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| November 2025 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel November 2025 Employees of the Month: Minhee Kwon, Site Manager, Suhyeon Chae, Assistant Site Manager and Yein Kim, Travel Consultant at Camp Walker/Henry in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager in South Korea: I’m pleased to formally recommend the Camp Walker/Henry team at USFK for Employee of the Month recognition. I would like to specifically recognize Minhee Kwon (Site Manager), Suhyeon Chae (Assistant Site Manager), and Yein Kim (Government Travel Consultant) for their exceptional customer service, teamwork, and professionalism. Their outstanding service mindset, high emotional intelligence, and commitment to operational excellence truly embody the 'attitude' that defines Omega’s customer-focused culture. Minhee’s leadership fosters a psychologically safe and highly engaged workplace where her team members are empowered to solve problems proactively and creatively. Suhyeon and Yein demonstrate strong ownership and accountability in every client interaction, ensuring that each traveler’s experience is both stress-free and personalized. Their dedication was recently recognized through an exceptional ICE (Interactive Customer Evaluation) comment submitted on November 4, which perfectly captures their professionalism and commitment to service excellence. Below is an excerpt from the customer’s feedback: “The ladies on Camp Walker at the CTO inside the SSC are amazing. They went above and beyond my expectations arranging mine and my wife's travel for retirement. Our original plans to get our cat back to the States fell through, so I went back to the CTO for help. Both the ladies seated to the left were extremely helpful with my situation. They were able to get our cat booked with us for a minimal fee which alleviated a lot of stress for me and my wife. They even made phone calls to the airlines on both legs of the flight to ensure there wouldn’t be any problems with our pet traveling with us. They also gave me all the requirements needed for our pet to travel, which was very helpful. The ladies were attentive, professional, and provided exceptional customer service. Please commend them for their service as this is typically a very stressful time for service members and family members when utilizing this service.” Another Client also shared the below comment with his note of appreciation: “Excellent work ladies, thank you!” This outstanding feedback reaffirms the team’s commitment to customer-centric excellence and their vital role in supporting the USAG Daegu community with compassion, competence, and professionalism. I believe Minhee, Suhyeon, and Yein are highly deserving of this recognition, and I’m proud to highlight their exceptional contribution to the success of our USFK operations. From Jenny Kim |
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| October 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel October 2025 Employee of the Month: Stacye Bowers, Corporate Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Lorraine McCready, Branch Manager and Karen Gibson, Account Manager: I would like to formally nominate Stacy Bowers for Employee of the Month. Stacy consistently demonstrates a positive attitude, a strong eagerness to learn, and an exceptional work ethic. Her dedication and commitment to every account she is on is evident in both her performance and her interactions with clients and colleagues alike. Stacy regularly receives positive feedback from clients. Additionally, she consistently achieves 100% on all of her call monitors, showcasing her professionalism, attention to detail, and commitment to delivering quality service. Beyond her impressive performance metrics, Stacy is a true team player who fosters a positive work environment. She is always willing to lend a hand, share her knowledge, and encourage others with her wonderful personality and upbeat attitude. Her presence has a genuine impact on team morale and client satisfaction alike. Stacy’s professionalism, dedication, and uplifting energy make her an outstanding candidate for this recognition. Lorraine McCready I'd like to nominate Stacye Bowers for Employee of the Month. Stacye is a true gem; she consistently receives rave reviews from my clients. Stacye has excellent customer service skills, consistently exceeding client expectations, and she has great follow through. I always know when Stacye is working with a client that they will get great service. She's always pleasant and present and she's a joy to have on the agent team. Below is a recent email that we received from a client regarding Stacye. - Karen Gibson, Account Manager Ms. McCready, I am writing to you to give praise to one of your employee’s, Stacye Bowers. I called Stacye yesterday to cancel a flight for me because I thought that I had double booked. She was able to cancel the flight and I was going to be able to use the funds on a future trip. During our conversation I realized that I had made a mistake. The double booking was not that at all but the other booking was my hotel stay. I asked Stacye if I could get the flight back and she said that It would cost me an additional $302. She told me that she would call the airline on my behalf to see if they were willing to give me the flight back. She called me back a short time later with the good news. She was able to get me the same flight for exactly what I paid for it originally. Stacye did a great job and I just wanted you to know. She was very patient and understanding. |
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| September 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel September 2025 Employee of the Month: Donna Cyran, Government Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Ryanne O’Connor, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Donna Cyran for Employee of the Month in recognition of her exceptional dedication to customer service and her outstanding contributions to our team. Donna consistently goes above and beyond to ensure that our clients receive seamless, personalized service. She demonstrates professionalism, attention to detail, and a genuine commitment to exceeding customer expectations. Recent customer feedback highlights her ability to address concerns promptly, provide thoughtful solutions, and create an enjoyable and efficient experience for clients. Donna’s positive attitude, expertise, and willingness to go the extra mile make her a true asset to our team. She exemplifies the high standards of service that Omega World Travel strives to deliver and consistently serves as a role model for her colleagues. For these reasons, I strongly recommend Donna Cyran for Employee of the Month. Below are the emails from clients. - Ryanne O’Connor, Branch Manager I hope this message finds you well. I would like to take a moment to recognize the exceptional service provided by Donna Cyran, one of your travel consultants at Omega World Travel. Donna went above and beyond in assisting me with my travel needs. Her professionalism, attention to detail, and commitment to ensuring a seamless experience were truly remarkable. She demonstrated an impressive ability to address my concerns promptly and provided thoughtful solutions that exceeded my expectations. It was a pleasure speaking with Donna, as her friendly demeanor and dedication to customer satisfaction made the process both efficient and enjoyable. Her expertise and willingness to go the extra mile reflect positively on Omega World Travel and reinforce the high standards of service your team consistently delivers. I believe Donna’s outstanding performance deserves recognition, and I wanted to share my gratitude for her efforts. If possible, I kindly request that this acknowledgment be shared with her and considered as a testament to her exceptional customer service skills. Thank you for fostering such a talented and dedicated team. I look forward to continuing my relationship with Omega World Travel and receiving the excellent service your company is known for. I just wanted to take a minute to share that Donna Cyran was very helpful during my call to OMEGA. I very much thank her for the attention to my request which required coordination between the airline and our agency’s travel lead to complete the request. She also consistently followed up with me to share updates as she had them, which was so appreciated! |
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| August 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel August 2025 Employee of the Month: Lola Cornejo in our Operations Department at Corporate Headquarters. We would like to share the winning nomination from Gaby Nadjmabadi, Travel Consultant: I would like to nominate Lola Cornejo for Employee of the Month. Lola has been an integral part of the Omega team for more than 30 years, demonstrating dedication, versatility, and care throughout her career. Over the years, she has served in a variety of roles, including: • Manager at the Tysons leisure branch • Corporate and Government travel agent • Travel Wholesalers • Quality Control • IT Operations Lola currently provides technical support to me and other agents, and her assistance is truly invaluable. She is always responsive, patient, and solution-oriented qualities that make a real difference in our daily work. Because of her diverse experience across so many roles within the company, she is able to adapt quickly to different situations and meet the changing needs of the branch. Lola’s commitment to her teamwork, and her willingness to go above and beyond make her a true asset to Omega. Her contributions reflect the very best of what this recognition represents. - Gaby Nadjmabad, Travel Consultant |
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| July 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel July 2025 Employee of the Month: Michelle Annoreno, Corporate Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager: I am writing to nominate Michelle Annoreno for Employee of the Month. I received this fantastic email from a client about Michelle. She does work hard to try and find the best solutions to the travel needs. In evaluating her phone conversations, in many instances she knows their flight schedules before they even ask. She is truly amazing on their account. Michelle has demonstrated exceptional service to all of our clients. She is very thorough and provides all possible options to ensure the traveler has a positive experience. Michelle is invaluable to the team. She goes above and beyond on all calls and emails. We are very fortunate to have her on our Omega Team. Below is the email I received from the client. - Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager Hi Heidi! I’m writing this email to you to express appreciation for the exceptional service I have consistently received from Michelle over the years. As a long-time customer of Omega Travel, I can confidently say that Michelle has been an absolute pleasure to work with and a key reason I feel confident my travel itineraries have been well organized and efficient. Michelle’s attention to detail, professionalism, and unwavering commitment to finding the most cost-effective and convenient travel itineraries have been invaluable. She not only ensures that my travel plans are seamless but often goes above and beyond to explore all options to maximize value without compromising comfort or efficiency. Her knowledge, patience, and resourcefulness far exceed the standards I’ve encountered from other customer service reps. In fact, I believe Michelle sets a benchmark for excellence in customer service. I strongly recommend that any new hires receive direct training and mentorship from her before working with clients. Her approach and dedication would serve as an excellent model for anyone aspiring to provide top-tier customer service. If there are any internal recognition programs or awards for outstanding performance, I wholeheartedly nominate Michelle. She truly deserves to be acknowledged for the remarkable service she consistently delivers. Thank you for fostering a team that includes such dedicated professionals. Michelle is a true asset to your organization. Thank you for your time and best regards. |
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| June 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel June 2025 Employee of the Month: Jessica Songprapa, Corporate Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nominations from Karen Gibson, Client Services Manager and Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager: Please accept my nomination for Jessica as employee of the month. Below feedback is from an EA in the UK that doesn't normally use Omega, so it's even more wonderful. Jessica is a true gem. She's one of the best agents I have ever had the pleasure to service my clients. I have many EA's that CC me on their emails to the team. I'm always relieved when I see that Jessica has been routed through the reservation request. She has fantastic attention to detail, she's prompt on her replies, and her communication is professional and succinct. National Grid travel always encompasses several hotels, car services and flights and always numerous changes. She navigates complicated itineraries and changes with ease and always provides solutions. She reads the entire email from the client and responds in kind with all the options they request. Her follow through is stellar, if she tells a client she'll follow through, she does. She always keeps me in the loop of any issues that affect the travelers of my accounts. On top of all her other attributes, she's always pleasant and answers the phone with a smile. I can always depend on Jessica to go above and beyond. At every National Grid review the EA's call out Jessica as one of their favorites, that she without a doubt never gives them a doubt that their travelers' plans will be perfect. I truly wish we could clone Jessica and have several of her. Thank you for giving us Jessica. She's very much appreciated. I wanted to take a moment to recognize the fantastic support Jessica provided when I needed help with changing hotel bookings. My request was quite complicated, involving multiple changes and specific requirements, but Jessica picked up my email very quickly and responded straightaway. Throughout the process, Jessica was professional, efficient and incredibly helpful. She took the time to understand exactly what was needed and kept me updated. Her responsiveness and attention to detail really stood out, and I genuinely appreciated how seamless she made the whole process. Her support made a big difference, and I just wanted to make sure it didn’t go unnoticed. |
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| May 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel May 2025 Employees of the Month: Gilda Turner, IT Manager and Kimmy Lisenby, IT Support Specialist in Fairfax, VA. We would like to share the winning nominations from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager in South Korea (which includes many nominations from her Managers and Employees) and Joe Stanley, Processing Manager in South Korea: With the recent completion of phased USFK equipment and software upgrades, I have continuously received requests from both team members and site managers across multiple locations to nominate Gilda Turner, IT Manager, and Kimmy Lisenby, IT Support Specialist, as Employees of the Month. Their unwavering dedication, especially given the time zone differences between Korea and the U.S., has left a strong impression on not just myself but also on every team member they’ve supported. Throughout the transition to new laptops and system upgrades, they responded promptly—even late at night—with professionalism, kindness, and calm reassurance. Personally, I was truly moved by Gilda’s tireless support during my own laptop replacement process. Despite multiple urgent requests and unexpected technical issues, she remained attentive and highly professional at all times. Her ability to maintain a positive and patient demeanor while resolving complex problems under pressure is truly admirable. Her work ethic sets an example for all of us. Likewise, Kimmy has played a crucial behind-the-scenes role. Whether it was coordinating software installations overnight or remotely accessing machines to ensure a seamless start to the workday, his reliability and proactive attitude have made a real impact. His sense of responsibility and attention to detail have allowed our operations to continue without interruption. I'd like to share just a few highlights from the words our USFK team members have expressed: - Eunyoung Lee, Site Manager 24 Hours Call Center The 24 team members urgently received new laptops and started working, but unfortunately, Hyejung’s laptop encountered some problems. Thanks to Gilda’s help, the issue was resolved, and I am very grateful. The next day, Sookhee and I also needed help setting up our laptops, which took a long time. Thanks to Gilda’s dedicated support, we were able to successfully start work by 5 PM. I truly believe it must have been very exhausting for Gilda over the past few days, especially with the time difference between Korea and the U.S. Words cannot fully express how thankful I am for Gilda’s sacrifice and support. For these reasons, I would like to highly recommend Gilda as the Employee of the Month. - Hyechong Kim, 24 Hours Call Center I am writing to express my sincere appreciation. I recently received assistance from Gilda and was thoroughly impressed with her professionalism and helpfulness. She stayed with me patiently to ensure my issues were all resolved. Her commitment to her work is truly commendable, and her reliability makes her an invaluable asset to the team. I am very grateful for her contributions. - Sukhee Shin, 24 Hours Call Center Glida is an outstanding IT manager. I'm not very confident when it comes to using a laptop, but she always provides clear and helpful guidelines so I can stay updated with the latest rules, signature files, and other necessary information. When I needed urgent support to set up my computer, she scheduled a meeting promptly and reassured me not to worry. She explained each step as she worked, which made me feel safe and supported. I can be a bit impatient during technical processes, but Glida always lets me know how long things will take and walks me through what to do in a calm and clear manner. I’m truly grateful to Glida, and I hope I’ll have the chance to work with her again in the future. Glida is always by my side, and her support means a lot to me. Kimmy consistently demonstrates a high level of professionalism and attention to detail in his work. He ensures that all relevant information is thoroughly documented in the remarks section and meticulously double-checks every task to completion, providing flawless service to our guests. His dedication and warm support are invaluable assets to the USFK 24-hour team. Moreover, Kimmy plays a vital role in upholding the company’s image, as his presence instills a sense of trust and reassurance in our customers. Observing his work ethic has been a valuable learning experience for me. His sincerity and meticulous approach are truly exceptional. Thank you, Kimmy, for your outstanding contributions. - Minhee Kwon, Site Manager CP Walker/Henry In February, we faced a major incident where we had to completely replace a CPU due to a critical failure. We needed to replace the CPU as quickly as possible in order to resume our operations, and issues related to CPU security and program installations were extremely urgent. I requested Gilda’s support regarding this matter, and despite the time zone difference causing her to work through nights, she actively assisted us during our working hours to resolve the issue. She always handled the situation calmly and carried out her tasks professionally. Additionally, in April, we had to update four computers, and she completed this work promptly and sequentially. Thanks to her composure and dedicated work ethic, we were able to continue our operations smoothly. We are truly grateful for her outstanding support. - Jungmi Han, Site Manager Camp Casey "Despite the late-night hours in U.S. time, Gilda has consistently responded promptly to urgent requests from our USFK staff, whether she was in the office or at home. Her exceptional dedication and timely support have played a key role in ensuring the smooth operation of our work. We deeply appreciate her reliability and proactive mindset. - Hyewon Kang, Site Manager Osan I would like to recommend Kimmy Lisenby for Employee of the Month due to his exceptional dedication and proactive support. Despite the significant time difference between our locations, he works in the US while I am based in Korea. For example, when I encountered an issue with installing necessary software, Kimmy immediately took action, coordinating with his manager and keeping me informed throughout the process. On one occasion, he even remotely accessed my machine after my workday to install Adobe Pro and Microsoft Office 2021. Thanks to his efforts, when I arrived at work the next morning, both programs were already installed and ready to use, which saved me a lot of time and allowed me to start the day without any delays. - Chanmi Kim, Site Manager K16 Gilda and Kimmy are very patient and always willing to assist with IT issues whether day or night. They have helped USFK teams with updating the CPUs and reinstalling the scanners and printers. Also, they go beyond and above in quick responses. I appreciate their commitment to excellence and outstanding support - Chunsuk Chung, Site Manager Kunsan It was very late at night, US time, when a scanning issue occurred during the system update. Despite surely being tired, Gilda responded to our questions with incredible kindness and patience. She also encouraged us by saying she would work with someone else to resolve the issue. I am very grateful for her support and positive attitude. Her outstanding support makes her truly deserving of this recognition. These consistent endorsements from our site managers and team members demonstrate the deep appreciation and trust they’ve earned. It is with heartfelt sincerity that I join them in recommending both Gilda and Kimmy as this month’s Employees of the Month. Thank you for your consideration and continued support. - Jenny Kim I often work with Gilda for various MIS related issues, most recently the updating and upgrading of the laptops for USFK 24 HRs and for myself and Jenny as well. Gilda is absolutely dedicated to her work and makes herself readily available, whether she is in the office or at home. She often pulls long hours to get the situation(s) resolved for the agent and we appreciated both that level of dedication, expertise and reliability. With the large time difference between the U.S.-East Coast and our offices here in Korea, the last thing that we need when situations arise is to reach someone unreliable in those crucial overlap times between MIS in the U.S. and the agents in Korea. Thankfully, Gilda and Kimmy both are up to the task and are well equipped to handle all of the crazy computer issues being thrown their way. I don't deal with Kimmy as often due to the timing of their shifts but I know that others receive great service from him as well. On a personal note, I believe that he was responsible for staging my laptop before sending it out. Everything that I needed was installed perfectly, meaning the downtime before adopting the laptop was minimal and linked mostly to items that he could not do prior to shipping (i.e. my Sabre switchover, local printers/scanners, etc.). So, I would like to selfishly recognize his efforts in making that laptop transition (relatively) painless for me. When all is said and done, I would like to add my voice to the others providing praise for their work and work ethic so for that, I want to give them my thanks and show them due appreciation by nominating them for Employee of the Month. Thank you for your consideration. - Joe Stanley |
