The Value of a Face to Face Meeting

I’ve always believed there is strong value in a face to face meeting. It seems crazy that in today’s world a face to face meeting has become unique because it is so rare. Between the phone, e-mails, texting, Skype, webinars and web conferences it seems that “reaching” people without contact is the new goal of many of the most successful product developers today. I mean think about it: We now have a way to turn on our cars via our cell phones hundreds of miles away. We have eliminated the need for the human hand to turn a key in the ignition.
To me, meeting face to face gives people the ability to truly see facial expressions, body language, and even a simple smile. It also promotes the idea of conversation without delay. Many people feel technology based meetings are more productive based on spending less money traveling to meet with clients. While this is true, the amount that can be accomplished in a face to face meeting can be leaps and bounds above what can be accomplished in an e-mail or text.
I’m excited to announce that even though Topaz is a virtual company with our leadership team located all over the US, we will be launching a campaign to visit many of our clients in our geographically based areas. I am personally very excited to meet many of the clients in person I’ve spoken with on the phone and e-mailed with. I truly think there is nothing like being able to have a conversation with someone face to face.
If you’re interested in meeting with a Topaz representative please call me at 503-651-4300 Ext. 317, or e-mail me at jillian.walsh@etopaz.com. I’d love to meet with you.









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A Simple Hello

What a difference a simple hello can make. Everyone says it’s all about networking, and it is. The funny thing is, so many people let others walk by them in a social or business setting and can’t even give a simple, “hello;” a simple acknowledgement of the other person’s existence. I don’t know about you but for me when someone smiles at me and says hi, especially when they don’t know me, it makes all the difference.

If I’m walking by a booth at a tradeshow and I look someone directly in the eye and they don’t look at me and not a word is spoken it’s really disheartening. Even if I’m not planning on stopping, a simple, “Hello,” would be nice. If I was thinking of stopping, it wasn’t very inviting to not get acknowledged.

Have you ever walked into a restaurant, walked up to the host booth and had the host be having a conversation with two other hosts or servers, or better yet, the manager? I’ve stood there for so long at some restaurants I’ve had to be the one to acknowledge them.

I went out to eat recently with someone and after great service and a great meal we walked out, looked at each other and said, “Those employees are trained very well on customer service.” We both had the same reaction because as we walked in and out, every single employee we came in contact with said hello, or goodbye, and told us to have a goodnight. The host immediately greeted us when we walked in, as we walked upstairs to the lounge a random server said hello, when we sat down our server immediately greeted us, as we were eating the manager came by to see how we were doing, when we were walking out we ran into a chef who thanked us and told us to have a good night, and this one had to be the best: We were two feet from the door and there was a cook who was getting out of work, had his jacket on and it made it a POINT to stop, thank us, and tell us to have a great night. All of this stood out to me. All of them were simple greetings, but none the less made me feel welcome, valued, and made the atmosphere of the restaurant friendly and enjoyable.

So basically, I just had to put “the simple hello” on a pedestal for a minute, or maybe longer, since that’s where it belongs.

Expense Reports & Ancillary Fees

I’ve been thinking about these subjects a lot recently so here are some questions to throw out there to the blogging world:

-How do you keep track of ancillary fees?

-Do your expense reports have a “miscellaneous” category?

-How do you know expenses in the” miscellaneous” category are within policy?

-How much do “miscellaneous” expenses seem to add up to every month?

-Do you have a certain monetary threshold travelers have to reach before they have to submit a receipt(s) with their expense report?

-Are your travelers aware of what an ancillary fee is? Is this outlined in your policy?

-Do you participate in ancillary fee research and analysis?

-Who is responsible for such research?

-How often do you have someone go through your receipts and expense reports to make sure they are accurate and within policy?

-What is the difference in your travel spending from 2006 to 2011? What is the impact from ancillary fees?

The Importance of Your Health

I’m going to take a minute to blog about something that I think is really important. One might say it’s not related to auditing, marketing, or business, but I say it’s related to everything we do. It’s important and essential to be mindful of this topic if you want to be able to live a healthy life which will allow you to succeed in business and have relationships with those you love.
This is an excerpt from a blog post that stuck me hard this morning. It is written by a woman named Brooke. I haven’t stopped thinking about it since I read it. It hits so close to home for a few reasons:

-This isn’t a doctor telling me about how important my health is; this is someone who has experienced the consequences of forgetting that first hand.

-My grandfather died of a heart attack suddenly at age 52, when my mom was my age. He was experiencing chest pain, went to the hospital, they did an EKG which showed everything was fine, so they sent him home. The next day he dropped dead of a heart attack. Him and my grandmother were in the middle of building a home on the Cape, my mom was just married, pregnant with my sister and her grandfather died a month later.

