Leadership | Contact Center and BPO - World Connection

Francis Riley to join top professionals at the ultimate exhibition for the Customer Engagement Industry

Franz Schwarz — Fri, 23 Dec 2022 20:17:14 +0000

Las Vegas Convention Center, April 2023. – World Connection will be well-represented at the 2023 Call & Contact Center Expo in Las Vegas!

Francis Riley, Chief Commercial Officer at Margaritaville at Sea, will be a speaker at the event and lead attendees on a voyage of wonder showcasing a crucial partnership on the high seas (Bahamas Cruise Line and Margaritaville) and how they emerged from the pandemic delivering true value to its Customers and growing exponentially when collaborating with the ideal BPO.

Europe’s leading customer engagement event will take place April 26th & 27th at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Hosting more than 3,000 participants and guests, and over 300 suppliers, the Call & Contact Center Expo US provides unparalleled coverage to companies, organizations and professionals that work within the customer engagement, IT, and telecommunications industries.

This event aims to inspire, promote and demonstrate the latest tools, products and solutions for customer experience and support as well as advancements and strategies in telecommunications, blockchain, cyber and smart security solutions, and many other key factors in managing a call center or customer engagement business or department.

It is the ideal place for sourcing products & services, networking and finding the advice, methods, and technology for every part of customer support; whether it be CRM Systems, Communications Hardware, Furniture & Logistics, Training, Integrated Software, IT Management, Mobile Technology or beyond.

Riley and other industry-leading speakers sharing concentrated and efficient market research and experiences will advise ambitious visitors on how to acquire the leverage to surpass previous customer engagement expectations and revolutionize their business communication methods to achieve the next level of cutting-edge customer support and service.

Working Together to Develop an Ideal Position

Margaritaville at Sea maximized a collaboration with the ideal BPO to deliver value to its clients and managed to increase sales through bold decisions that propelled the company into a new level of revenue and exponential growth. “When you put someone on that ship, you know they’re going to have a fabulous experience, and they’ll probably be customers for life,” said Riley.

The experience complements an unmatched, personalized approach to guest service from start to finish via valet service and exclusive cruise terminals for smoother embarkation and disembarkation. It’s the perfect partnership in paradise. “We are incredibly proud of what we’ve built at Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line and […] we’re excited about this next phase of our evolution, rebranding as Margaritaville at Sea.” – Oneil Khosa, CEO of Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line and Margaritaville at Sea.

Proudly focusing on their loyal customers and trade partners, the creation of a collaborative concept adds a different dimension to the cruising industry, while appealing to a new audience of travelers. Born in the middle of the pandemic, Margaritaville at Sea offers a unique offshore resort experience full of fun, escapism, and state of mind synonymous with the global lifestyle brand, featuring gourmet food and beverage options, onboard leisure activities and entertainment, pools, a retail shop, and much more en route to a beautiful destination in Grand Bahama Island. Learn more.

Francis Riley, CCO

Francis Riley joined Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line (now relaunched in May 2022 as Margaritaville at Sea) in March 2019, initially with a remit to develop the trade distribution channels. In June, Riley added marketing, revenue management and the call center to his responsibilities and reports directly into the CEO.

Prior to joining Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, Riley spent a year as Senior Vice President Sales, The Americas, for Traveltek, a global travel technology provider and was responsible for building the US Sales team and acquiring new business for the UK domiciled organization. Before leaving Norwegian Cruise Line in 2017, (having previously worked for the company from 2004 to 2008) as Senior Vice President International Sales, Marketing & Operations, Riley held senior leadership role within the organization overseeing international sales, operations, passenger services and marketing for Europe Middle East and Africa, as well as overseeing Norwegian’s UK office in Southampton and their Continental European offices in Wiesbaden and Malta.

In addition, Riley was responsible for NCL’s International consumer marketing centralized in Miami that covered Latin America, China, Asia and Australia. Prior to rejoining Norwegian in 2010, Riley was responsible for cruise development at Tourico Holidays. He previously worked for Norwegian in the United Kingdom, having joined in 2004 and was appointed Managing Director of the then company’s London office in June 2006.

Riley relocated to Miami in October 2007 to oversee Norwegian’s international business development before returning to Europe in 2011 where he was based out of the Continental European office in Wiesbaden overseeing both the European & MEA business as well as NCL’s International markets across Asia Pacific and Latin America. Riley relocated back to Miami in 2015 to take up his Senior Vice President role.

Riley began his career in the UK with Thomas Cook in a variety of roles including travel consultant, reservations, sales, marketing and commercial relations before joining British Airways’ Air Miles Travel Company (AVIOS), where he spent five years directing Air Miles supplier agreements. He also worked in the loyalty marketing sector with Nectar, the UK’s largest loyalty program.

Riley is originally from the United Kingdom, spending the majority of his time based and working in London before moving to Miami in October 2007. He received aBTEC HND in Travel & Tourism from Durham University in the UK.