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| April 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel April 2025 Employee of the Month: Layken Conner, Travel Consultant in Jacksonville, NC. We would like to share the winning nominations from Brandon Mendiola, Travel Consultant; Star Bell, Senior Branch Manager and Marlene Gray, Director of Operations and Client Services, Government: I want to nominate Layken Conner for Employee of the Month. Everything she has done for us this year should be recognized. I am pleased to nominate Layken Connor for Employee of the Month in recognition of her outstanding work ethic, dedication, and consistent drive to go above and beyond in everything she does. Layken continually demonstrates a high level of commitment and professionalism in her role. She not only meets expectations but frequently exceeds them by proactively taking on additional responsibilities, supporting team members, and finding innovative solutions to challenges. Whether it's staying late to ensure everything is completed in a timely manner, stepping in to help others without being asked, or offering creative input that improves our processes, Layken is always willing to go the extra mile. Her positive attitude, reliability, and team-first mindset makes a significant impact on our work environment. She leads by example, and her contributions do not go unnoticed by her colleagues. Given the high expectations from our client, Layken is always willing to take on any task head on and with efficiency. It is for these reasons—and many more—that I wholeheartedly recommend Layken as a deserving recipient of this month’s Employee of the Month award. - Brandon Mendiola Layken is an outstanding employee who consistently goes above and beyond. She is always willing to take on any task asked of her and she shows an incredible willingness to learn and adapt to new challenges, often on the spot. She has been an absolute asset, especially with the influx of new team members. Given the unique challenge of having so many new faces on the team, her guidance and support have been invaluable. Layken excels at assigning daily tasks, even working late into the day beyond her normal hours to ensure everything runs smoothly. I truly appreciate her dedication and commitment, and I honestly can’t imagine managing this workload without her. - Star Bell I absolutely agree with Brandon’s nomination of Layken Conner. Layken’s performance is consistently above and beyond. I am so very impressed with her dedication to this team no matter the task. I absolutely love that she does not hesitate to step up, she does not wait to be asked, she just steps up, does it and does it so well. I am so very grateful to have her on our team! - Marlene Gray |
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| March 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel March 2025 Employee of the Month: Dan Ashmore, ARC Assistant Manager in Jacksonville, NC. We would like to share the winning nominations from Kelly Murphy, Corporate Travel Consultant and Sissy Simpkins, Settlement and Customer Information Manager: I am a Corporate Agent that started with Omega in December 2023. I love my job, but sometimes some of the ticketing and invoicing of a ticket is a bit challenging. I was advised when voiding tickets to send them to Daniel Ashmore. I never really got to meet him, even over the phone. We agents just email him voided ticket copies. One day, I called Daniel Ashmore. He was so nice, so helpful, and so smart. He was also very patient with my silly questions. I don't call him a lot, but I have since called him for invoicing or ticketing questions. Today I had a call from one of our clients and she had been working on trying to get a receipt for an old trip for her boss. She had the approximate date of travel and a ticket number, but she gave too many numbers and provided the wrong record locator. And there were 2 charges, 1 from a ticket and 1 an additional service charge. She had been working on this problem for over a week. Her boss had deleted his email from us and he needed the receipts to get reimbursed. I worked with her on the phone and tried everything I could think of, pulling up all his old travels that I could find. But I had no luck at all, until I thought to call Dan. I provided him with what I had and we found out the old reservation was from January of this year, and had been made on Concur, and issued by QC system, but the reservation never had the retention line added to the reservation which is very important and should always be added to every record. The QC system usually adds it, but it was somehow missed. When that happens, any old information is virtually lost. Dan was able to provide me with the correct record locator and then I was able to get into our Omegalytics system and email her a copy of those charges. She was so, so happy. She thanked me profusely. I told her my co-worker Dan the Man was the hero. It had taken me probably over 45 minutes trying to figure out how to help this client and Dan was able to do it in less than 5 minutes. He is my hero. Thank you, - Kelly Murphy I would like to add that Dan is a great resource to have for our agents. He is able to vet issues and assist with best practices in regards to the Airline Reporting Corporation processes. ARC processes transactions on behalf of airlines, including sales, exchanges, refunds, memos, agency adjustments, and commissions. He actively stays up to date on ARC required training. He also provides training to several of our agents on a moment's notice. I do agree that he is deserving of the employee of the month recognition. - Sissy Simpkins |
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| February 2025 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel February 2025 Employee of the Month: Okhee Park, Travel Consultant K16 Location for USFK in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I would like to formally nominate Okhee Park for February’s Employee of the Month award. I received a wonderful client email about Okhee and I would like to share. The client’s feedback truly highlights the exceptional service Okhee provided during a critical last-minute trip. Her professionalism, attentiveness, and efficiency ensured that the client’s travel was arranged smoothly and without stress. It’s clear from the client’s words that Okhee’s dedication made a significant impact, and her ability to provide such a seamless and reassuring experience deserves recognition. I have attached the client’s message below, which I believe exemplifies Okhee’s outstanding contributions and the positive customer experience she fosters. Okhee consistently demonstrates a strong commitment to customer service, and I believe she is highly deserving of this recognition. - Jenny Kim Attached Message from Client: Dear J. Kim, I wanted to take a moment to highlight the outstanding service I received from Okhee Park. Okhee quickly assisted me in obtaining flight tickets for a last-minute trip to Guam. I was truly impressed with the attentiveness and professionalism. During my initial phone interaction, I found Okhee to be friendly, courteous, and knowledgeable of my needs. Most impressive was the immediate delivery of service. She made sure all my questions were answered, and reservations were secured. As a result of her attention to my needs, I could relax and know that my travel was taken care of and that I was in good hands. I left the interaction feeling valued and well taken care of, which is a rare experience these days. It is clear that Okhee genuinely cares about providing excellent service, and I truly appreciate the efforts. I wanted to make sure the hard work didn’t go unnoticed. Thank you for fostering and Okhee for providing such a positive customer experience. |
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January 2025 Employee of the Month |
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| December 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel December 2024 Employees of the Month: Heidi Szabat, Chantelle Scoville, Janet Cook, Jessica Boyce, Jody Maddock and Michelle Annoreno. We would like to share the winning nomination from Andrew Love, Client Services Manager: For Employee of the Month, I would like to nominate several employees in the Corporate Travel Division. I would like to nominate the Group Air team and the Travel Consultants that assisted with the numerous last-minute groups that were booked up to and during the election season. Heidi and her team stayed on top of the account's many requests and made sure that each group of anywhere from 14 to 168 travelers were booked and ticketed on short notice, sometimes less than 24 hrs. The team's commitment, often working late hours to accomplish the tasks, was above and beyond. It is their dedication and attitude that helps set Omega World Travel apart from other agencies. Thank you to all of them! The team includes: • Heidi Szabat • Chantelle Scoville • Janet Cook • Jessica Boyce • Jody Maddock • Michelle Annoreno Andrew Love, Client Services Manager |
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| November 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel November 2024 Employee of the Month: Sukhee Shin, Travel Consultant Korea 24 Hour Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I wanted to share some fantastic feedback we received regarding Sukhee Shin, one of our 24-hour call center agents. Sukhee consistently demonstrates an exceptional level of care and professionalism when assisting customers, and I believe her hard work truly deserves recognition. We’ve recently received some glowing feedback about Sukhee, and I’d like to highlight one in particular: "I had the pleasure of receiving exceptional customer service from Sukhee Shin at Omega World Travel, and I cannot praise her enough! From the moment she assisted me, Sukhee went above and beyond to ensure all of my travel needs were met with efficiency and professionalism. She was incredibly knowledgeable, attentive, and always responded quickly to any questions or concerns I had. What really stood out was her genuine care for my experience—she made sure everything was perfect, down to the smallest details. It’s rare to find someone so dedicated to providing top-notch service, and Sukhee absolutely exceeded my expectations. Omega World Travel is fortunate to have such a stellar employee. Thanks to her outstanding support. Thank you, Sukhee, for making this process seamless and stress-free!" There have been several other positive comments highlighting Sukhee’s dedication: - Ms. Sukhee Shin was patient, kind, and very helpful. Ms. Shin did a great job of helping me with my Emergency Visitation Travel. Her efforts helped relieve some of my stress. - Agent Sukhee Shin performed in an outstanding fashion. Her professionalism was equally matched by her tenacity to meet customer needs. Her communication was impeccable, and the service provided was beyond all expectations - Sukhee Shin & Hyechong Kim both worked tirelessly to help me book an alternative flight despite unprecedented disruption of airlines. They worked over the weekends and called me multiple times to keep me updated and ensure everything is in order. Sukhee’s consistent commitment to customer satisfaction, empathy in challenging situations, and strong communication skills make her an outstanding candidate for Employee of the Month. Thank you for considering Sukhee’s nomination. Best Regards, Jenny Kim |
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| October 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel October 2024 Employee of the Month: Angie Patrick, Implementation Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination from Tim Wrigley, Director of Business Development: I would like to recommend Angie Patrick for Employee of the Month for her work on all of our client implementations this year. We had a client start with Omega in July. I had a conversation with the Travel Manager last week. She is extremely happy with Omega with no issues to report and that is the same sentiment shared by their Senior Management. This is all in large part to Angie's leadership role she played with implementing the account. This new above-mentioned client is a Government Contractor to HHS, which is no easy company to manage with different divisional departments. This required extra care and programming from Angie to ensure Concur Travel was set up to their specifications oftentimes having to make sudden changes per the customer's request. She had to work extremely closely with SAP Concur to get their access up and running so that traveler could book without issue. What's more is they also implemented a new ERP system, rolled out Concur Expense all at the same time. To have the travel program run smoothly so as not to interfere with those projects was critical to the Travel Manager. We all know that Angie leads all of our implementations and gets pulled in many different directions for many different projects, each one of them always unique. She is always friendly and helpful with our new key contact customers and I know they all appreciate her support. From my client portfolio, we have also had successful implementations with 5 other clients. Please consider her for Employee of the Month. |
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| September 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel September 2024 Employee of the Month: Defane Terry, Training and Contact Center Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations and Kathi Le, Director of Corporate Operations and Client Services: I would like to nominate Defane Terry as Employee of the Month. Defane has become an integral part of the Operations team. Since starting as the training manager, she has shown a willingness to assist anywhere needed in day-to-day operations. Defane is consistently reliable, quick to respond, and provides follow-up whenever asked to research or investigate contact center-related issues. Defane was more than willing to accept the additional Contact Center Manager assignment, giving the agents insight into contact center best practices, documentation, and live and self-service training. All of her communications demonstrate a high degree of professionalism. She maintains a positive attitude that is truly inspiring and she continues to ask if there is anything else she can do. She has demonstrated her commitment to excellence, Omega's success, and her professional growth. - Kimberly McCrea Defane has been a great addition to Omega and has been an instrumental part in assisting the corporate team with various projects. She is always willing to help and if there isn't an immediate fix she would research and follow up with options to the resolution. The managers and I are very appreciative of her dedication and hard work. Thank you! - Kathi Le |
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| August 2024 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel August 2024 Employees of the Month: Jinhee Son, Site Manager; Hwajeong Kang, Assistant Site Manager; Joe Stanley, Processing Manager and Jiwoo Lee, Seungwon Song, Daein Koo, Mijin Kwak and Yunhui Han, Travel Consultants at Camp Humphreys in USFK in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I am pleased to share some remarkable news about our team at Camp Humphreys. Recently, our team received a Certificate of Appreciation from USFK Leadership, GEN Paul LaCamera, and CSM Jack Love, recognizing our dedicated service to USFK military personnel and their families. This honor underscores the exceptional work and professionalism our team has consistently demonstrated. As the acting Transportation Officer, Mr. Ortiz expressed his gratitude and pride in our team’s efforts. He highlighted the significant impact of our service and mentioned that he would relay this recognition to the chain of command. His words reflect the high regard in which our team is held: _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Ms. Kim, Thank you for sharing and extremely proud of the TMC team’s service and commitment to the military community in Camp Humphreys and surrounding areas. Please pass along my most sincere thanks for their efforts in providing the best service to our military community. The fact that the senior military commander in South Korea takes time to reward their efforts speaks volumes about the quality of service, support, and professionalism your team provides. I will inform our chain of command of this extraordinary feat. I am sure that they will feel the same amount of pride as I. Again, thank you and please thank the team. Proud to be working among such a high group of professionals." _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Camp Humphreys is the largest USFK site, accommodating many high-ranking officers and a large volume of both walk-in and phone customers. Our staff has always strived to deliver their best, despite not having received much recognition or encouragement for their hard work. The recent appreciation from USFK leadership has been a significant morale booster and a proud moment for our team. Recognizing and encouraging them at the company level would further bolster their morale, loyalty, and pride, driving them to continue their excellent service and dedication. In light of this achievement, I would like to nominate several outstanding team members for Employee of the Month. Their dedication and excellence have made a significant difference, as reflected in the commendations received from clients and leadership. The acknowledgment from USFK leadership and Mr. Ortiz’s appreciation are testaments to our team's hard work, dedication, and professionalism. I am incredibly proud of their achievements and the positive impact they have made. Here are some client comments highlighting their exceptional service: Jinhee Son, Site Manager "Ms. Son was extremely helpful and considerate! She went out of her way to ensure my large family was ticketed with the least amount of layovers. She should get a raise!!" Hwajeong Kang, Assistant Site Manager "Very helpful especially since this was my first time doing this. Answered all my questions and even some I didn't know I should have." Jiwoo Lee, Travel Consultant "Ms. Lee is a knowledgeable and kind agent. This was the best customer service I ever received. I am so happy and excited for my future travels. Thank you so much!" Seungwon Song, Travel Consultant "Seungwon Song was extremely helpful. She answered all my questions and was warm and helpful. She has a good attitude." Daein Koo, Travel Consultant "Mr. Koo is very kind and nice. There were no problems and very timely services. This was the easiest and most complete experience I have had. Thank you." Mijin Kwak, Travel Consultant "Ms. Kwak was extremely patient with us and supported both my official and my family's personal travel. Very impressed and grateful for her help! Thank you." Yunhui Han, Travel Consultant "Ms. Han was very helpful with accelerating my travel schedule. She helped me on the missing travel addendum last week." Additionally, I would like to nominate Joseph Stanley, our processing manager. While he may not actively seek recognition, his commitment to our team and his unwavering dedication makes him an invaluable member. Joseph's contributions are vital to our success. If it weren't for Joseph's dedication and effort from the beginning of USFK's involvement, our team would not have been able to establish itself so firmly. His hard work and commitment are truly commendable, and I believe he deserves to be acknowledged for his outstanding support and dedication. Thank you for considering this nomination and for your continuous support and encouragement. Jenny Kim   |
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| July 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel July 2024 Employee of the Month: Layken Conner, Government Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Star Bell, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Layken Conner for the employee of the month award. Layken consistently goes above and beyond in her role. She willingly takes on any task assigned by the management team and is always ready to help her colleagues, irrespective of their position. Although her main responsibility is in ERO, Layken has also successfully trained numerous employees. Her dedication and willingness to assist whenever needed is truly admirable. Notably, she has seamlessly handled tasks such as assisting the ESC team, helping with NIH TA's, managing queues, and monitoring the ERO refund sheet. One month, she independently processed over $16k worth of ERO tickets. Layken's commitment and hard work do not go unnoticed, and she is truly deserving of this recognition. Thank you for your consideration. Star Bell |
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| June 2024 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel June 2024 Employees of the Month: Hyewon Kang, Site Manager; Hyorim Lee, Lead Travel Consultant; and Semi An, Travel Consultant at Osan Air Base in USFK in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I am pleased to share some remarkable news about our team at Osan Air Base. Our team was recently honored with certificates and coins from distinguished United States Forces Korea (USFK) members. Colonel Paul T. Davidson, Deputy Commander of the 51st Fighter Wing, and Lieutenant Colonel Vincent K. McLean, commander of the 51st Logistics Readiness Squadron (51LRS), presented these tokens of appreciation to our team. This recognition was for our exceptional support and dedication in assisting the Red Flag Group and ensuring a smooth Permanent Change of Station (PCS) trip for their soldiers and their families. As the team leader, Hyewon Kang has consistently demonstrated professionalism and extensive knowledge as a CTO member. She has expertly guided our team through the annual travel coordination for over 400 USFK Air Force personnel participating in the Red Flag Exercise Group every April and May. Leveraging their extensive experience, team members Hyorim Lee and Semi An, under her leadership, have managed these complex group travels with exceptional proficiency. Despite continuous changes and the need for rebooking, they have executed these tasks flawlessly each year without complaints or errors. In light of this achievement, I would like to nominate three outstanding team members for Employee of the Month. Below are client comments: Kang, Hyewon: Mrs. Kang is hands down the most professional and knowledgeable CTO member I've encountered in my 7 years in the military. Her professionalism leads her team to be the best CTO team in Korea." Lee, Hyorim: Ms. Lee’s dedication to customer service is commendable. A satisfied customer shared, "We had a group reservation flying out to Beale. Ms. Lee did an excellent job working with us and being proactive with any missing information. She was very patient through the whole process. Very happy with the experience!" An, Semi: Ms. An has been recognized for her respectful and helpful demeanor. A customer expressed their gratitude, stating, "Semi An was very nice and respectful. Helped me out very much." The acknowledgment from the USFK leadership is a testament to our team's hard work, dedication, and professionalism. I am incredibly proud of their achievements and their positive impact. Thank you for considering this nomination and for your continuous support and encouragement. - Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager      s |