-The recognition that Brooke’s husband was 34 years old. Everyone thinks paying attention to this stuff doesn’t matter until you’re older..as she expresses it matters now!

-The way she mentioned processed foods as such a problem. We have so many processed foods these days. And I eat so many of them!!

So here is Brooke's post:

I’m in my angry phase again. I feel like there is no good or valid reason that Andie had to die. It could have been prevented a thousand ways.

Allow me to step onto my soapbox for a moment. Heart disease is one of the number one causes of death in America; it is largely because of our terrible diets and lack of exercise. After talking with the coroner about his death I learned that what killed him was a combination of genetic factors (predisposition for high cholesterol and heart disease) combined with a poor diet and lifestyle factors that only contributed to more high cholesterol and heart disease. His official cause of death was not even a heart attack. It was severe blockage of his coronary arteries (a condition called atherosclerosis) that led to his heart not being able to get blood and oxygen as needed. Basically, the coronary artery became blocked over time due to cholesterol and eventually it closed up completely- and he died. Because he ate like crap for most of his life! At only 34!

My concern is that people don’t take their health, diets, and exercise seriously enough. Especially when we’re young and think stuff like this only happens to older people. It only takes small changes to make a big impact. One small change we can all make is to eat less sugar-refined sugar, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, all forms of it!

Here is something I found while looking into this issue. It’s from www.healingdaily.com. Not the most “medical” sight, but I liked the simple list they put together about the dangers of sugar. I’ve put asterisks by the conditions that Andie had; all things that contributed to his death according to the coroner. He ate a diet high in processed foods and sugar until he started dieting about 10 months before he died. I believe with all my heart that if he had made lifestyle changes a lot earlier if it would’ve been a different outcome.

Sugar can suppress the immune system.
Sugar can upset the body's mineral balance.
Sugar can contribute to hyperactivity, anxiety, depression, concentration difficulties, and crankiness in children.
***Sugar can produce a significant rise in triglycerides.
Sugar can cause drowsiness and decreased activity in children.
***Sugar can reduce helpful high density cholesterol (HDLs).
***Sugar can promote an elevation of harmful cholesterol (LDLs).
Sugar can cause hypoglycemia.
Sugar contributes to a weakened defense against bacterial infection.
Sugar can cause kidney damage.
***Sugar can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.
Sugar may lead to chromium deficiency.
Sugar can cause copper deficiency.
Sugar interferes with absorption of calcium and magnesium.
Sugar can increase fasting levels of blood glucose.
Sugar can promote tooth decay.
***Sugar can produce an acidic stomach.
Sugar can raise adrenaline levels in children.
Sugar can lead to periodontal disease.
Sugar can speed the aging process, causing wrinkles and grey hair.
***Sugar can increase total cholesterol.
***Sugar can contribute to weight gain and obesity.
High intake of sugar increases the risk of Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.
Sugar can contribute to diabetes.
Sugar can contribute to osteoporosis.
Sugar can cause a decrease in insulin sensitivity.
Sugar leads to decreased glucose tolerance.
***Sugar can cause cardiovascular disease.
***Sugar can increase systolic blood pressure.
Sugar causes food allergies.
Sugar can cause free radical formation in the bloodstream.
Sugar can cause toxemia during pregnancy.
Sugar can contribute to eczema in children.
Sugar can overstress the pancreas, causing damage.
***Sugar can cause atherosclerosis.
Sugar can compromise the lining of the capillaries.
Sugar can cause liver cells to divide, increasing the size of the liver.
***Sugar can increase the amount of fat in the liver.
Sugar can increase kidney size and produce pathological changes in the kidney.
Sugar can cause depression.
Sugar can increase the body's fluid retention.
Sugar can cause hormonal imbalance.
***Sugar can cause hypertension.
Sugar can cause headaches, including migraines.
Sugar can cause an increase in delta, alpha and theta brain waves, which can alter the mind's ability to think clearly.
Sugar can increase blood platelet adhesiveness which increases risk of blood clots and strokes.
Sugar can increase insulin responses in those consuming high-sugar diets compared to low sugar diets.
Sugar increases bacterial fermentation in the colon.

If this doesn’t scare you, I don’t know what will. Decreasing the amount of sugar we take in is a very small step towards bettering our health. People look at me like I’m crazy around here when I say I don’t drink sweet tea. In Texas that’s almost like saying you don’t believe in God. And I also don’t allow my children to drink it- yes, there are parents who start their kids on sweet tea in Texas when they are still drinking out of sippy cups! I find it appalling. It is my job as a parent to make responsible, healthy food choices for my children while I still can. They will have all their adult lives to make unhealthy decisions on their own.

