board of Directors for Family Gateway in Dallas, Texas. She holdsa bachelor's degree in economics from Austin College, and an MBA in finance andaccounting from the McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas.