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| May 2024 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel May 2024 Employees of the Month: Minhee Kwon, Site Manager; Suhyeon Chae, Assistant Site Manager; and Yein Kim, Travel Consultant at Camp Walker in USFK in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I am writing to enthusiastically recommend our team members at Camp Walker for the Employee of the Month award. Recently, our team was recognized and awarded a plaque by LTC Sun and CSM Veronica of the 498th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion. This award honors our outstanding contributions to the military personnel and families of the 498th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion, and it specifically acknowledges our dedication and integrity in executing the annual group of Defense Travel Systems and Army Temporary Duty Assignments. Our team’s efforts were crucial to organizing and concluding a group business trip to Richmond, Virginia, this year. This achievement is a testament to the hard work, commitment, and exceptional service our team members at Camp Walker provide. Their ability to manage complex travel arrangements efficiently and professionally has significantly benefited the 498th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion. This recognition serves as a powerful motivation for us to continue working diligently and upholding the high standards of service we are known for. I would like to take this opportunity to commemorate this achievement and extend my heartfelt congratulations and encouragement to our dedicated team members. The following are photographs of thank-you plaques and customer comments that were left for each team member. These commendations clearly illustrate Minhee, Suhyeon, and Yein's unwavering commitment to excellence and ability to consistently deliver outstanding service. Their positive attitude, deep knowledge of their field, and willingness to go above and beyond for their customers make them a deserving candidate for this recognition. Jenny Kim Minhee Kwon At the CTO office on Camp Walker provided me outstanding service today. She was very helpful and took the time to listen to me about my travel concerns and book me the best available flights for my TDY. Overall, the staff in that office is very professional & courteous to the many clients that receives service there and Ms. Kwon is no different. Her knowledge of the systems and friendly 'can to' attitude is the standard for which all customer service-based operation should display. GREAT SERVICE!!! Due to improper planning on my part - I needed personal assistance in seeking alternate options to my travel itinerary. Ms. Minhee Kwon provided phenomenal customer service in helping me find "the best" solution. My request was a little complicated and she provided a sound travel option. She went above and beyond by reaching out to contacts, when she could have easily asked me to return when all my plans in order. Thank you, Ms. Kwon, for the outstanding customer service! Suhyeon Chae Thank you Ms. Chae for your wonderful support! I really appreciate your caring attitude and your willingness to work with me. Agent Suhyeon was very helpful in getting my flight booked. She is very professional with her work and I would recommend anyone to get help with their tickets and any other questions that they need answers to. Yein Kim This is my first time needing to use the services from this office so I was not sure what to do. I called first and Mrs. Kim was so nice and professional. She answered all of my questions. I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to do as far as the dates I needed to fly and Mrs. Kim was so patient with me. She didn't get annoyed when I was undecided and had to think about what I wanted to do. She was kind and helpful and just a pleasant person. she was also so fast and proficient that I had my tickets before I even asked. What a great customer experience! My overall experience was amazing. She took great care of me making the whole process very easy without any stress. Thank you!     |
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| April 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel April 2024 Employee of the Month: Sheila Manginelli at our Integer onsite location in New York. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kathi Le, Director of Corporate Operations and Client Services: I want to nominate Sheila Manginelli for employee of the month. She is an asset to our company and consistently goes above and beyond for our clients at Integer. Below are some accolades from Integer clients that we receive for her exceptional customer service. Antonio - Program Manager: I just wanted to touch base with you to express my sincere gratitude for all the hard work that Sheila Manginelli does for us, she has been a tremendous support for all Project team members helping us with itineraries, changes in a very last minute! (Project needs), she always gets back with a very fast response and plans with a least logical cost. What’s best? She is always open to help with a great attitude!!! I just wanted to highlight this with you and provide you with some feedback on her as I strongly believe she is a true value added to your team. Todd - Sr Program Manager: Sheila you are fantastic! Carol - VP & CIO: You are truly wonderful! Maria - EA and Board Liaison: You’re so awesome! Carol - EA to President and SVP): You’re always a step or two ahead of us Sheila. Thank you for all you do! - Kathi Le |
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| March 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel March 2024 Employees of the Month: Jung-mi Han, Site Manager; Heri Ji, Assistant Site Manager; and Hee-eun Seo, Travel Consultant at Camp Casey in USFK in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I am excited to nominate Jung-mi Han, Site Manager; Heri Ji, Assistant Site Manager; and Hee-eun Seo, Travel Consultant at Camp Casey in USFK, for the Employee of the Month award. I am thrilled to share the fantastic news of our team receiving a Certificate of Appreciation from the 2nd Battalion, 20th Field Artillery Regiment. This certificate was presented to the Camp Casey Commercial Travel Office, recognizing the unwavering support and technical expertise that we have provided to the regiment. It is indeed an honor and a testament to our team's hard work, dedication, professionalism, and commitment to excellence. This recognition highlights our integral role in ensuring the continued success of the ROK-US Alliance. Please find below the certificate image and a picture of our team. This achievement signifies a significant milestone for us, and I am incredibly proud of our team's accomplishments. Furthermore, I would like to spotlight Jung-mi Han, Heri Ji, and Hee-eun Seo for their outstanding contributions. The recent positive comments we received from our clients are proof of their exceptional customer service abilities: Customer Comments for Ms. Jung-Mi Han: "My experience with Ms. Jung-Mi Han was outstanding. Her professionalism and customer service allowed me to quickly change my travel arrangements and get all the required assistance I needed. Please express my appreciation to her and the Omega World Travel staff." Customer Comments for Heri Ji, Ms. Seo, and Ms. Han: "I was really pleased with Heri Ji, Ms. Seo, and Ms. Han. I came into the office at the last minute, and they assisted me with no hesitation. I was able to make a last-minute change to my TDY. They have great customer service skills, and I would like to praise them for their ability to solve my issue with no problem. Thanks, Team." Customer Comments for Ms. Heri Ji: "Ms. Ji, Heri is always kind and always makes sure to book a flight, rental car, hotel accurately. That's why I'm always satisfied. She is awesome." Based on these commendations and their consistent dedication to providing exceptional service, I believe Jung-mi Han, Heri Ji, and Hee-eun Seo are highly deserving of the Employee of the Month recognition. - Jenny Kim   Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager, presenting employee of the month winner letters.     |
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| February 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel February 2024 Employee of the Month – Debbie McDonald, Director of Technology. We would like to share the winning nominations from Laurie Kenney, Client Services Manager and Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations: I would like to nominate Debbie McDonald for Employee of the Month. I want to provide you with the POSITIVE feedback I have received from two of Omega's clients. Anabel at Mastec has talked about how much she appreciates Debbie's responsiveness and resolve in the issues they have been having with Graspay and NDC and knowledge. I heard the same from Christine at Feld this week when she asked if Debbie would be attending the Concur Fusion convention and how she is hoping to get to spend time with her while there. I personally cannot say enough about the time and willingness Debbie always provides to me and my clients as well as her knowledge. - Laurie Kenney I would like to nominate Debbie McDonald as employee of the month. Bringing Debbie on as our Director of Technology with her inner knowledge of Concur has proven an asset to Omega. She always has a positive attitude with our customers and she is always willing to assist and make herself available to the customer and internal staff. She has participated in calls and demonstrations with our customers creating confidence in the online team. She has assisted in streamlining processes and the implementation of automation for our internal processes. Debbie has demonstrated dedication to Omega and the success of the technology team. - Kimberly McCrea |
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| January 2024 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel January 2024 Employee of the Month – Jody Maddock, Corporate Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager: I am writing to nominate Jody Maddock for Employee of the Month. Jody is the primary agent for Brookhaven Labs (BNL). She does a fantastic job of using their unused ticket credits and helps them with training their Admins on travel schedules. I received the below email from one of the Executive Admins. I have worked at BNL for many years. As an admin I have many roles and responsibilities that can change at any time. I have come to know and appreciate that none of us works alone, we rely on other support personnel in order to get our work done. I want to spotlight Jody’s efforts in helping me and my group with issues as they come up. Jody is always patient, helpful, and extremely professional. With the implementation of Concur, we have assumed yet another role, and Concur is not easy to use. Mistakes are made that could be costly to our programs. Jody has always come through helping me remedy my errors, and consequently makes me look good to my managers. For example, 2 weeks back I missed a ticketing deadline, which led to the cancellation of the itinerary, including the hotel. I was able to rebook the air, but I forgot to rebook the hotel. When the traveler noticed the absence of the hotel on his itinerary, he also found out that the rate had doubled, and govt rates were no longer available. This was a Las Vegas trip, and rooms were very difficult to find even at the onset of planning. I asked Jody if she had a contact I could reach out to, instead, she reached out and got the original reservation reinstated for me. What a relief! And what a pleasure to work with someone who is proactive. I am very proud of Jody and that she is a positive reflection of Omega World Travel. - Heidi Szabat |
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| December 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel December 2023 Employee of the Month – Krista McCausley; Reporting Department in Jacksonville, NC. We would like to share the winning nominations from Sissy Simpkins, Manager; Karen Gibson, Client Services Manager and Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations. Please consider Krista McCausley for Employee of the Month. Krista is a shining star every month. She is a great asset to the Reporting and ARC team. She has filled in the gaps when people are on vacation regardless of position. She is responsible for the reconciliations and edits for many of our government/corporate accounts. She handled a special request from our client AT&T. Karen Gibson and Kimberly McCrea commended her for her extraordinary efforts on the project. AT&T confirmed on a conference call recently that they are pleased with the outcome of the special request. I want her to know that her hard work and dedication to the team does not go unnoticed. She is more than deserving of this award. I should have taken the time to write this nomination long ago. - Sissy Simpkins I'd like to nominate Krista McCausley for Employee of the Month. Krista was instrumental in a successful migration for the AT&T data from the existing file sent to TTS, to the new transfer to AMEX GBT Insights. This was at the request of AT&T. We started on this project back in June, and Krista continued to work to create the new file for GBT which was a much different format than that of TTS. Our GBT contact was in India, which created a lag in review of submitted files and subsequent responses. This was a long and convoluted project with much visibility and pressure from AT&T, and throughout Krista remained calm and professional and committed to the task. Even as of this week, there were more calls regarding discrepancies in data from the TTS reports and the data sent to GBT, and Krista worked on a joint conference call with the GBT and AT&T team to work through the differences and finally determine root case of discrepancies as the result of the new formatting for the reports required by GBT. I applaud Krista for her work ethic as well as for working under pressure and seemingly endless requests and at times ambiguous emails from the data team. She was the key part for the success of this important project and Krista delivered! My endless thanks to her and her team. - Karen Gibson Krista is consistently an outstanding employee with a positive attitude. She demonstrates a commitment to providing quality reporting data internally and externally. Krista recently spent tremendous time assisting a client with a reporting transition. This transition required that she liaise with the client, assist them with their import process, and create a file in the format specific to their reporting. Krista meets every deadline, working extra hours to meet customer needs. She is a valuable member of the reporting team and a continuing asset to Omega World Travel. Her dedication and attention to detail is greatly appreciated. - Kimberly McCrea |
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| November 2023 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel November 2023 Employees of the Month – Greg Wilcox, Houston Hayles, Hani Akil, Pouneh Zurita and Nancy Kerr at The Peace Corps onsite in Washington DC. We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Gray, Director of Government Operations and Client Services: I would like to nominate the Omega Peace Corps team for the employee of the month award. In the last month, there have been several urgent requests to get Peace Corps Volunteers out of Guatemala due to the civil unrest in the country. Getting these travelers back to their home of record was a top priority for the agency. The Omega Peace Corps team jumped into action to complete these group requests as quickly as possible. Our team did an outstanding job making sure each and every Peace Corps Volunteer made it safely back home. The below emails from our client shows their appreciation! Please consider this team nomination because the Omega Peace Corps team did an excellent job with completing these urgent requests with no incidents. __________________________________________________ I want to offer a huge, heartfelt THANKS and KUDOS to Hani, Houston, and all the others who worked tirelessly yesterday to ensure every single one of our Guatemala PCVs was booked on a flight to their Home of Record today. The situation at their consolidation point necessitated quick action, and your team absolutely rose to the occasion. It’s great to know that we can count on a professional, reliable team when we have emergencies – thanks for leading them! __________________________________________________ Hani, Houston and team. We cannot thank you enough for going above and beyond to support this evacuation. Please accept our deepest thanks. |
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| October 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel October 2023 Employee of the Month - Michelle Thomas, Senior Travel Consultant at Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) onsite in Washington DC. We would like to share the winning nomination from Star Bell, Branch Manager: I am writing to submit my nomination for the Employee of the Month award. I believe Michelle Thomas, the Senior Travel Consultant at Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) onsite in Washington DC, deserves this recognition. Michelle has been my eyes and ears onsite while working with MCC. She is a great team player. She is always reliable, flexible, and she continually steps up to the plate. Michelle has been placed in very difficult situations and handles them with skill and patience. She has an immense amount of patience and has been diligent in training all the recent new hires at MCC. Every employee she has trained has praised her for her exceptional training skills. Michelle also keeps me updated on all situations and is a sounding board for onsite employees when I am not available. She is a key player and the MCC team would not work without her. |
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| September 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel September 2023 Employees of the Month – Chanmi Kim and Okhee Park at K16 Location, in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I want to nominate Chanmi Kim, Site Manager, and Okhee Park, Travel Consultant at K16 in USFK (United States Forces Korea), for Employee of the Month. They were recently awarded the Certificate of Appreciation from USFK to show gratitude for their dedication and professionalism in their official travels, as shown below. They are perfectly fulfilling their responsibilities for their own K16 members and the USFK toll-free lines that come in during regular operating hours with their perfect harmony. They are key staff members in USFK who are now specialized and knowledgeable enough to cover all of USFK's operations. Okhee Park always brings a humble approach to her role as a problem solver who can smoothly tackle complex cases with her diverse experience. She is very confident in her abilities and knowledge. Chanmi Kim has a positive and can-do attitude that always satisfies her clients, and the client loves her perspective, as shown by the below comment from the Chief, Foreign Disclosure, DDA. I would like to take the time, given these particular positive comments and interactions from the clients, to shine a spotlight on Chanmi and Okhee to highlight their continued good work and thank them for their efforts for our clients and company. - Jenny Kim Ms. Jenny Kim, Often, we take customer services for granted and do not thank the person who has helped us with a situation or provided us with information. I want to take a moment to say how much I appreciated the outstanding customer service I received from Ms. Chanmi Kim, Site Manager, K16 CTO. TDY are stressful. I had a very complex situation, in which numerous changes to my flight schedule, hotel reservation and car rental issues. Ms. Chanmi Kim was extremely attentive, and she listened to all my concerns with great deal of patience. She has a caring approach, and she is a true professional. Her timely response, great commination skills, and attention to detail made the experience even better than I expected. I have my flight schedule, hotel reservations and car rental reversed, and ready to embark on my important TDY. We should have more folks like Ms. Chanmi Kim, in the CTO Official Travel Operations; she truly understands customer service. All the best for you and your staff. - Customer Comment  |
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| August 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel August 2023 Employee of the Month – Heri Ji, Assistant Site Manager at Camp Casey, in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I want to nominate Heri Ji, Assistant Site Manager of Camp Casey in USFK as the employee of the month. Heri is very proactive, has a good rapport with her staff, and cooperates with the USFK team, including QAE. I received the below compliments, as you can see, she often goes beyond what is expected: Heri is a necessary employee for Omega World Travel. She always has shown excellent service and communicates openly with our team. Heri possesses the ultimate "can do" attitude while taking on all tasks with positive energy and a smile. Her upbeat personality and engaging personal style enable her to interact effectively with customers and staff. - Jung-Mi Han, Manager Heri Ji has provided excellent service on each occasion I've needed her support. She reached out to assist and follow up even when she wasn't required. She keeps a positive attitude. I'm truly grateful for the care/service I received. Thanks. You've made my transition back the United States that much easier. - Customer Comment I would second this nomination as well. "Quick" Heri picks up new information and practices so easily and can identify a member's needs insanely fast, whatever the situation may be, with good insight, great questions and superb follow-up and guidance. She is a bright personality who lives to support her coworkers, our company and the members that we serve and, underneath that sunny disposition, is a relentless drive for improvement. I can never say enough about Heri's work ethic and personality; she is a top tier agent. - Joe Stanley, Omega Processing Manager |