About Margaritaville at Sea

Margaritaville at Sea is a floating island vacation at sea that brings together the brand’s iconic hospitality and resort experiences with the ability to escape and see the world. The inaugural ship, Margaritaville Paradise, features 658 casual-luxe cabins with nautical details and colors influenced by the sea, sand, and sky. Amenities include several dining venues, pools, entertainment programming, retail stores, a St. Somewhere Spa, Fins Up! Fitness Center, and more. In addition to Margaritaville at Sea, Margaritaville features over 25 hotels and resorts, two gaming properties, RV resorts, and over 60 food and beverage venues – as well as real estate communities, vacation clubs, and consumer lifestyle products. To learn about Margaritaville at Sea, visit margaritavilleatsea.com.

About World Connection

World Connection is a progressive, bi-lingual contact center and BPO with centers in the United States and Latin America. Learn more.

About The Call and Contact Center Expo USA

The Call & Contact Center Expo US is one of the leading customer engagement and business intelligence events. It presents marketing opportunities for high quality and engaging content that is designed to promote the products and services that will be exhibited directly at the event, especially sponsors and speakers.

Event location:
South Hall 3 Level Two
Las Vegas Convention Center
3150 Paradise Road
Las Vegas, NV 89109
For directions & safety measures, click here.

Show Dates and Hours:
Wednesday, April 26th, 2023 from 10AM to 5PM
Thursday, April 27th, 2023 from 10AM to 4PM

The post Francis Riley to join top professionals at the ultimate exhibition for the Customer Engagement Industry first appeared on World Connection.

Executive Presence Through A Minority Lens

Franz Schwarz — Thu, 19 Nov 2020 18:45:33 +0000

Leadership Voice:

Hui Wu-Curtis
President & COO, World Connection

In a previous position, one of my supervisors had told me that her manager recommended she find one or two mentors as part of her professional development. He was trying to help her work on her executive presence. He’d recommended a few choices but the supervisor, being of Hispanic dissent, said she preferred more diverse mentors. She wanted to work with and get perspective from other minorities leaders within the company. The manager, being a minority male himself, asked, “Why would you want to do that?” In that work environment, executive presence was defined by conforming to norms set by conservative, white men. In part, to move up the corporate ladder, one had to lose a bit of their own identity to behave and act in a certain manner. One was encouraged to network and create more advocacy and relationships with others to help your career. Coincidentally, the network of leadership was predominantely Caucasian.

In a Harvard Business Review article, “Cracking the Code that Stalls People of Color,” executive presence rests on three pillars: gravitas, an amalgam of behaviors that convey confidence, inspire trust, and bolster credibility (and the core characteristic, according to 67% of the 268 senior executives surveyed); communication skills (according to 28%); and appearance, the filter through which communication skills and gravitas become more apparent (5%). While they are aware of the importance of executive presence, men and women of color are nonetheless hard-pressed to interpret and embody aspects of a code written by and for white men.

Much of the existing literature about executive presence is earmarked for individuals that are mid to higher level leaders looking to get to that executive-level position; however, many of the same concepts can apply through our coaching and development, even at a supervisor level.

As I sat in a meeting with one of our vendors, we had a good cross-section of representation of my leadership team, from supervisors to directors. As our vendor was soliciting feedback from our team, one of my supervisors, of Hispanic dissent, was really stumbling over his words. His comments and thoughts were fragmented, and he seemed nervous. Normally, this supervisor is outgoing and not afraid to speak his mind. I sat and observed the dynamics of the room. I realized this supervisor was trying to sound more professional in that meeting by using larger vocabulary words. He was trying to fit in with the audience of other leaders — predominantly white females — and present himself in a way that was not him. So rather than focusing on providing constructive feedback and creating good dialogue, he was more concerned with acting and appearing a certain way. The supervisor was trying to act more like the understood norm of the company’s cultural definition of executive presence — more sophisticated, more white.

I provided this observation to this supervisor’s manager, explaining that a person can be themselves culturally — be more authentic. I place more value on ideas and the content within the dialogue versus how people say things or how people appear compared to others. So I advised that, next time, this supervisor relax and focus on being himself and, in the next meeting, he did a great job contributing to the conversation. People were impressed by his observations. He was more relaxed, allowed himself to be more natural in his Hispanic nuances, and felt safe and confident that he also deserves to be at that table with everyone else.

As leaders, we hear the term inclusion and diversity in many organizations, but how does one really coach and mentor towards these ideals? I may be a bit more sensitive, being a female, minority Asian leader in predominately male or white male industries. There were very few minority role models or mentors as I was moving up the corporate ladder to help me understand executive presence through a minority lens. Our journey towards defining executive presence as minorities is different, whether we like to acknowledge that fact or not. Minorities go through a different set of challenges, unconscious biases, and internal struggles thinking that one has to give up their cultural identity to ‘fit in’ and be more white in corporate America. Different does not mean bad or wrong — it is just different.

As leaders, regardless of race, we must first create a safe environment for people to be genuine, accept and value diversity, and embrace people’s uniquely different styles, approaches, and points of view. A leader must be aware of their own unconscious bias and discourage judgement from others because someone is different. And as leaders, don’t be dismissive of other people’s unique challenges as minorities in the workplace — especially ones looking to progress in their career.

The post Executive Presence Through A Minority Lens first appeared on World Connection.