EDITOR'S COMMENT
• A fourth round of redundancies at Expedia Group since 2020 emphasises the company's relentless commitment to cost cutting and efficiencies.
Since Ariane Gorin was announced as Expedia Group's CEO last February, the company has undergone major restructuring in its product, technology, marketing and creative divisions in particular. Its most recent earnings report revealed a ten per cent year-on-year increase in revenue to $3.1 billion, which Gorin attributed to "disciplined" cost management and reinvestment in "key areas", and we should expect Expedia Group to make a greater push for partnerships and AI innovation to expand its profit margins and deliver further efficiencies - thereby staving off more job cuts.
The upheaval mirrors a similar restructuring of Expedia Group's C-suite executive team, with the appointment of Ramana Thumu replacing Rathi Murthy as chief technology officer in October, in addition to those of Shilpa Ranganathan as chief product officer in December and Scott Schenkel as chief financial officer in January. Prior to that, the group also hired a new chief operations officer and a new chief marketing officer last year.
There is no doubt that changing consumer travel behaviour has been a contributing factor for Expedia Group's renewed focus on growth and profitability - and it will continue to be. The company is building highly sophisticated and tech-proficient teams across all divisions of the business, while the global rollout of loyalty programme One Key and the improved performance of its Vrbo and Hotels.com brands will bring Expedia Group closer to its goal.
• There is plenty to look out for over the next week across our channels. Firstly, we'll be publishing a number of content pieces in the build up to International Women's Day [8 March] and it's also time to sign up to our next STRz webinar on Tuesday 11 March on 'AI in hospitality: opportunities, challenges, and the future of guest communication' [in partnership with Dharma]. Register at no cost for the session at this link.
We'll also soon be ready to unveil our final shortlists for the 2025 Shortyz Awards. In the meantime, book your tickets here now for our in-person awards ceremony on Tuesday 1 April, when we'll once again recognise excellence, highlight innovation and industry best practice, reward achievement, and celebrate startup technology. The sixth Shortyz Awards will feature a three-course sit down dinner, entertainment, the awards ceremony, and more.
Scroll down for the latest industry news ⬇️
Please click here if you have a story you want us to tell the industry, or would like to be considered for a feature, podcast or webinar.