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| July 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel July 2023 Employee of the Month – Lola Cornejo in our Operations Department at Corporate Headquarters. We would like to share the winning nominations from Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations and many employees in the Operations Department: We have a lot of great people in Operations; Lola Cornejo is one of our standout employees. As a support specialist, she provides internal customer service to the Client Services and Operations teams. It doesn't matter the task or how long it takes to resolve, Lola does not turn away anyone asking for assistance. She assists no matter the time zones or country our employees are located in. Her loyalty and length of employment at Omega World Travel have provided her with a wealth of knowledge that Lola is always willing to share. I am nominating Lola as the employee of the month because not one week goes by that I don't hear a story about how Lola pulled out all the stops to help someone. She is always the last car to leave the office parking lot nightly. Thank you Lola, we couldn't do it without you. - Kimberly McCrea I would like to nominate Lola for employee of the month. This past month Lola has been just wonderful. As usual, she is so dedicated, very patient and is always there to support our agent staff, our clients and me! This past month Lola has been diligently working with JPL agents and our vendor Booking Builder to address issues with their application. Lola has dealt with several support tickets with our vendor partner, SAP Concur to get issues that we have identified with ETS2 agencies addressed. I appreciate Lola's consistency and the support she provides our team daily! - Marlene (Sexton) Gray I would like to nominate Lola Cornejo for employee of the month. Lola is such an integral part of the Operations team. She has an untiring dedication in helping her internal customers and dedicates hours after working hours to ensure reported issues are addressed and resolved. She is always willing to assist, collaborate and share knowledge. Her contributions to Agents and the Operations team are much appreciated. - Gilda Turner Lola Cornejo understands the importance of making sure the GDS interface messages are up and running. She periodically checks throughout the day and if they are not up, she will restart the messages. This is important not only for the back-office reconciliations but also for Omegalytics our reporting tool. Internal and external customers access Omegalytics for their reporting needs. Lola has also assisted team members with downloading the various GDS's along with resetting their passwords. Lola also assigns mantis tickets to the various departments to ensure they are received in a timely fashion. I appreciate everything Lola does for us. She is deserving of employee of the month. - Sissy Simpkins I would like to nominate Lola Cornejo as employee of the month. Lola is invaluable in her support to ESC. Given the off hours that we operate on ESC, Lola’s immediate and timely attention in resolving system issues and updates is appreciated beyond words. Lola is always available to assist afterhours or weekends when required. Thank you Lola for your commitment to excellence and outstanding support!! - Steven Gray |
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| June 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel June 2023 Employee of the Month – Sonu Joneja, Travel Consultant, ESC Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Steven Gray, Branch Manager: I am nominating ESC agent Sonu Joneja for employee of the month. Sonu is rapidly becoming one of the all-stars on the ESC Team. She is quick to jump in on days off to assist with high call volume, stay over when required, and assist her fellow team members when and where needed. Her work is error-free and she always strives to follow OWT policy and procedures. Below is a recent compliment from a valued client on Sonu's high level of outstanding customer service. _______________________________________________________________________ I am writing to let you know about the exceptional service one of your staff, Sonu, provided. I am an NIH employee attempting to travel home from LA to DC, but have been caught in the United airlines meltdown. After delaying the flight for 5 hours the airline cancelled it (around 830 PT) sending me and 200+ others into a 2+ hour line. I figured I’d call Omega to see if there were any options. At first everything appeared to be sold out to all 3 DC area airports - direct, one or even two connections. But Sonu spent over 20 minutes searching for options and finally found me an option to get me home tomorrow. Further, she searched and found me a per diem hotel near the airport. I am so so grateful for her diligence and care — I’ve engaged with other Omega agents and Sonu went above and beyond. Please share with her my thanks and I wanted to be sure you knew about the great job she did! |
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| May 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel May 2023 Employee of the Month – Jiwoo Lee, Travel Consultant, Camp Humphreys in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Jenny Kim, Regional Operations Manager: I want to nominate Jiwoo Lee, Travel Consultant at Camp Humphreys in South Korea, for Employee of the Month. I'm very pleased to see her working professionally with exceptional customer service skills a little over a year after joining the company. Her teamwork is also impressive as she maintains good working harmony with all her coworkers. I am impressed and proud of her for always working professionally, even with small details like putting her business card in front of her desk for the members to see. Her work and attitude have been excellent to this point, and I believe she will continue to be a great asset to our team and Omega World Travel for years to come. I can share three positive comments that she recently received from customers below. Please consider our customers' appreciation for Jiwoo as well: Customer Comments: Jiwoo Lee made a flight ticket schedule for me and my spouse. She explained very kindly and in detail, as if her family were traveling. She answered all the questions I asked and dealt with them quickly. Thank you so much. 5stars! Customer Comments: Ms. Jiwoo Lee provided outstanding service that made our family travel very easy. She responded customer's inquiry very sincere and timely manner. I believe she is a good role model to all the service providers. Customer Comments: Ms. Jiwoo Lee from the Commercial Travel office provided outstanding customer service during my visit. She constantly smiled, asked appropriate questions, and clarified any concerns that I may have regarding my upcoming travel. Her professionalism is top-notch. I hope that she can be recognized for her enthusiasm and caring attitude. This office is a better place because of employees like Ms. Jiwoo. Jiwoo is proud to be an employee of Omega World Travel, and it shows in her actions and performance. Please consider her fully for this award in appreciation for her hard work. Thank you. Jenny Kim |
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| April 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel April 2023 Employee of the Month – Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager, Corporate Travel Division. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kathi Le, Director of Corporate Operations: I am nominating Heidi Szabat for Employee of the Month. Heidi consistently goes above and beyond to assist the team and our clients. Her dedication and hard work are appreciated. We recently received a travel survey from a traveler with one of our corporate accounts. The traveler had issues with check-in at Bordeaux with Aer Lingus and was "grateful for Heidi's time and effort (way above and beyond) – superstar stuff !!" in getting a swift resolution. I am so proud of Heidi. The traveler email is below: Last week I traveled to Bordeaux for work purposes. On the return journey on Friday (14th April) the check-in clerk for Aer Lingus at Bordeaux indicated I would not be allowed to fly. The reason was that there seemed to be an error in their system, the system was indicating that I was a “child”. I had flown out from Dublin with the same airline (Aer Lingus) /same user profile. Both flights (outgoing & return) booked at the same time with my user profile (with date of birth – definitely an adult). I rang Omega World Travel and got in contact with a representative Heidi. She went way above and beyond to help me out. Firstly, she reserved flights with another airline as backup to make sure I made it home on Friday night. Secondly, she set to work getting me on the Aer Lingus plane I was refused travel on. She stayed on the line with me, she spoke to the Aer-Lingus clerks at the check-in counter a number of times to find a way through this impasse. When common sense at the check-in counter was in too short a supply, she booked me a new ticket that was not in any way related to the previous book so no further excuses to deny me a flight home could be made by the check-in clerks. In honesty, the check-in for Aer Lingus at Bordeaux last Friday was in complete disarray, I was so lucky that I had Heidi at Omega World Travel to help me out and get me home. There were others who were held up at the same check-in for a range of ridiculous reasons that didn’t make the same plane. Please tell Heidi how grateful I was for her time and effort. She went way above and beyond – superstar stuff!! I had practically given up hope on making that plane. Heidi wasn’t taking no for an answer, she was going to do everything in her power to get me on that flight!! A lot of folks might have just settled for making the alternative travel arrangements for the customer – she held backup flights immediately and then set to work getting me on that plane. Really great to see that kind of attitude in this day and age, a real gem. |
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| March 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel March 2023 Employee of the Month – Hani Akil, Travel Consultant for our Peace Corps client. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, Branch Manager: I am nominating Hani Akil for Employee of the Month. I received the below email from a client who he recently helped. I could write a book on the business practices of Hani. He is honestly my go-to person for just about everything. He is always calm and understanding when helping me or his co-workers and definitely when assisting our customers. Since coming on board full time with Peace Corps, I have become acutely aware of the complexity of their travel needs. Hani handles every customer as if they were the only and most important one. This compliment is in no way a surprise to me. I really think that Hani should be considered for the Employee of the Month. Greg Wilcox _______________________________________________________________________ I wanted to take a moment to say thank you to a member of your team—Hani Akil. During my return leg to Georgetown from Home Leave (3-31-23), I ran into some airline-related travel difficulties. My departure from DCA left 1 ½ hours late on an itinerary that had a one-hour connection at JFK. So, I missed my flight and I spent about 4 hours running between two terminals trying to retrieve my luggage and rebook my JFK-GEO journey. Unsure of my options, I called Travel and Transportation and Hani was on the other end. He listened to my concerns and worked with me to (a) navigate the luggage challenges and (b) make the best possible choice on flights out of JFK and back to Georgetown. He also reached out to Georgetown to let them know of my delays so that the Embassy’s motor pool would not come to the airport at the wrong time. The entire process took several hours. I ended up (along with many other passengers) spending the night at the gate and departing for Georgetown at 7 am (flight should have left at 2 am). Hani stayed on the line until about 11 pm when we were sure that I was well set to depart the next morning. Hani was kind, patient, and courteous. He listened to me and he listened in on the interactions with the airline’s departure desk. In some instances, the guidance at the departure desk contradicted the guidance that Hani was getting from the airlines. Despite the chaos, Hani made it clear that he would not leave me unsupported and that he would stay until we had a safe solution in place. I just wanted to say that Hani was my hero that day/night. He clearly understood his role in our larger mission. I have expressed my gratitude to Hani directly, but I think that you should know how much his help made a difference. |
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| February 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel February 2023 Employee of the Month – Nicole Lisella, Travel Consultant in our Corporate Travel Department. We would like to share the winning nomination from Laurie Kenney, Client Services Manager and Kathi Le, Director of Corporate Operations: I would like to nominate Nicole Lisella for Employee of the Month. This is really a nominee that goes above and beyond every month for our client Feld Entertainment Group. I had recently been onsite with Feld and they cannot say enough about Nicole. They spoke about how dependent and lucky they are to have her on their account. I would like to say how much I appreciate all that Nicole does and how much help she has always been for me when I transitioned over to the Feld account. She taught me and directed me with assistance all the way. Thank you Nicole for your hard work and loyalty to Omega and to the Feld account. Laurie Kenney _______________________________________________________________________ Nicole does an amazing job for Feld. She provides exceptional customer service and works tirelessly to ensure the VIPs and various groups are taken care of. Nicole is one of the top 3 producers in transactions and air spend in 2022 on our corporate team. We appreciate her dedication and hard work. We are very fortunate to have her on our team. Way to go Nicole! - Kathi Le - Omega World Travel |
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| January 2023 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel January 2023 Employee of the Month – Sherry Dennington, Travel Consultant on our ESC Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Steven Gray, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate ESC employee Sherry Dennington for employee of the month. Sherry has proven to be an invaluable asset to our team. Her extensive knowledge of all systems and accounts benefits Omega World Travel on a daily basis. Sherry's positive "can do" attitude coupled with her outstanding customer service is appreciated by all who work and deal with her. I have attached Sherry's most recent compliments echoing the professionalism she exhibits on everything she does. _______________________________________________________________________ I’m a brand-new customer with Omega World Travel. I had already put myself in a pickle with unexpected changes with my travel plans. An Outstanding! Lady name Sherry assisted me through all my difficulties I did to myself. Sherry is a problem solver, friendly, kind, best giggle ever. First impressions, Sherry gave me calm and peace that everything is going to be A Okay. I’m very pleased with the customer service I received from Sherry. Thank you so much! _______________________________________________________________________ I just wanted to let you know what an AWESOME job Sherry did last night on one of my reservations that was booked through Concur. Long story short, one of my client’s executive admins was told to book a multi-city trip for one of the associates. She did exactly what she was told to do. Without knowing she booked a duplicate flight that the associate had booked back on January 23rd through Delta directly. Delta cancelled out the reservation and Sherry left me Excellent notes advising as to what happened. This morning after speaking to the Executive Admin, although she was a little upset with the associate, I was able to show her the other booking so she could see exactly what happened. We are still working out how this will be rectified (if he will cancel or amend his delta.com reservation). Please thank Sherry for the Eagle Eye and wonderful documentation she made in the reservation. - Sheila Manginelli - Omega World Travel |
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| December 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel December 2022 Employee of the Month – Sharon Kirchgessner, Manager, Jacksonville, NC. We would like to share the winning nomination from George Fant, Chief Information Officer: I would like to nominate Sharon Kirchgessner for Employee of the Month. I recently attended the GBTA Government Summit. While at the summit, I met the Travel Manager of one of our long-time government clients. It is very special when attending an industry event to receive an unsolicited compliment from an Omega client. In this case, the client also immediately brings up an Omega employee name and describes the service that this employee gives when representing Omega World Travel. The client immediately went into what a treasure Sharon Kirchgessner is to have on her account. She enjoys the personal attention and how cordial Sharon is with any situation. She then went into a most recent issue about a cancelled flight and a last seat on a plane via Concur and how Sharon was able to assist her in getting that seat for her organization. This should be recognized by Omega and I would like to nominate Sharon for Employee of the Month. Sharon has been a dedicated loyal employee to Omega for many years and we appreciate her hard work and talent very much. Thank you. George Fant |
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| November 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel November 2022 Employee of the Month – Heather O’Boyle, Government Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Star Bell, Branch Manager: Heather has been with the company for approximately 6 months and she has been a phenomenal hire from the beginning. She is a huge asset to the team and has excellent customer service skills. As an example of how fantastic the customers think she is, I've included a few compliments below. In addition, we recently asked her to cover for an account and with only a week and a half of training, she was able to knock that out of the park and received a compliment from that client as well. Please consider my nomination. Thank you, Star Good morning Ms. Bell, I wanted to let you know how great Heather in Montana was to deal with on the travel issue I called in with. Not only was she super knowledgeable, she was extremely helpful and kind. It made my debacle much easier to deal with having someone so nice on the other end. I can’t sing her praises enough. Thank you to you and your team. Dear Ms. Bell, I wanted to express my appreciation for Heather’s exceptional customer service today in helping me with a reservation. Heather went above and beyond to make a success of this call. She was extremely professional and knowledgeable. I was very grateful to have her on the line to assist me today. I congratulate her for her impressive service. Kind regards. |
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| October 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel October 2022 Employee of the Month – Candace Coward, Corporate Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Candace (Coward as Employee of the Month. Candy started her Omega World Travel career as a dedicated agent on the Bausch + Lomb and ATT accounts. Beginning in January of this year, she began also servicing other corporate accounts. Candy has a positive and can-do attitude that is refreshing, and the clients love her as shown by the below remarks from two of our corporate accounts National Grid and Teleworld. Below are the emailed comments that I received recently on Candy. Thank you. Heidi Szabat Candy was incredibly helpful, positive, got me exactly what I needed and honestly was a joy to talk to! She is fabulous! I wish more companies had the same fantastic customer service that Candy provided to me today! Having been raised to show ‘gratitude’ for things done for me, I just wanted you to know that your Team Member Candy is VERY Customer Focused, Congenial and Helpful. The professional and skilled action from Candy, eliminated any stress or worries. I think you are fortunate to have team members of that caliber. |
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| September 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel September 2022 Employee of the Month – Michael Goncalves, Director, Automation and Online Technologies. We would like to share the winning nomination from Tim Wrigley, Client Services Manager: I would like to nominate Michael Goncalves for employee of the month. Michael has been indispensable this all summer long. Especially as I got myself up and running with Omega. He goes above and beyond with any of my new customers that we have brought on, he's: - Responsive - Courteous - Helpful - Highly skilled and knowledgeable - Discusses matters with customers so there is understanding - Does it all with a sense of humor To me personally, he's been a valuable resource for me as I became more & more familiar with Omega's Technology capabilities. Many of the reasons why some of the newer customers like Omega so much is because of Michael. Thank you, Tim Wrigley |
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| August 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel August 2022 Employee of the Month – Vivian Wenrich, Assistant Manager, Ft. Meade, MD Office. We would like to share the winning nomination from Carlos Lora, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Vivian Wenrich for Employee of the Month. I received a wonderful email from a client (below). The comments from our client are just an example of Vivian's exceptional work and dedication in providing our account the best service Omega can offer. Vivian has outstanding customer service skills. She is a true asset to our team and her work ethic is exceptional. Please consider her for employee of the month. - Carlos Lora - Branch Manager Dear Carlos, I have had the great fortune of working with Vivian as I plan my travel. I was not as diligent as I should have been and was not reading every line of my itinerary. This led to confusion on my part and multiple change requests sometimes when they were not even needed. Vivian helped at every turn and even tried to help me not make mistakes. Rather than ramble on about my travel illiteracy, I will get to the point. Vivian is a Saint. She was exceptionally courteous, willing to call me to better discuss the details of my travel and she never lost her cool. In a time where customer service is often questioned, Vivian epitomizes the customer experience. I feel blessed to have her as a member of our travel team. Thank you Vivian. Keep doing what you do. Very Respectfully |
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| July 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel July 2022 Employee of the Month – Mary Ellen Carron, Travel Consultant on the ESC Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, Branch Manager and Karen Gibson, Client Services Manager: I would really like to nominate Mary Ellen Carron for employee of the month. She has been a real trooper from the beginning of the pandemic up until and including now. The compliment that we received about her (below) is only one of many that I receive who say she's thorough, courteous, and very pleasant to deal with. I have witnessed the calming, helpful side of Mary Ellen. And I also know how passionate she is about servicing all our customers. She recently received a compliment from Karen Gibson (also below). The other thing I'd like to applaud her for is the fact that she is very flexible when it comes to work hours. She'll come in early and on her days off and has even assisted more recently when the corporate desk needed help during the day. I'm glad to have her as an assistant manager. - Greg Wilcox - Branch Manager “I want to personally thank Mary Ellen for her extreme professionalism and customer service skills. Even though this process has been a trying situation, Mary Ellen made it much less painful being so straight forward and open. She’s truly an asset for your organization and should be the model for all your public facing community. Thank you. Michael” I'd like to nominate Mary Ellen Carron for Employee of the Month. Not only for this below email, but she's helped me out many times with ticketing over the weekends and assisting my clients that have reached out to me for assistance after hours or weekends, and I appreciate her very much. She's very responsive, extremely professional, and I know that whenever I see her name respond to my request it will be handled in the best manner possible. With regards to the kudos from Selina - She's on the West Coast, and her executive is United Global Services. This is a huge compliment from Selina, and I really appreciate Mary Ellen's superior service to those West Coast admins. I also sent this to the Global Procurement Director at National Grid, and he was extremely appreciative as well. Thank you. Karen Gibson “Hi Karen, Good morning and I hope this email finds you well. I was on the phone with Mary Ellen last night, dealing with nightmare flight cancellation and rerouting of my exec. She is such a delight to work with, very helpful, professional and helped me rescue the day. I would like to send her recognition, can you let me know how I can do that? Thanks, Selina” |