So when I don’t want my kids having tea, soda, or ice cream, or any number of other treats…don’t look at me like I’m a bad mom who deprives her children of life’s simple pleasures. Acknowledge the good choice I’m making for them while they’re young- they don’t’ know the difference now anyway. I’m not opposed to an occasional treat-I promise, I do l let them eat cake on their birthday!

They already have risk factors genetically speaking, given what happened to their father. I can’t control that, but what I can control is what they put in their sweet little mouths! And what I put in mine for that matter. It’s a struggle to make all the right food choices, but I’m doing my best to be a responsible parent.

So I’m starting my new year’s resolution now- less sugar for us all in the Simmons house! Think about your own diet and lifestyle and consider a small change you could make for the better- Push yourself to do it! Consider it a gift to those you love to better your own health.

We often say we’d die for the ones we love, instead why don’t we choose to really live for them…

(Stepping down from the soapbox now)

To check out more from Brooke, read her story, and be inspired by someone who “pushes” herself everyday check out her blog here.

Snapshot Vs. Full Length Motion Picture

I recently wrote a letter to our clients about the importance of auditing continuously that I’d like to share as a blog entry.

"Often times I am asked by clients, “How long should we audit for?” This question holds an answer I am truly passionate about and I would like to convey my thoughts to all of you.

Think of your travel program as any other program within your business that is ongoing, expensive, and always evolving. Any program with these qualities, including a travel program, should be evaluated continuously. Travel is frequently the third highest expense in corporate business behind wages and cost of goods sold; the time put into employee review and supplier research, should be similar to the time dedicated to travel program evaluation.

Frequently we have clients who begin an audit due to a specific concern or issue such as, “Our average fares were above industry averages last month,” or “Our employees are complaining they can find lower fares on the internet,” or “We just changed TMC’s and we want to evaluate our new TMC’s performance.” These are all good reasons to BEGIN an audit, however, a useful corporate travel audit should not be based or timed around one specific issue or concern. Like any other successful program within a company, a travel program should be continuously evaluated as a responsible business practice and to obtain the most accurate data possible.
It is deceptive and impractical to audit for one or three months and claim you have truly evaluated your TMC. By auditing for a specific, short period of time you get an unfocused snap shot view of how your agency is doing in that moment. Everyday behind the scenes things are changing at travel agencies that you are unaware of – or some TMC’s may even throw additional staffing at a monthly audit to ensure high results. There are new agents on the job, or new management teams in charge of specific locations. Everyday things change in the travel marketplace, airlines are consolidating, and some airlines are becoming unavailable in the GDS; as a travel manager the best way for you to truly evaluate your travel program is by obtaining a full length motion picture of information throughout the year. Without a complete movie of data to investigate, changes to your travel program can’t be made that truly reflect an appropriate assessment.

At Topaz International we encourage you to evaluate your travel program continuously throughout the year. Don’t take a snap shot and try to analyze your program from a moment in time. You may be missing the whole story. Don’t take a few snap shots and try to guess what happened in the middle. Provide yourself with a continuous film of information to fairly and accurately assess your program leading to successful revisions and savings.

We look forward to working with you and developing a relationship in the months to come."

If you have any thoughts on this entry or would like to learn more about our performance measurement solutions, please don’t hesitate to call me at 503-651-4300 ext 317. Or write me an e-mail at jillian.walsh@etopaz.com.


All my best,
Jillian Walsh
Manager of Marketing and Business Development
Topaz International

Basketball, Business, & Life

Recently I’ve had the opportunity to assistant coach a girl’s varsity basketball team. The high school I coach at just happens to also be the high school I graduated from. I frequently have flash backs of my high school basketball days. It is weird coaching in the same gym I used to practice and play at. Before I started coaching I wondered how much I would miss playing. I’ve realized that coaching is just as addicting as playing. At times I wonder if I’m just as passionate about it as I was about playing. I find myself constantly thinking about the team and our games at all hours. I have come to the conclusion that I would’ve been a much better player had I coached before playing. It is amazing what you see watching and analyzing basketball players that you don’t see when you’re actually the one playing.

Throughout my experience so far I’ve also realized how much growing up as an athlete (especially as a basketball player) has helped shape me as a person. So much about the game and sports in general is relatable to life and business. The other coaches and I are constantly trying to help our team see this connection. In true marketing fashion I’ll call this connection the “5 p’s;” Practice, Passion, Pride, Preparation, and Perseverance.

Practice: We’ve all heard, “You play how you practice,” and “You practice how you play.” But how many people actually take that to heart? Over the last few weeks I’ve seen that this statement is more than true. You have to come to practice ready to play how you would in a game; when you get into bad habits, such as laziness, not hustling, and not boxing out in practice that DOES carry over into the game. Come to the gym on time, be mentally focused on basketball, physically, give it all you have. Practice is where you show your coach and yourself what you have. It’s also the place you can take chances and not be penalized. Try something new here, get creative, let your coaches and teammates know your ideas and thoughts. Practice is much like what we put in behind the scenes at work. Before any news stories are written, any awards are given out, any financial statements come out….practice is where it begins; the grunt work that leads to the recognition. Put in to practice, what you’d put into the game.

