Farrier Joins TQ3 as CIO for EMEA

Jon Farrier, creator of the Travel Technologies Group, precursor of TRX Technology Services, earlier this week became CIO of TQ3 Travel Solutions' EMEA operations. Farrier will be working with Richard Spradling, CIO for TQ3 Americas, to oversee the $9 billion travel company's IT operations in 52 countries. Farrier replaced Ingo Brandes, who left TQ3 for Preussag-owned TUI InfoTec, a company that provides the mega agency with technical support.

Farrier told BTN that his first goal as CIO was to unify the company's disparate technological infrastructure. He said the company had very strong IT resources in TUI InfoTec and in a half-dozen of its leading locations, but that his biggest challenge will be to provide synergy in using those resources.

"The mission is to deliver a consistent, feature-rich and customizable IT infrastructure across the many agencies that we own," Farrier said. "It may not be sexy, it may be plumbing, but it's the ability to facilitate that kind of operation that makes customer service work."

Prior to their acquisition by TQ3, the smaller agencies that comprise the global travel company were independently run travel companies with completely different IT platforms, Farrier said. Now, "the objective is to derive synergies and coordination across those platforms." TQ3 is building an IT department in London, where Farrier is based, to coordinate global technological integration and development.