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| June 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel June 2022 Employee of the Month – Karen Gibson, Client Services Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination: Omega received a wonderful email from a client notifying us about the tremendous VIP customer service that Karen Gibson provided. Below is the email from the client. Karen, thank you for all that you do for our customers! We are very proud to receive this email. Hello Karen, Great job! I received the below email about the service that you provided. These are the types of messages we love to see from Omega. This service was for our CEO – so critical it be managed well. Clearly, you took ownership and it shows. - Global Travel and Meetings I wanted to let you know that Karen Gibson was absolutely instrumental in making the international trip for XXX and XXX to Israel, Austria and Belgium over the last couple of weeks a success. Given the time difference, Karen was always on spot and available to double check on hotel reservations, upgrades, and my numerous changes as always. Karen not only went above and beyond in quick responses, but also had the mind set to not only email a primary contact at each hotel to ensure the reservations were not cancelled with each arrival early the following morning, but she also called them on that evening to ensure that the night desk was aware to ensure that no reservations were cancelled in error. Karen advised that this is simply her job, but how she handled each issue and change is remarkable and not a skill or ability that everyone has to include simply handling with kindness. I/we could not have made this trip work seamlessly for XXX and XXX without her. Thank you so much for such an amazing team member and professional as Karen. |
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| May 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel May 2022 Employee of the Month – George Fant, Chief Information Officer. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations: I would like to nominate George Fant. I am not sure what I would have done without him this last month. He was very critical in assisting Marlene, Michael, and me with the Travelport migration from Apollo to Galileo. We are juggling many things, and George took ownership of this project and has kept everything and everyone on task. I really appreciate George for making this project less painful for everyone involved. See comments below from one of our very important clients, JPL: Dear Kimberly, During JPL‘s transition from Apollo to Galileo, George Fant worked tirelessly both in testing, and in the implementation phase of our migration to assure that the transition would be as seamless as possible to JPL During all of the conference calls that we had with our vendors, George always provided a wealth of information and technical expertise necessary as many of the interfaces or not issues that JPL‘s core IT people have any background and nor would understand. After the migration, many issues arose that required troubleshooting and technical expertise to understand and ameliorate the problems. All of these issues required George. George Fant has always been one of the most valuable resources that I rely on Omega World Travel. George is priceless. We would like to adopt him at JPL as he is truly an honorary employee of JPL and I feel confident that he will always be part of our family. I commend George for his continued support of our account and I always feel confident knowing that he is there for us. I hope this testament provides the necessary information so that George can be recognized for his remarkable work. If there is additional space on Mount Rushmore, George Fant’s image belongs there. Sally George has been crucial in helping Cornerstone and Agresso with formats and suggestions. He is keen in troubleshooting and is a wealth of knowledge. If there is a workaround, he will use it; if there isn’t, he will create it. I wish I had a George on all of my projects. - Danielle Oberlin, Travelport Project Manager George has worked tirelessly to make sure Omega’s systems are where they need to be for the Travelport+ upgrade for Omega and JPL. Like Danielle mentioned below George has a wealth of knowledge, I admire his honesty and by not leaving any stones unturned combined with his work ethic to get things done is simply amazing. George goes over and beyond the call of duty and because of all this, George has placed Omega in a very good position (and advantage in my opinion) when you are able to upgrade the rest of your business - Maureen Eaton, Travelport Account Manager Our Omega operations and support services team deserve a big round of applause for their contributions to our Travelport+ project, migrating from Apollo to Galileo. There have been so many of us Omegans working, training, programming, and testing various applications with clients and our third-party vendors to ensure this conversion happens seamlessly and as smoothly as possible but there has been one special individual that has gone above and beyond on this project. That person is George Fant. Travelport and JPL decision-makers have described George as; Amazing! Intuitive Thinker!! A trailblazer who thinks out of the Box! George is a tremendous asset to our team! - Marlene Sexton, Director of Government Services George stepped in with his familiarity with Apollo and making sure that not only would the system work for JPL now but to start working on how items will need to integrate for ETS2 if they continue on with Galileo once they will have to make the move to Travelport + from Apollo. - Michael Goncalves, Director of Automation and Online Technologies |
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| April 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel April 2022 Employee of the Month – Chantelle Scoville, Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Joe Hameedi, Director Sales and Account Management: I am writing to nominate Chantelle Scoville for Employee of the Month. Chantelle has been an excellent employee and a true asset throughout her years at Omega. She has shown outstanding customer service from her time with ESC, onsite at Feld, and now on the corporate team. It is always a pleasure working with her and she is very quick with a resolution and response when an issue arises. Chantelle has been working on a new account that started. She provided exemplary customer service to the owner. I received the below email from the client: Joe, I just wanted to take a moment to call out a great job from one of your team. I recently had to book 2 trips, one with a fairly quick turn to Savannah, GA and a second with 2 travelers going to multiple destinations (with diverging routes). Chantelle was patient and professional with me as we worked through the nuances of the trip. Helped obtain Government travel compliant hotel rates, accommodated our preferences, and helped us reach a best-value solution. As a business owner, she exemplified the customer focus that I work to instill in my personnel. Please pass along my gratitude. Congratulations Chantelle! |
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| March 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel March 2022 Employee of the Month – Gail Cunningham, Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kathi Le, Corporate Operations Manager and Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager: I am writing to nominate Gail Cunningham for Employee of the Month. We were so fortunate to have Gail join the corporate team while she was pending a transfer to a government onsite position. Gail has been an asset to the corporate team with the increase in business travel. She is always willing to help with whatever tasks that are brought forward. Gail assisted with various time sensitive group bookings, verified VIP seat assignments and helped with managing queue reports. Her initiative and customer service skills are very much appreciated. In March, we were hit with an extremely large group of 200 people and their companions to Puerto Vallarta, MX. Gail assisted with the 200+ bookings, and was instrumental in helping us accomplish getting these travelers taken care of. Thank you so much for all you do and we will miss you when you transition to the government onsite Gail! - Kathi Le and Heidi Szabat |
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| Februray 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel February 2022 Employee of the Month – Clotilde (Cleo) Matibag, Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, ESC Desk Manager: The ESC Desk would like to nominate Cleo Matibag for employee of the month. Since coming back to Omega, she has proven to really be a valuable asset to all of us. We were in need of assistance on yesterday (Sunday 02/06/22), and Cleo didn't hesitate to jump in and help out. When she worked the late shift for the Corporate office she always stayed in communication with us, often asking if there was anything she could do. Having her on always meant that queues were well taken care of, which we cherish, since we're often under the gun with the emergency calls. I am sending you this because it's seldom that our team gets someone like Cleo that is willing to assist us. Each of the ESC desk's supervisors contacted me on their own to ask if we could nominate her... For me it is a no brainer. Below are the comments from the ESC Desk Supervisors. - Thanks, Greg Cleo works the heart of the business day. Her shift hours are busy from the time she clocks in until she leaves. Her assistance and support with Amadeus records, formats and the ESC desk is invaluable. She volunteers to work when we need help, and stays late when required. She is an outstanding colleague and team member. All of Omega World Travel is fortunate to have her working the trenches to ensure our clients are assisted with the best service possible. - Steven Gray Cleo is always willing to help with anything given to her. Her helping us out at night is working out perfectly. She is a valuable member willing to help without even asking. - Shellie Donato I concur, it has been a great asset to have her on during some of the hours we are working. She is very helpful and thorough, and a pleasure to work with. - Mary Ellen Carron |
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| January 2022 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel January 2022 Employee of the Month – Heidi Szabat, Branch Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kathi Le, Operations Manager: I want to nominate Heidi Szabat as employee of the month for January. She's been a tremendous help with a recent manager’s departure and has gone above and beyond. Heidi's dedication to our clients and agents are admirable. No matter how crazy we get, she gets the tasks done with a smile. Heidi is a team player and I appreciate her contribution to the corporate team. Here are some recent contributions that Heidi has made to the company. • Coordinating resources and assisting with Westat DODEA project and EAI time sensitive bookings • Conducting training for the new agent at Graybar and onboarding two new Omega employees to the corporate team • Monitoring daily unticketed reservations and queue management for all offices • Providing the group air department guidance with any challenges Heidi and her team did an amazing job helping with a Westat project. We received a request to book 25 non-profiled travelers to Europe all departing within 24-48 hours from various departure cities, with deviations and extended stays. Heidi received the below from the client: Thank you-so so much-you all are lifesavers. Thank you Heidi for everything that you do! We appreciate you! |
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| December 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel December 2021 Employee of the Month – Joye Morrison, Government Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Star Bell and Christa Mayville, Government Branch Managers and Marlene Sexton, Director of Government Services: Christa Mayville and I would like to nominate Joye Morrison for the December Employee of the Month. She has continuously assisted with servicing multiple Omega accounts while still servicing the main government account that she usually services. She also assists her fellow agents with exchanging complex tickets and answering questions in the chats. She accomplishes all of this while rarely requesting to go unavailable and with minimal to no errors. I would like to commend her for doing an outstanding job and encourage her to keep up the good work. Please consider our nomination. - Star Bell I would like to nominate Joye Morrison. Joye is an outstanding agent. Joye consistently goes above and beyond to service our customers. Recently, two travelers incurred no-show penalty fees for not canceling their stays. Joye was able to convince the hotel to waive these penalty fees. Joye's actions saved our client $500. I would like to thank Joye for going the extra mile to assist these travelers! - Marlene Sexton |
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| November 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel November 2021 Employee of the Month – Jinhee Son, Camp Humphreys Site Manager in South Korea. We would like to share the winning nomination from Joseph (Joe) Stanley, Processing Manager and Jenny Jiye Kim, Regional Operations Manager South Korea: I would like to nominate Jinhee Son, Camp Humphreys Site Manager in South Korea, for Employee of the Month. For those who don't know her, Jinhee is the Site Manager for Camp Humphreys under our United States Forces Korea (USFK) account and an experienced agent as well. As a manager, she is a warm and compassionate individual who I have seen take care of those in her charge on so many occasions. She is friendly and easy to relate to; she puts clients, employees and strangers at ease with her calm demeanor. Because of this, she is extremely patient with answering questions or listening to concerns/explanations. Despite the passivity that sort of nature would imply, Jinhee is unafraid to assist with client complaints or issues (internally or externally) to not only resolve the problem but explain to both the agent and the client the nature of the problem and its resolution. Jinhee is fearless in tackling new procedures and is consulted and well respected by many individuals from Omega (including coworkers and management) and our military client, including our Quality Assurance Evaluators on base. That is who she is as a manager. My keywords for Jinhee are Steady Dedication. There is a level of detail and sense of urgency needed to get her job done with the processes that are required on this contract. Her dedication to a job well done pushes her to take her work home routinely to continue pushing for resolution, keep us on schedule and to ultimately procure a positive outcome for Omega. Jinhee absolutely leads by example and she is one of the rocks that keeps USFK standing tall. Jinhee Son - You inspire, you lead by example and you are performing spectacularly. It's no wonder I nicknamed you Hollywood because you're a star. - Joseph Stanley, Processing Manager Hello, Thank you for acknowledging Jinhee’s excellence. As Joseph described, she is a manager who sets a good example for Camp Humphrey's other employees. She transferred from Osan AFB to Camp Humphreys in June. She quickly learned her new work and settled down as her own. We receive many compliments about Jinhee from customers. She is accurate and thorough in her work, paying attention to customer service as well. It is a pleasure to be also able to give her my recommendation for employee of the month. - Best Regards, Jenny Jiye Kim |
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| October 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel October 2021 Employee of the Month – Dan Ashmore, ARC Assistant Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination from Sissy Simpkins, Krista McCausley, Star Bell, Debbi Shaw and John Rumbley in Jacksonville, NC: I would like to nominate Dan Ashmore for employee of the month. Dan processes ARC for the Omega US branches. He often assists branches with tribulations that arise with exchanges, refunds, IAR errors, commissions, etc. I receive many compliments from Omega team members, praising his willingness to help. Although, he does not directly serve our external customers, he does make a huge impact with our internal customers. I am thankful, he is a part of the Omega team. I think he deserves recognition for his vital role in the company. - Sissy Simpkins I would like to nominate Dan Ashmore for employee of the month for OWT. Many changes have happened in the company in the past year and ahalf, but the workload has still remained. Dan has his day down to a science; he is the ARC/Settlement/Commissions department. Dan answers questions with great detail and research when agents and managers contact him daily. Dan is dedicated, dependable and very knowledgeable about his work. Please consider Dan Ashmore for OWT’s employee of the month. - Krista McCausley I would like to nominate Dan Ashmore for EOM. He's always willing to assist with reporting questions or any questions thrown his way. He provides assistance to the management team, but he's also helpful to the agents. He is quick to assist them with refund penalty questions and any other questions they throw his way. We truly appreciate all that he does for us and feel he is a true asset to team OWT!! Please consider my nomination. - Star Bell Please consider Dan for EOM. Not because of what he did this month, rather what he didn't do because he was on vacation. Sissy and Krista and I covered his ARC. While we did celebrate Dan for his knowledge, hard work, and team work ... his absence for so long made it crystal clear how apocalyptic it would be to ever lose him. All our Omega family should tip our proverbial hat to Dan Ashmore. - Debbi Shaw Dan has been very helpful with Korea issues. Always keeps everybody informed and updated on ARC. A pleasure to work with. - John Rumbley |
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| September 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel September 2021 Employee of the Month – Shayne Entorf, Data Analyst. We would like to share the winning nomination from Kimberly McCrea, Vice President Operations: I want to nominate Shayne Entorf as an employee of the month. In the last 2 weeks, I have received multiple compliments regarding Shayne. He is always willing to try new things and consistently helps staff with their needs. He always has a smile and a wonderful sense of humor that makes working with him easy. Below are comments from Kathleen Le and Marlene Sexton about Shayne. Shayne Entorf is a pleasure to work with, he is so knowledgeable and always willing to help with a SMILE. Especially being the new kid on the block, he has been a tremendous help in creating customized reports for me. I can rely on Shayne to get the job done every time. Some examples of the customized reports he's created for me are listed below. • Flight disruption report- I can add various cities to obtain any potential travelers that may be affected by flight disruptions • Daily unticketed report • Daily VIP seats not confirmed • Petrofac daily hotel report for the next year - Kathi Le I think Shayne is great! He gets my requests done accurately and very quickly and I know our clients appreciate him very much. For JPL, he updated their weekly Quick Summary report like three times last month because JPL kept adding different requests at different times but Shayne didn't disappoint, each modification to the report was promptly completed. He also assisted with an updated carbon commissions report that I was able to provide JPL within a half hour of their request, they were very happy with the report and our very quick turnaround. - Marlene Sexton Shayne, I just wanted to say thank you for your ever-positive attitude and for helping OPS get things done. - Kimberly McCrea |
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| August 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel August 2021 Employee of the Month – Sandee “Ginger” Graziano, Travel Consultant on the ESC Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, Manager: I would like to submit Sandee “Ginger” Graziano for employee of the month. Ginger is the exact representation of the caliber of agent we look for at Omega World Travel. Ginger recently came back to the ESC staff and she hasn’t missed a beat. Her customer service skills are commendable. I received the below compliment from a client. As you can see, she often goes beyond what is expected. I’m glad she is back at Omega, and I’m ecstatic she’s on the ESC Desk. - Greg Wilcox I wanted to take a minute to express my appreciation to Omega World Travel, specifically to travel agent Ginger, who provided excellent service and assistance, ultimately rescuing me from what could have been a travel nightmare. On Saturday, August 14, 2021, I was attempting to return home to San Diego from what had already been a difficult trip to Texas. That afternoon, an electrical storm caused a two to three hour shutdown at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, leading to a cancellation of scores of international and domestic flights, mine among them. DFW was a crazy scene filled with irate passengers. American Airlines was overwhelmed, with customer service lines of 300 to 500 passengers stretching down the concourse in every terminal. (This is not an exaggeration. I have photos.) AA’s customer service telephone lines and public website were similarly unreachable at the time. Fearing I would be stuck in the DFW area overnight or worse, I reached out to Omega to see if you could help. Ginger not only was able to reassure me that AA had already transferred me onto a later flight (which I had no way of knowing until then), she went the extra step of contacting AA and successfully asking them to move me to an earlier flight. On her own initiative, she then waited on the line until she actually spoke to a live AA representative to confirm the reservation and provide specific instructions on the gate location and re-issuance of my boarding documents. Although I got home about 8 to 9 hours late, when I left DFW the terminal still was filled with stranded passengers who weren’t so lucky to have Ginger from Omega Travel looking out for them. So thank you to her and to Omega for a job well done on this and every occasion. |