Passion: When a loose ball is on the floor, where are you? Hopefully on the floor too. Are you constantly giving your all and helping your team gain momentum? Are you the type of player that can’t catch their breath during time outs because you’ve been sprinting every second you were in the game? Passion is essential as a player, a coworker, an individual, in everything you do that you want to matter. If you aren’t passionate about something it is not only beneficial to yourself to not be a part of it, but beneficial to your team. Positive energy is contagious, so is negativity. Be the person people want to be around. As a coach, a colleague, and friend I want the person in the game, the one giving the presentation, or the one hanging out with me to be someone passionate, someone who truly cares.

Pride: Be proud of yourself, your team, and what you’re involved in. Show that pride. On game days, wear your jerseys to school, make a great warm up CD, go 100% in warm ups, ask your family and friends to come to your games. At the end of a hard practice or game, be able to be proud of how you played win or lose. The big document you have due tomorrow? The big presentation you have to give in a week? Be proud of it. Having pride in something means you truly feel good about something you’ve done. To feel good about it, you must feel like you gave it the time and effort it deserved, which is a good feeling. Be proud to have the opportunity to represent your school or company and run with it.
Preparation: This comes along with everything you do before the game. The way you practice, how many hours of sleep you got, how healthy you ate. Watching game tapes or scouting other teams, your plays, and your strategy. Preparation is key to any successful outcome. I think we can all agree we frequently do better when we prepare for things in basketball, business or life; whether it is a game, a meeting with our boss, or an important conversation with your significant other or a friend. It’s not always about how long you prepare, but HOW you prepare. How much do you know about your competition?

Perseverance: “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Simple, but true. When things are looking grim and you’re down by 20 points do you hang your head or do you run you’re hardest and box out even harder? When you have 3 losses and 0 wins, are you going to work harder or assume you’re not going to make the play offs? When you have a bad quarter are you going to assume your business is doomed or make adjustments? In my opinion perseverance is one of the most important lessons I learned from playing basketball. From recreation league basketball to college basketball there were so many times perseverance was necessary. Whether it was losing games, not playing well, coaches and teammates I didn’t get along with…there was ALWAYS something that required perseverance; One of the most important qualities in sports and in life. Always, always, always, persevere. And in the words of the great Jimmy Valvano, “Don’t give up, don’t ever give up.”

Happy Holidays-Ringing in the New Year

We’re right in the middle of the end of many holidays and New Year’s Eve. With the New Year coming up it’s a great time to reflect on the past year and to make plans for the year ahead. I know the older I get the more quickly every year seems to pass. I always find myself saying, “I can’t believe another year has gone by.” Some years nothing seems to change and some years everything seems to change. This year has been a year full of changes for me. It has definitely been eventful. Many things that I thought would remain constant in my life have vanished. Some new, great things have also unexpectedly come into my life. If there’s one thing I’ve seen over the last (just about 23) years, it’s the ebbs and flows of life. When things are going terrible, just wait a little while and they’re bound to turn around. When things are going great, just wait awhile and they’re bound to get worse. ;) To me it seems life is always in constant flux. I kind of like that about it, it keeps things interesting.
Well the New Year is a great time to reflect on the past it is also an important time to decide what goals you have for the year ahead and how you plan to achieve them. Over the last few weeks at Topaz we have been discussing our sales and marketing plans for 2011 and company goals. It has been helpful to put together a list of action items for 2011 and to have something to strive for. 2011 is going to be another interesting year in the travel industry, an industry that is changing constantly. Personally, I am excited to work with our clients this upcoming year to help them evaluate their travel agencies performance in an ever changing environment. I am also excited to help them reevaluate their travel programs to help them save on their travel spend. Recently, many new technologies are being used by the travel industry. Social media has taken off, like it has in almost all industries. I think this year the use of mobile devices will follow the trend of social media and become used more and more frequently for the searching and booking of corporate travel. I'm interested to see where this trend leads.
This past August at NBTA we gave out corkscrews with our logo to some of our clients. We gave them a card letting them know we appreciate their loyalty and that we wanted to toast to our relationship and to their success. I hope anyone who has a Topaz corkscrew takes a minute to use it this holiday season to toast to something special in their lives. Personal or business related, we wish you the very best.
I hope everyone is having a wonderful, healthy and happy holiday season. If you haven’t had a chance please check out our Topaz holiday greeting by visiting the link below.
http://sendables.jibjab.com/view/nCQOuG6lpkvd9Xoop2aT