At UNIGLOBE Vision Travel, our hands-on management team offers an breadth and depth of travel management experience, as well as real world solutions and custom designed travel programs to match our clients needs.
Irv Wight, Partner: A veteran of the travel industry for over 25 years, Irv's background covers all aspects of travel management. Originally from Newfoundland, Irv graduated from Memorial University and moved west to build his career in the travel industry. Irv sold franchises for UNIGLOBE Travel and eventually bought his own franchise, UNIGLOBE Broadway Travel in 1982. Over the next 4 years the business grew to $15M. After a brief stint with American Express, Irv returned to the UNIGLOBE organization with UNIGLOBE Advance Travel and has consistently been one of the leading agencies in UNIGLOBE worldwide. Irv has received many achievement awards including Franchise Owner of the Year, the highest award in the organization. A merger in January 2009 with Meridian Travel led to the creation of UNIGLOBE Vision Travel. Irv leads the UNIGLOBE Vision management team and is involved in all aspects of the business.
Alain Laprise, CTE, Partner: A navtive of Levis, Quebec, Alain moved to BC in 1975 and worked in the aviation and chemical industries joining forces with Irv in the travel industry in 1982. With a special focus in sales, Alain helped grow the UNIGLOBE Broadway Travel business to its height. After 3 years with American Express Alain joined forces again with Irv with UNIGLOBE Advance Travel, building the business to one of the largest in the organization worldwide. Alain has received many sales recognition and achievement awards including Salesperson of the Year. In 2004 Alain became a shareholder in Meridian Travel Vancouver, a corporate travel management company, and with the management team helped grow sales four fold and was a dominant force in the local travel management landscape. A merger in January 2009 with UNIGLOBE Advance Travel led to the formation of UNIGLOBE Vision Travel. As part of the management team Alain's focus is on corporate sales.
Rob Lindsay, Partner: Rob has more than 26 years experience in the travel industry. Originally from Ontario, Rob moved west in 1980 and became a Partner in Meridian Travel in 1985. With the merger to create UNIGLOBE Vision Travel, Rob's focus is on Yield Management and Group Travel Management. In the Groups Travel Management, Rob and his team have handled groups ranging from 20 - 5,000 people. As part of the management team, Rob contributes his in-depth experience and industry knowledge to creatively solve client challenges.
Paul Knickerbocker, CTE, Director, Corporate Travel: Paul brings extensive travel management experience to UNIGLOBE Vision Travel, having previously been the owner of a UNIGLOBE Travel agency established in 1993. In 2004 that business merged with Meridian Travel, where Paul was involved in sales and client service. In 2009 merger the between Meridian Travel and UNIGLOBE Advance Travel to form UNIGLOBE Vision Travel, Paul's role now focuses on overseeing all complex client account management and sales. Paul is a Past President and Executive Member of the UNIGLOBE Franchise Owners Association and has sat on numerous national Travel Industry/Supplier committees and various Association of Canadian Travel Agents (ACTA) task forces. Paul's experience in account management, particularly in the areas of client services and "service standards", cost savings, automation, travel supplier relations/negotiations and "best practices" client program implementation enable him to provide superior client service and solutions to complex accounts.
Gayle Porter, Operations: Gayle has led Business Operations since April 1996, with special focus on innovation and delivering on customer commitments by designing business processes and solutions to strategic business challenges. During her tenure, the company has evolved through significant industry change and has taken on increasingly complex projects such as the automation of our end-to-end solutions, strategic partnering with organizations to support their operational requirements and leading the company's People First employee programs. Prior to joining UNIGLOBE, Gayle was in several management positions with Amex Canada Inc. Gayle leads the Operations and Reservation team and is integral to new client implementation.
Jackie LaFontaine, CGA, Finance: A graduate of BCIT Financial Management, Jackie obtained her Certified General Accountants designation in 1996. She joined UNIGLOBE Advance Travel in 1998 from a long-standing corporate customer in the sports & entertainment industry. Jackie's expert analytical skills has enabled her to help manage the business through tumultuous and significant change over the past 10 years, with a focus on improving efficiencies and processes. She has converted multiple back-office systems for a number of companies within the organization, and creatively finds solutions to client challenges as it relates to back-end processing, reconciliation and report delivery. She also ensures that UNIGLOBE Vision Travel meets all regulatory requirements (BPCPA, IATA, PCI compliance).
Gary Hnat, Manager, Automation: Gary started in the travel industry in 1980 as a Corporate Travel Consultant and gradually moved into the area of automation. He has been with UNIGLOBE since September 2000 and currently handles all aspects of automation including server management, networking, desktop support, database management, agent support, scripting, application development, telephone hardware support and client reporting. Gary has created hundreds of customized auto-scheduled Crystal Reports for various clients and assists clients with questions related to reporting issues. An avid traveler, Gary has been to 100+ countries and logged more than 2,000 flights.