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| July 2021 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel July 2021 Employees of the Month – Houston Hayles, Bob Klein, Hani Akil, Fatima Khalid and Judy Richman. We would like to share the winning nomination from Linda Sisk, Client Services Manager: I would like to nominate Houston Hayles, Bob Klein, Hani Akil, Fatima Khalid and Judy Richman for Employee of the Month. Collectively, this entire team professionally and patiently assisted the Peace Corps in supporting the second-ever domestic deployment of Volunteers in the agency’s history; 158 Volunteers entered service in May to assist with the vaccination campaign under FEMA. As stated in the below email that we received from the Chief of Operations, Peace Corps Response team, this has been a herculean effort. The logistics of supporting so many people, many of whom are on small, mobile teams moving in disparate locations, in 8 different states, have been daunting. It has required a fundamentally different approach from how the agency normally operates, and demanded much of our office. He praised the team for their efficiency and professionalism during this project. He expressed his appreciation for having them support this mission. - Linda Sisk Ms. Sisk, I wanted to write and extend my effusive praise to Houston Hayles and his team. Our office is currently supporting the second-ever domestic deployment of Volunteers in the agency’s history; 158 Volunteers entered service in May to assist with the vaccination campaign under FEMA. This has been a herculean effort. The logistics of supporting so many people, many of whom are on small, mobile teams moving in disparate locations, in eight different states, have been daunting. It has required a fundamentally different approach from how the agency normally operates, and demanded much of our office. Our office consequently demanded a lot from the Omega team. I cannot accurately convey to you how many times we have had to contact Houston to drop a large operational shift in his lap, to change itineraries and plans from what we’ve previously asked, sometimes within minutes of our operations seeming to be settled. Houston and his team have been extremely patient with us the whole time, never once appearing irritated, exasperated, or unequal to the task. Moreover, they have been true professionals, diligent in their duties, and I cannot recall that they made a single error in the hundreds of actions we’ve asked them to take for us. We are very fortunate to have had Houston and his team supporting us on this mission, and in a very real and meaningful way they have contributed to the very important work of getting Americans vaccinated. I hope very much that his enormous effort, consummate professionalism, and organizational prowess are all recognized for the degree to which they ensured success in the agency’s work. |
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| June 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel June 2021 Employee of the Month – Samantha Hasspacher, Group Air Desk Manager. We would like to share the winning nomination from Nicole Wilhelm, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Samantha Hasspacher for Employee of the Month. Samantha continuously goes above and beyond, and throughout the pandemic has shown truly exceptional customer service. Recently one of our clients opened up their travel to all personnel, who rarely take the time to provide compliments. I received the below email from a client regarding the superior service provided by Samantha. Thank you for your time and consideration. - Nicole Wilhelm Hello, I just wanted to write and thank you for an exceptional customer service experience with Samantha. She helped me book airfare and car rental for a work trip and went above and beyond to answer any questions I had, while also offering advice about her own experiences traveling with children. I'm a single mom and will be traveling with my 19-month old son for the first time next week. Samantha understood my anxieties and helped me think of all the accommodations I needed to make ahead of time, most of which I did not even think of. I am truly grateful for that extra sense of care and support and just wanted to express my gratitude. Thank you. |
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| April 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel April 2021 Employee of the Month – Fatima Khalid, Travel Consultant in Fairfax, VA. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, Manager: I would like to nominate Fatima Khalid. I watch her as she takes care of the callers. She treats each one with an excellent standard of service. She really takes the time to make sure that every possible question is answered, most times without even being asked. No matter whether it’s a complicated international call or just a short domestic flight, she gives the same level of service every time. Fatima leaves no stone unturned when trying to find viable options for travelers. Her knowledge of international travel is just about the best of any agent. She really is an asset for us. She is extremely attentive to the needs of the clients and I know for a fact that our clients absolutely love her. As a matter of fact, I received a complimentary email recently from a VERY happy client that Fatima serviced. Fatima worked on this reservation for over a week and a half. Thanks for everything that you do Fatima! We appreciate you! - Greg Wilcox |
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| March 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel March 2021 Employee of the Month – Hani Akil, Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Karla Lobo, Regional Manager and Greg Wilcox, Manager: I want to share with you one of the many complimentary emails I get to read from passengers to Hani. Not only is he an excellent agent, he works well with other agents answering questions and following up with issues. I said this before, he is a blessing to work with. Hani recently received a reply from a client that said “Cheers Hani for your excellent customer support and great customer experience! World class, sir!”. Greg and I see many emails like this complimenting Hani’s work. Please consider him for the Omega World Travel employee of the month. - Karla Lobo The customer compliment that Karla mentions is just a small look into everything that Hani does... Seamlessly and almost effortlessly. Hani not only has taken on mastering a third GDS, but often can be found assisting all the other agents. We are all basically on a learning curve; having to master each of the added accounts that we now have cooperatively. Hani is not afraid of getting in the thick of things and learning the inner workings, so that he can pass on the knowledge he's gained. All of this while cementing himself as a dedicated agent for Peace Corps. - Greg Wilcox |
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| February 2021 Employee of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel February 2021 Employee of the Month – Rene Fowlkes, Travel Consultant. We would like to share the winning nomination from Star Bell, Manager and Nicole Wilhelm, Manager: I would like to nominate Rene Fowlkes for Employee of the Month. She is a ERO government agent that is currently also assisting with FELD entertainment AND also assisting with ETS2 calls. She has built a good relationship with several of the travel coordinators. She is always willing to assist where needed and is very flexible with her schedule. She is always helping her team members and has truly shown to be a true asset to our team. Please consider my nomination for Rene. Thank you. - Star Bell I would like to nominate Rene for Employee of the Month. Rene traditionally works with the Jacksonville government call center, however, in these extraordinary times we live in, she has been helping out the Virginia Beach Office with the Feld Entertainment Account. Rene has jumped in and ran with the account and has helped us to service the client in a timely manner, while meeting their strict parameters for booking. Rene has been an excellent asset to our office, has worked extremely hard, and further has truly been a beacon in getting the account through these past busy months. - Nicole Wilhelm |
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| January 2021 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel January 2021 Employees of the Month – Dan Ditchman and Tanya Perry. We would like to share the winning nomination from Nikki Wilhelm, Branch Manager:. I would like to nominate both Dan Ditchman and Tanya Perry for Employees of the Month. The Virginia Beach office has been incredibly busy over the last several months, and both agents who traditionally provide dedicated services to a single client, have stepped up and helped manage the corporate travel accounts in our office; several of which they had never serviced previously. Dan and Tanya both continue to provide superior customer service to our clients, as well as helping our team to stay on top of the numerous requests and calls we receive daily. Both Dan and Tanya are an integral part of the success of the Virginia Beach office and are, furthermore, assets to the Omega World Travel family. Thanks Dan and Tanya for your hard work! We appreciate you! - Nikki Wilhelm |
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| December 2020 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating our Omega World Travel December 2020 Employees of the Month – Nicole Wilhelm and Samantha Hasspacher. We would like to share the winning nomination from Laurie Kenney, Client Services Manager:. I am nominateing Nikki Wilhelm and Samantha Hasspacher for Employee of the Month. I would like to take a moment to recognize both Nikki and Samantha who have worked tirelessly during Covid to accommodate all travelers on my current list of clients. Going above and beyond has become the norm by spending hours with manual updates to reports, exchanges, to assure our clients that all unused tickets are used and waivers secured. They have worked to secure refunds and name changes. I would like to recognize all the dedication of these two employees and let them know how much I appreciate all the support and assistance they provide. - Laurie Kenney |
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| November 2020 Employees of the Month Please join us in congratulating this months winners, Maria Enriquez and John Arroyos, dedicated travel consultants to JPL. We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager. I would like to nominate Maria Enriquez and John Arroyos as Omega Employees of the Month. They both service our JPL account. Maria and John put together a PowerPoint presentation on the life of a ticket. It described how we support JPL starting with a passenger name record all the way to the back office, demonstrating daily IAR audits to back office reporting. They made sure to describe all of the services and technology that Omega provides JPL along the way. This project was out of the normal scope of work that these employees perform for JPL. It was out of their comfort zone but they overcame their fears and did a wonderful job putting all the information together and presenting it like true experts. I had a chance to attend their presentation to the JPL decision makers and I also agree with Sally, the JPL Travel Manager. They did a remarkable job! Below is the note that Sally sent me after the presentation. - Marlene Good Afternoon Marlene, I just wanted to say what a remarkable job both John and Maria did today during their presentation. The presentation ran from 2:00PM through 3:30PM and was presented to the joint offices of Travel Reservations and Travel Accounting to educate all attendees on the multi-layered complexities that occur with ticket dispositioning and mid-office accounting through to reconciliation. The presentation itself was extremely informative, and beautifully presented it was informative and colorful and animated with interesting anecdotal examples salt and peppered throughout. It was also very well presented by both John and Maria, both were calm in their delivery, informed from a subject matter perspective and incredibly professional and knowledgeable. Making accounting interesting in itself is a challenge but both did a beautiful job and they should both be commended. I have both been in the audience and also a presenter for literally thousands of presentations in my career and this presentation was an excellent example of how a good presentation should be done. Well done John and Maria. - Sally |
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| October 2020 Employees of the Month Christa Mayville, Manager in Jacksonville, NC. I would like to nominate Christa Mayville as employee of the month. Christa received a call on a Sunday evening from our ESC staff concerning leisure bookings. These clients attempted to check in for their flight on Oct 19 from Manila to Taipei but were advised by the gate agent that Eva Airways made a cancellation, there were no rescheduled flights. The travelers were extremely upset as there was no notification prior, Omega had not received any notification either. Stranded and obviously upset, Christa did a magnificent job keeping the client calm over the next week while she worked with Skybird and multiple airlines to accommodate these travelers onto another flight. On top of everything else, these travelers had to extend their Visas and retake COVID tests so that results were within requirement for the new departure date. All extra expenses. After all was said and done, the family finally made it back to the US and the client came to the Jacksonville office to thank Christa. Venting about their ordeal overseas he finally asked the employee who met him in the reception area to tell the manager that had assisted them throughout this ordeal that he was here to speak to her. He had no idea that he was already speaking to that person. Christa quickly introduced herself and thanked him for stopping by to put a face to the name of the person that guided them through the mess. Christa is an asset to our company, never hesitating to go above and beyond to service our travelers through times like these. - Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager |
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| September 2020 Employees of the Month Linda Sisk, Account Manager, Debbie Stevens, Branch Manager, Leanne Lunacek, Travel Specialist; Keandra McCoy, Travel Specialist and Naomi Wright, Travel Specialist. We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager. I would like to nominate our Omega team assigned to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) in Bethesda, Maryland as September Employees of the Month. Linda Sisk, Debbie Stevens, Leanne Lunacek, Keandra McCoy and Naomi Wright were recently recognized for their contributions to the program and presented with this year's NHLBI Group Award. I am so proud of them! Job well done! Below is the letter that came from NHLBI. - Marlene Sexton Good afternoon, Amid these crazy times, I wanted to share this award that was just received by our team. Linda can attest to the many challenges we have faced, and the hurdles we have jumped over the past two years; from inception, to now being at a point where they are ready to transition us to being part of the Administrative Management Branch. I am super proud of my team. Thank you, - Debbie Stevens Dear colleagues, Congratulations! On behalf of NHLBI Director Dr. Gary Gibbons, it is my special pleasure to announce that you are a recipient of an FY20 NHLBI Group Award. This award honors your contributions as part of the Shared Services Program Team, nominated by Joanna Bare. We are pleased to recognize your exceptional teamwork significant contributions to furthering the NHLBI mission in a time of constrained administrative resources. Your committed work truly exemplifies collaboration at its best, even amid the challenging times we continue to face as a NHLBI community this year. We are proud of the dedication and expertise your team showed throughout this important effort. To show our gratitude, we are pleased to offer electronic certificates of appreciation. Thank you again for your efforts and your ongoing support of the NHLBI and NIH missions. |
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| August 2020 Employees of the Month Hani Akil, travel consultant in Fairfax and Joy DeBernard, Manager, Linda Bowling, Melissa Jank, travel consultants in Fredericksburg During this time, you get to know those who silently step up with a positive attitude and take on new roles. Limited knowledge and training would be an obstacle to many people, but not to this group. Within this group, I have someone that within a couple of days cross-trained himself to a new GDS and three ladies who stepped out of their comfort zone to help. I would like to nominate Joy DeBernard, Linda Bowling, Melissa Jank and Hani Akil for employees of the month. They have gone above and beyond during these difficult times. Servicing our clients with a smile and without an error, making the change easier for us and for our clients. They each took on additional duties during this time and embraced everything that we asked them to do. As we’ve been trying to do a lot of work with minimal staffing levels, they have been critical to our success. Because of this and many more reasons, I would like to nominate them as Omega World Travel Employees of the Month. Thank you for considering my recommendation. - Karla Lobo ____________________________________________________________________________________ I am writing to you to recommend Hani Akil for employee of the month. During the past few months Hani has really proven himself as a valuable asset to Omega World Travel. Amidst our present pandemic situation, he has really excelled in providing top notch customer service as well paying attention to details that even I might have overlooked. He meets every new challenge with a positive attitude. That's quite refreshing to see at a time like this. He has met each new adjustment with understanding and sometimes even enthusiasm. I had a conversation with him a couple of months ago about new accounts and the new way we were going to be handling corporate offices. By the end of that day he was training himself on Amadeus. So now he can take on any account. That's very admirable. He almost single handedly keeps the ball rolling on all of the ‘Fairfax' major accounts, many of which had dedicated agents pre-pandemic. It is because of this and numerous other reasons that I am pleased to nominate Hani Akil as Omega World Travel Employee of the Month. Thank you for considering my recommendation. - Greg Wilcox |
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| July 2020 Employee of the Month Ray Pereztrejo, who works on our ESC Desk We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox, Branch Manager: I would like to formally submit Ray Pereztrejo as a nominee for Employee of the Month. I recently sent you a synopsis of a situation that occurred. I also attached a call that I had with the CDC Travel Administrator; she absolutely raved about Ray's performance. This compliment marks the third one that he has received recently. In this case, Ray had two occasions where he really shined. The first time, it was his handling of a group of CDC travelers. Ray received the call from that day's designated travel arranger and proceeded to book the reservations as directed. However he took it a step further by ensuring that every detail was not only covered but communicated to the travelers as well as the arrangers, even down to notifying them that there were slight delays while they were on travel. That really put the arrangers at ease. The portion of CDC travel that we've been involved in over the weekends is normally on an urgent basis, with travel almost immediate once the tickets have been issued. As the CDC Travel Administrator put it, "The arrangers Love working with Ray." On the second occasion during the same week, there arose an issue with a rental car of a traveler. The traveler needed roadside assistance, which isn't offered under the present contract that is in place for the CDC. Again Ray effortlessly kept in communication with the traveler, the travel arranger and the CDC Administrator until everything needed had been satisfied. The CDC Travel Administrator’s exact words were "You would have thought that I was the only person Ray was taking care of; very personal attention." In these and other instances, Ray's attention to detail and follow through is impeccable. I had already sent him an email applauding him for his outstanding level of customer service. His reply to me was "I'm just doing what we're supposed to do”. I wish that all the agents felt this level of service was "The Norm". For him to exhibit this level of excellence during such an uncertain and fluctuating time is exemplary. Thank you for your consideration. - Greg Wilcox |
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| June 2020 Employee of the Month Starnasia (Star) Bell in our Jacksonville, NC office We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager: I would like to nominate Jacksonville manager Starnasia (Star) Bell as Omega employee of the month. Star has gone above and beyond to assist ICE ERO with accomplishing their agency mission during the COVID crisis. While most of our clients are contemplating a return to travel, Immigration and Customs Enforcement has never really stopped. Star has dealt with many obstacles to support this agency during the pandemic. Star and her team have been challenged to provide the client with alternative travel routes as most international carriers have had very limited to no flight schedules, in addition to dealing with countries' whose borders have been closed or have specific travel restrictions and processes on repatriation travel. Last month, Egypt Air would not allow the purchase of tickets for a deportee unless a bank wire payment was arranged. ICE is not set up to complete purchases in this manner and so Star worked with the ERO Mission Support Specialist to complete the purchase internally involving our Omega accounting department. Star has also successfully dealt with other similar challenges involving South African and Ethiopian Airways, obtaining promo codes to ensure charges to the ERO corporate billing account are legitimate, maintaining the agency's security protocols. Star has also worked with the ERO Staff Officer daily and recently prevented a deportee from being denied boarding on an American Airlines flight to the Netherlands because of the EU ban on travelers from the US. Star acted fast and obtained a copy of the electronic country clearance from ERO, the airline eventually allowed the deportee to board the flight we booked. Our Omega ERO team generally deals with timely and extensive travel requests involving juveniles or family units, deportees and escorting officers but Star has kept our team focused on the agency's mission during this crisis and has proven to be an essential resource to our company and especially our high profile DHS client. - Marlene |
