I have worked in corporate travel for over 20 years and experienced many ups and downs during this time. Although many of these shifts pertained to the dynamic nature of the travel industry, most people will the encounter the rollercoaster of emotions on a personal level, stemming from employers, the nature of the job or simply burnout.

Over the years, I have held many different roles in corporate travel on both the buyer and supplier side. I have relocated a few times with new positions and have always been fortunate when it came to timing and logistics during these career moves.

When the pandemic hit our industry, I was fortunate to remain employed. My position and adjusted compensation was far from an ideal situation; however I could not complain, as many people lost their jobs and were forced to find a new careers outside travel. I did take the initiative of having my resume professionally built from scratch as it felt quite antiquated. Then, although I passively watched for the limited opportunities within the industry, I never pursued them. I’ll call it COVID Complacency.

In early 2022, I found myself in a position I have not experienced in 20-plus years – I was suddenly unemployed!
After I wallowed in self-pity for a couple of days, I eventually subscribed to a few job boards, uploaded my resume and set up automated job searches which would send opportunities to my inbox. Although I felt defeated for not having a job, I had confidence that my experience would land me a great role in a short amount of time.

The first day of searching, I found the perfect job – it was not only locally based, but in my mind, my prior experience seemed to make me the perfect candidate. I immediately applied on their corporate website.

For those who have not applied for a job in some time, it’s not quite as simple as uploading your resume. You must first create an account on the company’s website. Once you are registered, you can upload your resume which is scanned by their software and placed into their template. Unfortunately, the translation does not work very well, and you will find yourself manually rewriting it. (I wondered if it was a test to determine how much you desired the position.) There are approximately 10 steps required before you can complete the application; most move quickly after your resume rewrite. The reason for this tedious process is that you are filling out an official digital application for the job, complete with gender, race, veteran and disability questions.

Over the first few weeks, I applied for over 30 jobs, the majority of which were virtual positions which are so prevalent thanks to the pandemic. A major issue I encountered with these virtual positions is that they were posted in dozens of cities, and I soon found myself competing with 800 other travel professionals vying for the same job. Although I received an HR interview with the initial “perfect” position, no one was getting back to me apart from a few automated rejection e-mails. My confidence level was quickly plummeting – desperation was setting in, and I was applying for positions outside of travel hoping my experience could translate to other roles.

After a month of this emotionally deflating process, my lucky day finally arrived – I received an unsolicited offer from recruiter who felt I would be a great fit for their company. It was not travel but it was a job. I immediately responded and chose the first available timeslot, only to be “ghosted” by the HR manager on their own conference line. This person did not even respond to my multiple inquiries asking if they needed to reschedule – this occurred four separate occasions with four different companies.

Almost two months into this dreadful situation, I received a call back from the company I had initially felt was the “perfect fit” asking me if I was still interested in the job. He apologized for the delay and told me the hiring manager wanted to set up another interview. I eagerly agreed (hardly containing my excitement), interviewed and eventually received an offer which I gratefully accepted.

I am thankful travel positions are finally posting again. Although I went through this ordeal for two months, I cannot imagine how tough it has been for others in travel who have been unemployed two years. If I have learned anything through this experience, it is not to lose hope. It’s a slow process – so stay patient, strong, keep applying, and do not give up. Corporate travel is coming back!