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| May 2020 Employee of the Month Nicole (Nikki) Wilhelm, Branch Manager of the Virginia Beach Office We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager Over the last month Nikki has done an outstanding job demonstrating strong leadership, effective communication and customer service; thus improving the overall effectiveness of her Virginia Beach office during this difficult time. She has kept her team focused on all aspects of training and professional development. Nikki has this team working extremely well together. They have accomplished impressive improvements with customer service and are all crossed-trained to support each other. Nikki has provided excellent customer service and support to Omega Account Managers on miscellaneous projects, including multiple unused ticket reports. Nikki has been actively engaged with our clients, keeping Omega management informed about their travel programs and when they expect to return to travel. Nikki is leading a wonderful group of agents focused on their professional growth. She has gone above and beyond to assist our clients and Omega account managers with whatever needed. I think Nikki Wilhelm deserves to be Omega Employee of the Month. - Marlene |
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| April 2020 Employees of the Month Michelle Orwig, Beth Myers, Denise Zortman and Lea Flickinger in our York, PA office We would like to share the winning nomination from Sharon Kirchgessner, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Michelle Orwig, Beth Myers, Denise Zortman & Lea Flickinger for employees of the month. These ladies have worked tirelessly to help one of our very important government agency clients deploy medical staff to various locations due to the coronavirus. We started on January 16 with three cities and have seen that number grow to approximately 20 cities. They have worked evenings and weekends to accommodate this client. Making new reservations, air and hotel. There have been many changes, calls to hotels to waive penalties and extend stays, exchanges, etc. I feel they have gone above and beyond to help them and they continue to do so with a great attitude and a smile that can be felt through the phone. I am very proud of them. I am so fortunate that they are part of my team. Please know that any consideration is appreciated. Sharon |
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| March 2020 Employee of the Month Rose Llantos, Travel Consultant for our ESC Desk. We would like to share the winning nomination from Greg Wilcox Regional Manager I would like to nominate Rose Llantos for employee of the month. Below is an email that I received from a client. This call took place right at the beginning of the situation surrounding the COVID-19 outbreak; which resulted in flights and events being canceled. As the email really speaks for itself, I would just like to add my thoughts on Rose as an Omega employee. First let me say that this email is indicative of the type of employee that Rose is on a consistent basis. I can say without a thought that Rose truly is one of the best agents I have come across in a great while. As shown in the example below, Rose can remain calm and “Get the Job Done”. She has a way of always putting the customers at ease while keeping them well informed. I often use Rose's phone calls when training new employees because I know that hers will be above standard. If I could nominate Rose every month; regardless of whether there's a compliment letter or not, I would. - Greg Wilcox Good afternoon Mr. Wilcox, Several weeks ago I had travel arrangements made through Omega World Travel to go to Denver for a week for a conference. Unfortunately, my conference was cancelled, thoroughly complicating return travel as I had extended my trip for a personal vacation with my husband. Because these events happe<ed on a Sunday I called your emergency line and I had the pleasure of speaking with Ms. Rose Llantos. Ms. Llantos was extraordinarily helpful during a few very stressful hours for me where I had no idea how or when I would be traveling. She was calm and patient with me while I juggled emails with my supervisor and husband regarding my plans, and the back-and forth resulted in a number of changed itineraries. Fortunately, Ms. Llantos was able to handle all of this very quickly with the airline agent in a conference call with me and everything worked out perfectly for my trip! Her organized approach for helping me made this whole situation easier to handle as a solo traveler and I am so grateful for her assistance! At the end of our chat she was laughing with me at how crazy things could get, a much needed catharsis at the end of an overwhelming ordeal. I appreciate that too, just as much as her technical help! I am glad Ms. Llantos picked up the phone that day, she made a world of difference to me. I hope this email finds you and your team well. I look forward to working with OWT in the future! Thank you for your time! |
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| February 2020 Employees of the Month Vanessa Rush-Bisong, Carlos Lora, Vivian Wenrich, Andrea Williamson, Eva Kiriazoglou, Michael Kelly, Susan Schmidt, Susan Tennant, Linus Nedd, Dean Schultz, Rose Dunn, and Deborah Huffer at our Ft. Meade onsite location We would like to share the winning nomination from Mike Pagnanelli, Regional Manager I would like to nominate the entire staff at our Ft. Meade onsite location. The staff did a superb job in coordinating travel for this very unique customer, while experiencing major computer issues. The agents had to work for multiple weeks with only half, or sometimes less than half, of the computers being operational. It posed a major challenge due to the large volume of reservations booked on a daily basis. The agents had to rotate desks, and jump on computers when other agents went to lunch. It was a bit chaotic at times, but the staff worked tirelessly in making sure the traveler’s needs were met. We received a very complimentary letter from the Section Chief stating his appreciation for everyone's hard work and dedication as we worked through this difficult issue. The letter is below. I am very proud of the staff for what they accomplished to serve one of Omega's biggest clients. - Mike Omega, I appreciate each and every one of you and what you bring to the table. While Ms. Harris admittedly didn't mention ALL of the challenges Logistics has faced, she could have easily talked about our months long Sabre outage or how our business has increased exponentially over the last 2 years, or how you still perform your duties with our systems reminiscent of those from around 1992, with internal systems that don't talk to each other. I could go on... Despite all of this, you all keep people moving and you do it with a smile and a great attitude. Thank you for that! |
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| January 2020 Employee of the Month Michel Marchello, Travel Consultant in our York, PA office We would like to share the winning nomination from Marlene Sexton, Regional Manager: I would like to nominate Michel Marchello for Employee of the Month. I received the below complimentary email from a very important client that we service. It's not often that we get appreciative emails from this client. Not that we don't deserve his acknowledgments but we all know that he has extremely high standards for service. I also know that his time is very valuable and so it says a lot about Michel to get kudos from him. Michel should be nominated as Employee of the Month even more so because she wouldn't even accept all the credit herself. She acknowledged her teammates for contributing. Awesome Omega ATTITUDE! Marlene Sexton Omega / Concur and Fiscal. During the past 72 hours, OTA ticketed a large amount of air tickets in short intervals. I write to express my appreciation for the quick turn around and excellent service and follow up by your agent Michel Marchello. Please convey my thanks to her and keep up the good work. Very impressive. Thank you. Best Regards |
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| December 2019 Employees of the Month Ryanne O’Connor, Allison Gray, KC Wittekind and Kelly Seyler, Travel Consultants in Jacksonville We would like to share the winning nomination from Heather Bailey, Manager of our Jacksonville office: On behalf of the Jacksonville Management Team, we'd like to nominate Ryanne O'Connor, Allison Gray, KC Wittekind and Kelly Seyler for employees of the month. Each one of them comes to work with a positive attitude, ready to multi-task handling several different accounts daily. Their attitude is nothing but infectious and radiates positivity among the team. In addition to handling multiple accounts between two GDS systems, they handle some of the more difficult tasks and challenges for our clients. Each one of them has a different level of experience contributing different perspectives, collectively sharing their 41 years of travel experience. Knowing that Jacksonville Managers have been revamping and requiring training, these ladies have taken the initiative in assisting on creating guides and checklists for our team and new hires to coincide with these processes. With Kelly's strongest skills in USPS, Ryanne, KC and Allison sharing strengths in ICE, NPPD and HHS, they work together to ensure we have an account reference guide, do's and don'ts for each account we service. Common Q&A for each account for agents to reference to help service the client faster. We shared with them our ultimate goals and this is what we were striving towards implementing. Knowing we had a lot on our plates, they took it upon themselves to create this for us to make a smoother process and transition based on what they experienced as well from being a trainee and trainer. The new hire checklist makes sure every part of PNR is accurately completed with Udids, business unit ID, all things required for a government booking. This checklist also includes phone training, making modifications and changes to PNR's, pricing and storing, international and quality control. Booking from A to Z for two GDS systems. Their efforts in the success of the team is outstanding. They take pride in what they do and it shows. Their fellow co-workers and trainees have expressed their appreciation for this significantly impacting them in a positive way. I'd like to recognize them for their efforts. - Heather Bailey |
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| November 2019 Employee of the Month Rose Farr, Travel Consultant in our Virginia Beach Office We would like to share the winning nomination from Nicole Wilhelm, Manager of our Virginia Beach office: I would like to nominate Rose Farr for employee of the month. Over this past month, one of our clients had a special project for 12 VIPs on a trip to Saudi Arabia, which Rose handled superbly. Rose spent weeks ensuring the trip was perfect, and worked especially hard to ensure all needs were met. I received the below message from the project coordinator and am ecstatic to have such an asset on the Virginia Beach team. From Nicole (Nikki) Wilhelm Hello Nicole, I want to send a letter of gratitude to Ms. Rose Farr for her assistance with the extraordinary task of booking 12 high-profile celebrities. She has not only secured travel that fits or exceeds their wishes, she has been so kind in offering follow up assistance with their personal travel accounts such as frequent flyer and TSA. Rose stayed after hours on Friday for a very long period of time (2+ hrs) to secure my most important VIP’s travel. If she hadn’t we would not have satisfied my clients. Thank you Rose! And thank you Nikki for being so supportive of your staff and my client's needs. You all hit a home run! Best wishes, Andy |
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| October 2019 Employees of the Month Nicole Lisella, Kat Paranuk and Lisa Moore, Travel Consultants in our Virginia Beach office We would like to share the winning nomination from Nicole Wilhelm, Manager of our Virginia Beach office: I would like to nominate the travel consultants servicing the Feld account on their continued outstanding service and dedication. Kat, Lisa, and Nicole consistently go above and beyond any expectation to ensure our client is well cared for. We received the below commendation, and I could not be more proud of this team. Hello Gloria, it was a pleasure meeting you at the Ritz event last night! I am so glad that I was introduced to you. As I told you, I work for our President, CFO, CMO, SVP of Global Partnerships and I am the main backup to Mr. Feld and the Feld family when their EA is out of the office. I have been working with Nicole Lisella, Lisa Moore and Kat Paranuk, in your Virginia Beach office, for over 2 ½ years now and they have been an integral part of my success as an Executive Assistant at Feld Entertainment, Inc. They are my guardian angels, and I praise them via email on almost a daily basis. Knowing that Nicole, Lisa and Kat are there to help me out whenever one of my executives is on the road and needs travel assistance, I know I am in good hands. When Mr. Feld travels and I am covering for his assistant, I know that Nicole and her team have my back every step of the way. There is nothing worse than travel delays and not knowing why. Nicole, who is my first contact (with Lisa and Kat as backup) is there to help me out with the tough questions and always there to help figure out a game plan, if requested. I have valued our working relationship over the last 2 ½ years and know that I would be lost without them. When I need to make travel arrangements for my executives or VIP’s, I know that Nicole is there to make sure they have the right flights AND seat assignments. I can’t say enough good things about them. So, consider this a big THANK YOU to Omega and your fantastic team in the Virginia Beach office. As the world relies more on computers and online travel websites, I, for one, am thrilled that Feld Entertainment, Inc. has a working relationship with Omega World Travel and has the ability to speak with live people when things need a personal touch for my VIP’s! Again, it was wonderful meeting you, the President/CEO of Omega World Travel, and I am glad I got to tell you about my wonderful relationship with your Virginia Beach staff. |
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| September 2019 Employee of the Month Carla Anzures in our Operations Department, Corporate Headquarters in Fairfax, VA We would like to share the winning nomination from Matthew Babner and Greg Zelenak in our MIS Department in Jacksonville, NC: I would like to nominate Ms. Carla Anzures for Employee of the month for all of Omega. Though Mr. Zelenak and I are able to install and maintain most everything when it comes to Omega equipment, there are many times that Ms. Anzures has provided us with a new fix to an ongoing problem or when we are stuck on a GDS issue she has been able to take over and resolve the issue. She regularly stays in touch with Sabre and Apollo reps to maintain an advanced understanding of the programs. She is always willing to help out and answer even the dumbest of questions. I know I had a few in the beginning and still do from time to time. She does all of this while staying calm, cool, collected, and pleasant. I have never had a bad interaction with her. She is - Matthew Babner I would like to nominate Carla Anzures for Employee of the Month. She is always very helpful to the MIS department. Whenever we have an issue with the GDS's, she is right there to help and she keeps us appraised of issues or fixes with the GDS's. Carla is always a pleasure to work with and provides us with fantastic service that helps us operate as one Omega Team. - Greg Zelenak |
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| August 2019 Employee of the Month Joy Volk-Poyer, Travel Consultant in our Virginia Beach Office We would like to share the winning nomination from Nicole Wilhelm, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Joy Volk-Poyer for Employee of the Month. Joy is one of the most diligent and hard-working agents I have ever had the pleasure of working with. She is always lending a hand to guide agents; she consistently manages all of our online bookings, helps troubleshoot when fares are not storing correctly, and overall, works incredibly hard to keep our machine running. Joy is such an asset to our office. We are so lucky to have her. Nicole Wilhelm |
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| July 2019 Employees of the Month Star Bell, Layken Conner, Emily Efird, Brandon Mendiola, Jamie Marigliano, Joye Morrison, Migdalia Camacho, Debbie Whatley, Diane Coxe, Darlene Ostrander and Rene Fowlkes, ERO Team Jacksonville  We would like to share the winning nomination from Heather Bailey, Branch Manager: This account is very difficult with its agency guidelines and the country and airline restrictions are very specific and intense to turn around in a short amount of time. This team has been working hard to keep up with the work and their productivity speaks for itself! Although they get behind which is out of their immediate control, they never complain but work harder. I couldn't ask for a better group of folks, their comradery and attitude is infectious! They always maintain a positive professionalism that's like none other. This is also a reflection of Star Bell, their manager, who works with the ERO chief staff. She takes on many battles for her team to succeed and still maintains a positive, driven attitude. Star is constantly working with ERO decision makers to accomplish the agency's objectives and goals. She is well respected by her team and fellow managers. They've all been putting in a lot of hours to help each other and the team to keep a good balance and I feel they deserve some recognition. I'm super proud of them all and we are very lucky to have such great Omega representatives. Heather Bailey |
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| June 2019 Employee of the Month Beth Myers, Travel Consultant in York, PA  We would like to share the winning nomination from Sharon Kirchgessner, Branch Manager:I would like to nominate Beth Myers for Employee of the Month. She goes above and beyond to assist our customers. Her professionalism, empathy, and can-do attitude always shine through. She is an asset to Omega World Travel and I am proud she is part of my team. Any consideration is appreciated. Below is a wonderful email that Beth received from a customer. This is an example of the service she provides on a daily basis. Thank you, Sharon Kirchgessner Beth, It helps to have people in high places. I really appreciate the help you have provided me in my deployment to South Sudan. Over the years working with Omega Travel, and you in particular, I have come to appreciate the professionalism in job knowledge, the follow through on getting things done in an expeditious manner and the willingness to lend an ear to customers whose perceived travel concern now becomes your job one in their mind. I have seen this from the “supplier side” working in CDC Logistics and, on several occasions, the “user side” as I was deployed to international locales by CDC. I have traveled a lot of places both domestic and international via commercial air while in USAF and at CDC. No Travel Service I have dealt with in over 33 years of government travel holds a candle to OMEGA. Respectfully,! |
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| May 2019 Employee of the Month The Ticketing Department in Jacksonville, NC We would like to share the winning nomination from Heather Bailey, Branch Manager: I'd like to nominate the Jacksonville Ticketing Department: Angil Imel, Cheryl Lawrence-Fullerton, Porschia Sutton, Tisa Spencer and Joe Stanley for Employees of the Month! If I could, I would bottle up the teamwork, comradery, respect and integrity this department has for each other and for this company. This department handles hundreds of tickets and refunds weekly. In addition to working the required Q assignments and Invoicing at daily high volume, they handle immediate requests from agents on calls needing something for a client who is stranded due to flight cancellations and do an immediate fix so the traveler can be on their way. The volume is high and can be very stressful, however, this team conquers all! As the Branch Manager, it is so comforting knowing you have a group of agents that can step up when needed and self-guide and work together without constant guidance. I think this team needs some major recognition as they sit behind the scenes and often get overlooked. I'm proud to have them on my team! Great job Jacksonville Ticketing Department and thank you for all you do! |
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| April 2019 Employee of the Month Cliffie Lampley-Neal, Travel Consultant in Jacksonville, NC We would like to share the winning nomination from Barbara Criner, General Manager: I would like to submit an Employee of the Month Nomination for Jacksonville, NC Agent, Cliffie Lampley-Neal. The Jacksonville group was lucky enough to have Cliffie join our team in 2016 and it was a perfect fit. With over 20 years experience in the industry and our fast-paced Call Center, she is dependable, determined, and dedicated to the field of Travel and Customer Service Excellence. Below are four email compliments we received from a few of our government clients that had the pleasure of a great customer service experience from Cliffie! - This email is being sent to commend the service received today when Cliffie assisted me with airline reservations. She was efficient, knowledgeable of your product and polite during the planning process. Additionally, Cliffie provided a stress free and timely experience. Thank you for employing a pleasant customer service representative. - I was just on the line with Cliffie for about 35 minutes and she was extremely patient and helpful with trying to get me flight options for Singapore. I just wanted to commend her on her awesome work and assistance with this. THANK YOU SO MUCH AS ALWAYS! - I was in need of real help finding four hotel rooms in the same hotel for some of our staff to attend a conference this summer. I had really struck out for a few days looking in Concur, as all the hotels were booked for that area. But your awesome specialist Cliffie pulled a rabbit out of the hat. She got us four rooms at a good hotel for five nights. Best of all, she had a really friendly, professional delivery over the phone. I asked her for her supervisor’s email address to send along my appreciation. Thank you for Cliffie! - Truly appreciate your help and “over the top efforts” yesterday. Your diligence and patience with my itinerary changes allowed me to get home yesterday from four days on the road, vs being stuck at ORD for another long flight delay. THANK YOU! |
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| March 2019 Employee of the Month Denise Agostino, Travel Consultant at a Dedicated Corporate On-site Office in Washington DC  We would like to share the winning nomination from Houston Hayles, Branch Manager:It is my absolute pleasure to recommend Denise Agostino for Employee of the Month with Omega World Travel. Denise Agostino is currently on staff at Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), Travel Consultant since March 20, 2017. I thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Denise and came to know her as a precious asset to any team. She is honest, dependable, and incredibly hard working. Beyond that, she is impressive and always gets results. I received the following letter from the client recently: We would like to recognize the outstanding and timely work by Denise Agostino in supporting the 8-person, 4-country regional compact initial engagement visit in late February/early March. Without her perseverance, dedication, and creativity we would not have been able to ensure that all our travelers received visas on time. She worked tirelessly, through snow days and early and late hours, to ensure that each member of our team successfully received up to four visas from four embassies in a two-week time frame, which must be a record. For example, just two days before the mission, one of the travelers did not have a single visa for any of the four countries. Somehow, Denise was able to use her connections and ensure this traveler received all four visas prior to the mission. Most importantly, Denise never lost her cool and maintained her professionalism, despite the intense and high stress environment. The trip itself was a great success and the beginning of an important new initiative for MCC and we would like to recognize Denise's role in getting us started. We are grateful to have had her support and look forward to continued cooperation with her as we pursue the high-profile Regional compact. Denise also received the below letter from a customer recently: Hey Denise! How are you? Greetings from Accra! I hope things have calmed down a bit for you over the last couple of weeks but have a feeling that is not the case! I just wanted to send you a quick note to let you that the mission has been very productive and successful. Completely draining but overall very positive. I know our team is really pleased and I am sure management will be happy with our deliverables. None of this would have been possible without all of your hard work before the trip behind the scenes. I really can’t thank you enough. We all can’t thank you enough. I don’t know if your management understands all the work that was involved but mine certainly does. I have made sure of that! We will probably be doing another four-country tour in late April/early May with some other folks but I will be having them get their visas as soon as I get back so we don’t have to deal with the same circus we did this time. Anyway, just wanted to send you a quick note and convey my appreciation on behalf of the whole regional team. I am in the office next week and will try and stop by and say hello. Along with her undeniable talent, Denise has always been an absolute joy to work with. She is a real team player and still manages to foster positive discussions and bring the best out of other employees. Without a doubt, I confidently recommend Denise Agostino for Employee of the Month. As a dedicated and knowledgeable employee and an all-around great person, I know that she is a beneficial Team Member to MCC/Omega World Travel. Houston Hayles |
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| February 2019 Employee of the Month Sue Tennant at our office in Fort Meade, MD We would like to share the winning nomination from Vanessa Rush Bisong, Branch Manager: I would like to nominate Sue Tennant for employee of the month. Sue received a call from the second in command at our client. He was on a special TDY and received a call that he needed to come home because his wife was about to give birth to their child early. Due to the weather, his flight was delayed and then it was canceled. Sue was able to reroute him to get him out to make it home for the birth. Again, she hit another snag with flight delays and cancellations. She began the task again flying him around the weather to get him home and she did not leave the office until she heard from him and his office to know that he made it home for the birth. It is very rare that the staff is noticed for their hard work by the client. Sue was presented with an official letter to show his appreciation for all of her hard work. Below is what the letter said. Sincerely, Vanessa Ms. Vanessa Rush-Bisong: I want to commend the work and effort of one of the contractors assigned to you, Ms. Susan Tennant I was on official travel in Anchorage, Alaska when I received word that my wife went in to labor with our daughter. I needed a flight back home immediately. Ms. Tennant worked with my team to book a flight that was supposed to bring me from Alaska to Maryland within 10 hours. Unfortunately, there was a major earthquake, followed by a tsunami warning that grounded the plane and forced me to miss my connecting flight in Seattle. Again, Ms. Tennant was able to secure another flight for me that got me back to Maryland in a timely fashion. Ms. Tennant's flexibility and adaptability enabled me to be with my wife and witness the birth of my daughter. |
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| January 2019 Employees of the Month Barbara Stevenson, Dionne Allen, Paul Hughes, Gaby Nadjmabadi, Susan Pierce and Nanette Weinberg of the NIH Patient Travel Office in Bethesda, MD  We would like to share the winning nomination from Mike Pagnanelli, Regional Manager of the NIH Patient Travel Office: I would like to nominate Barb Stevenson and her staff for employees of the month. She and her agents have provided a very high level of service over the years, to a very unique clientele. Barb and her staff have also been nominated for the NIH High Quality STARS Award this month for outstanding customer service. Please see the complementary emails I have received the past few weeks from patients that Barb and her staff have recently assisted. ........................................................... I write to you regarding the travel office at NIH. I’m sure you hear positive feedback all of the time, so allow me to add my two cents. I’ve been a patient at NIH since 2004 and have always been extremely happy with the professionalism, patience and courtesy of the travel office staff. They always exceed my expectations. No matter what the question or request may be, everyone has been happy to help. Please let the folks there know how much they are appreciated. I had the pleasure of speaking with Barbara Stevenson during my visit last week. I asked for your contact information so I could personally express my gratitude. It’s obvious that Barbara is dedicated to her work and her warm personality shows it. As always, I look forward to my next visit and working with you team. Wishing you a great day. ........................................................... I just wanted to reach out and let you know how impressed I am with your team and their customer service. I always receive wonderful service from Susan but I am writing to shout out to the entire team (I believe you included) who helped me on my last trip. My flight was detoured to Philadelphia the night I was supposed to arrive due to the weather. This cause my next day's flight to need to be changed. I ended up working with your team on multiple occasions this day and everyone was incredibly helpful, understanding, and a pleasure to work with. My entire trip was booked through American. American is who re-routed us to Philadelphia Sun night and I was booked back out on American the following day. The delay in arrival to DC caused the need to re-book the flight out on Monday to a later time. Upon my arrival to DCA I noticed American had a flight that was just about to start boarding, this was not my flight as mine was booked for a few more hours later. I went to the gate of the flight that was about to board and depart and asked American customer service if there was room and could I switch to this flight from the later one. They said "No" there were not seats available. Meanwhile I had also called your team. I got on the line with the first available rep at that time and repeated my question to her and she said there were seats, she was concerned about the timing because at this point they were in process of boarding but she booked it and I had my ticket and boarded within a few minutes time. This allowed me to arrive home 2 or 3 hours earlier which may not seem like a big deal but I had been traveling for 29 hours straight (including the layover I had to spend in the airport) so shaving off a few hours meant the world to me!! And probably a safer drive home from the airport which is over an hour away. The American Airlines Customer Service person could have done the same thing for me but instead clearly showed me they did not care about me as a traveler or a person to understand that a little help that day would have meant the world to me. Your team however did!!! So a HUGE Thank you to you and your team for GREAT customer service. The difference between American Airlines Customer Service and your team couldn't have been greater that day. AA were short tempered, uncaring, and unhelpful while your team was Caring, Patient, and Extremely Helpful. Thank You Omega Travel Team! ........................................................... Hi Omega Team, Your team has been recognized for providing outstanding customer service to a patient, whose travel was delayed during inclement weather. The patient described how Omega agents worked to accommodate her, which was in contrast to other customer service received by the airline, and how your efforts decreased her travel time. Thank you for your excellent work!! Great job!! ........................................................... Good Morning, Omega Patient Travel Agents have been nominated for a High Quality STARS. Please share the event with the nominees. Thank you Omega Team for taking the extra steps to ensure that the patient received excellent service. |
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| December 2018 Employee of the Month Steve Gray, Travel Consultant for the ESC Desk We would like to share the winning nomination from Christine Hall, Branch Manager of the Buffalo Office: The Omega Buffalo Office issued tickets for 1800+ employees of our client United Rentals to attend their annual meeting/supplier event show in Minneapolis. I was privileged to attend the event and represent Omega World Travel as a supplier. All attendees were required to stop at our booth and answer a challenge question so we had many visitors all with excellent comments about the service provided by Omega. We had dinner with the executive assistants for the C-Suite executives from United Rentals and during dinner, the conversation turned to our Emergency Services Desk. It was unanimous among the executive assistants that they appreciated the services of our ESC desk, but they especially appreciated Steve Gray and his excellent customer service. They have great confidence in Steve and are always happy to hear his voice on the other end of the line as evidenced by the below comments from the Executive Assistant to the CEO. I want to thank Steve Gray at the Omega Emergency Desk for always giving us exemplary service. When I get Steve on the phone, I know that whatever Emergency or change I called for will be taken care of. He is always helpful, professional and goes above and beyond for us at United Rentals. Also, he is efficient and my trips with him always go great… He never makes me feel that anything I ask for is a bother. Steve is an exceptional employee and an asset to Omega Travel. Thanks again Steve! Thank you Steve for always taking care of our United Rental VIP’s! - Christine Hall, Buffalo/Manhattan Office Manager |
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| November 2018 Employee of the Month Amanda Schick, Leisure Travel Consultant in Jacksonville, NC  We would like to share the winning nomination from Barbara Criner, General Manager in Jacksonville:I would like to submit a nomination for Amanda Schick. Please see the below complimentary letter that was sent to the Omega website, which details the level of service and care Amanda commits to her customers. It is truly a pleasure to work with Amanda daily and we are very fortunate to have her representing our organization. - Barbara Criner To Whom it may concern, I would like to thank you for having Marlene Sexton, Heather Bailey and especially Amanda Schick. My wife and I spent our 12th anniversary on a Carnival Cruise. The cruise was wonderful thanks to Amanda who not only convinced my wife that her first cruise would be memorable, but was available when we boarded and had some questions. Then, Amanda worked out a great deal for me and my wife to spend Thanksgiving in Nassau. Unfortunately, my wife suffers from Parkinson's and anxiety. The anxiety made the trip not work out and although we made the mistake of not buying insurance, we thought all was loss. Amanda to the rescue. Not only was Amanda somehow able to work her magic to get the trip rescheduled for Mother's Day, but ended up getting us a small refund. We currently live on my wife's disability but because of Amanda Schick, there was no loss of money or trip. I cannot tell you how special Amanda Schick is. She went as far to check on us over Thanksgiving, but offered to deliver food. Having been an Assistant Manager of the local cable company for 29 years and overseeing sales and customer service, I know that these are days where excellent customer service is rare. Amanda is your diamond in the rough. I mention Marlene and Heather, as I know that the actions of employees are a reflection of Management. Both women responded to my emails about Amanda and called me. Rest assured that those in Jacksonville NC who look for travel help, need only go to Omega. In my career, I found that customers spend little time to compliment a service representative. I promised myself, when I receive GREAT customer service, I would make upper management aware of the people. These three women are the cream of the crop and Amanda is one of the most fabulous people you have. KEEP all three. I will continue to let people know, for travel plans satisfaction, simply call Omega and ask for Amanda Schick. |
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| October 2018 Employee of the Month Heather Bailey, Branch Manager in Jacksonville, NC  I would like to nominate Jacksonville Branch Manager, Heather Bailey for Employee of the Month. Please see the below email communication from Heather to her staff.Heather has a "Firm but Fair" management style and consistently leads her team with the "Power of Positive Attitudes". As I have seen in many emails from Heather to the agents, she regularly thanks them and reminds them how important their individual roles are on the team. With that being said, I would like to say . . ." Thank You Heather". Here is an email from Heather to her staff: Good Evening Team, I just wanted to take a moment and say thank you for all that you do. It undoubtedly has been very busy the past 6+ weeks and through it all, this team has knocked it out of the park! I couldn't be more proud to have such a strong, dedicated team and just want you all to know that each of you is an essential piece to the Jacksonville puzzle. We appreciate every single one of you. Thank you, Heather Here is a reply from one of the Jacksonville Agents: Hi Heather, Wanted to wish you a great day as well, but not before telling you: Because of you things run smoothly around here Because of you agents feel supported and encouraged and for me personally: Because of you my computer got fixed Because of you I am inspired Because of you I have work that is a good fit for me Because of you I regained some confidence that was lost Because of you I can face the future with more hope Because of you my life was changed forever So remember that your time here has served a great purpose - far beyond what you know or can see! Blessings on your day. Thank you for considering this EOM nomination. Barbara Criner, General Manager |
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| September 2018 Employee of the Month Shayne Entorf, Data Analyst, at Omega’s Corporate Headquarters  I would like to nominate Shayne Entorf for employee of the month. I had an anomaly with a report that I could not figure out. I knew, if I called Shayne, he would have a resolution. He was a huge help, and always kind. He is willing to assist you and other team members in a moment’s notice. I appreciate his extraordinary efforts, and think he is deserving of EOM nomination.- Sissy Simpkins, Settlement & Customer Information Manager Foremost, I would like to say that I am always impressed with Shayne's consistent positive attitude and willingness to assist. I feel that is what is most important to recognize about Shayne. His contribution to the overall morale and culture of the company. Shayne's approach of "How can I help?" and his willingness to help find creative solutions has a very positive impact on the company. Even with his busy schedule, Shayne has assisted our department by providing knowledge about Omega's abilities regarding data capture and analysis to new employees in my department, to help them understand our data analysis/reporting offerings so that they could develop our proposal responses. His approach was never "I am too busy with my own job" but instead "Let me see what I can do to help out". Thank you Shayne for your willingness to go the extra step! - Renee Nameth, Proposal Manager Shayne has been so helpful and patient. He spent an entire day with MCC helping them customize the Premium Class Travel Report. He always goes the extra mile. - Linda Sisk, Client Services Manager I second that notion. He is fantastic member of the team and always willing to learn and try new things! - Nadim Hajje, VP, Information Technology & Data Analytics Shayne quietly does what needs to be done. Spot on in terms of the vibe at Omega. All around nice person with a humorous personality. Always a pleasure to talk to and work with. A tech savvy unsung hero who has a can do attitude. - Art Ginolfi, Regional Sales Director I would like to nominate Shayne as Omega employee of the Month. In my dealings with him, he has always been extremely knowledgeable, professional and brings amazing IT, computer and reporting expertise to the table. He impressed me with his extensive knowledge of Omegalytics and I know behind the scenes he does so very much for Sales and other colleagues in support of this great tool. Most importantly, he has spent considerable time and given a lot of support to our Sales group in helping to develop a Return on Investment calculator for working with clients. In particular, this ROI calculator will be used for future meetings with clients to help them understand the value and potential ROI to them when utilizing Omega. Such a tool is very important for the Sales efforts. Shayne is a very soft spoken and humble colleague whom I respect and appreciate much. - Ron Kosmahl, Regional Sales Director My team is being faced more frequently with data savvy clients. We are constantly updating reports and doing ad-hoc reporting. Shayne is instrumental to the team's success in this matter. I can second Ron's nomination, in appreciation for the hard work and time Shayne spends with me and my team. - Timothy Jones, Director, Client Services |
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August 2018 Employee of the Month |
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| July 2018 Employee of the Month Grace Mezher, Senior Meetings and Events Planner  We would like to share the winning nomination from Joe Margraf, Senior Manager, Meetings and Events:I would like to nominate one of our Senior Meeting Planners in the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences & Events Division, Grace Mezher for employee of the month. We are very proud of her work with our clients and the high level of service she provides. Below are two emails that I received recently about Grace: "Grace staff worked magic, appreciate her fast responses and all her support, enjoy and love working with her, she is always available for us, we trust her" - Molly Wilkerson, Project Manager of Events, National Foreign Language Center, UMD “Just wanted to say THANK YOU for taking the time to come down and meet with our team today. Grace, you clearly have very expansive knowledge of Cvent and we appreciate you sharing a bit of that expertise with us – you may regret having offered to let us pick your brain when we start building our sites in the coming weeks! I am looking forward to further communications between us and Omega – I can tell from our brief interaction today that we are already very aligned in how we operate, and I think it is going to be the start of a great partnership.” - Tina Dauses, Ferguson, Manager, Corporate Meeting & Event Planning, Travel Department |
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| June 2018 Employee of the Month Donna Francart, Amadeus Desk Supervisor in our Fairfax office.  Here are the winning nominations:I would like to nominate Donna Francart for employee of the month. Donna always demonstrates professionalism, knowledge, and a level of customer service, that has turned Coloplast around to be a loyal client of Omega. Donna always scores high marks in surveys conducted by Travelpoole with the accounts we service on their behalf. Donna is always willing to work with me to help resolve or correct any situation that needs attention. Some of the comments about Donna from the most recent survey are:
- Laurie Kenney, Account Manager I would like to echo Laurie's email, and nominate Donna Francart for employee of the month. Donna has not only demonstrated she is an excellent agent but a great manager. She is the definition of customer service. Donna has been instrumental in making a positive change on the Amadeus desk. The feedback received from her staff and clients makes us all proud. Her assertiveness and calm demeanor carries across to all agents, which makes their job a lot easier. Because of this, and many other reasons, I would like to nominate Donna Francart for employee of the month. - Karla Lobo, Training and Call Center Operations Manager Donna is the perfect choice to manage the Amadeus desk, her diligence and dedication to doing good work shows. You can hear her smiling through the phone, which is why the customers love her. - Kimberly McCrea, Director of Operations |
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| May 2018 Employees of the Month Mary Andrejko, Carol Clifton, Candy Coward, Suzie Roderick, Jennifer Smith, Amanda Monahan, Nadine Redman and Melinda Deaver, ATT VIP Travel Consultants in our Buffalo office.  Here is the winning nomination from Chris Hall, Branch Manager: AT&T provided the results from their most recent AT&T Executive Client satisfaction survey that was completed in May of 2018. Overall the results are excellent 100% client satisfaction and 97% NPS. Based on a sample of the below anonymous comments from the survey, I would like to nominate my entire team of dedicated ATT VIP agents for employee of the month.
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| April 2018 Employee of the Month Amanda Schick, Travel Consultant in Jacksonville, NC Here is the winning nomination from Heather Bailey, Branch Manager and Barbara Criner, General Manager: I would like to nominate our leisure agent, Amanda Schick, for Employee of the Month. Amanda was a rehire for the Jacksonville, NC office in February 2017 and previously worked for Omega in 2004 and 2005. Amanda was first assigned to the ETS2 account and quickly became an asset to the Jacksonville team. She truly has a passion for travel and helping others. If you get an opportunity to hear Amanda on the phone or see her with a customer, you automatically find yourself with a smile on your face. |
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We would like to share the winning nomination from Chris Hall, Branch Manager, Buffalo Office and Mark Rodriguez, International Rate Desk Manager: