Loyalty & Awards 2025

Martha Cohen, VP, Client Services, Travel & Hospitality, Kobie Marketing

• Mobile app: The closest you can get to your customers
• Case study: Smoothing the customer experience at touchpoints to create soft loyalty
• Finding a strategy to engage customers through the app between stays
• How to create tangible value through the app for less frequent customers

Mehdi Hemici, Chief Loyalty & Ecommerce Officer, Accor

• AI: Endless opportunities? Yes, but…
• Defining areas where AI adds substantial value in loyalty management
• Is there still a place for human expertise?
• Case study Pegasus Airlines

Bahadır Durak, Senior Head of Data Analytics and Loyalty Programs, Pegasus Airlines

Wishlist by three loyalty decision makers, which future technology solutions they would like to see to come to fruition to make their life simpler.

Maria Romero Panizo, Global Loyalty Director, Meliá Hotels International
TBA
TBA

• AI, blockchain, ChatGPT: How not to get lost as loyalty marketer?
• Which solutions have proven their practical value?
• Defining a business case for newcomers to the area
• How have supplier-client relationships evolved around these new technologies?

Moderator:
TBA

• 8-minute pitch for each of three shortlisted suppliers

Moderator:
Ravindra Bhagwanani, Managing Director, Global Flight

Judges:
Tejal Patel, Director, Digital Technology (DT) - Loyalty, United Airlines
Folker Heim, Chief Operating Officer, Global Hotel Alliance
Aleks Kaczmarek, VP of Loyalty, CarTrawler

Participate in one of two parallel workshops of key vendors, talking about their latest solutions to common industry issues.
No pre-registration is required.

Workshop 1: TBA

Workshop 2: TBA

• Overview of the evolution of the African payment landscape
• Identifying our particular loyalty-related challenges
• Evolving the offer in line with socio-demographic changes
• Defining the relevant award offer: Selling a dream or being down-to-earth?

Dr. Nceba Hene, Head of Loyalty and Rewards, African Bank
Interviewed by: Gabi Kool, CEO, Loylogic

• Strawberry: Moving from a closed loyalty loop to a coalition approach
• Economical trade-offs to increase customer engagement: When are they required?
• Daring to talk about (and address!) the favourite of loyalty marketers: the breakage rate
• Identifying loyalty-related financial opportunities beyond the margin of the currency

Håvard Uglem Hovdahl, Vice President CRM & Loyalty, Strawberry

This is your opportunity to meet existing and potential partners/suppliers from all over the world to strengthen and start business relationships in a highly efficient manner.

Meetings can be pre-arranged through connecting with other delegates over the event website or the event app in the run-up to the event.

Celebrating the very best in industry innovation and leadership, as well as our 20th anniversary as part of the event industry! Bring out your best outfits!

Master of Ceremony:
TBA

Judges:
Pekka Antila, Head of Loyalty, Finnair
Andrew Cleary, VP, Global CRM & Customer Strategy, Mandarin Oriental
Ravindra Bhagwanani, Managing Director, Global Flight

Ravindra Bhagwanani, Managing Director, Global Flight

• Flashback: The evolution of the Avios currency since 2011
• Strengthening its partner eco system with a common global currency
• The airline perspective: Case studies Qatar Airways and Loganair
• What's next?

Veronica Vicars, Chief Growth Officer, IAG Loyalty

• Setting the expectations right (but not too low): Revenue and/or engagement?
• Selecting the target markets: Local first, anything afterwards?
• Creating a business case for the partner
• Inspiration from best practice ideas

Moderator:
TBA

Panellists:
Mehmet Yeltekin, Miles&Smiles Marketing & Partnerships Manager, Turkish Airlines
TBA, Emirates

• Understanding the loyalty vision of Avolta
• Insights into the early results of our loyalty efforts
• Where to place as a newcomer in the existing loyalty landscape: between Don Quichotte and a team player
• Have airline and hotel programs become too expensive as partners?

Camilo Courtenay, Global Loyalty Lead, Avolta

Participate in one of two parallel workshops of key vendors, talking about their latest solutions to common industry issues.
No pre-registration is required.

Workshop 1: TBA

Workshop 2: TBA

• What role do companies have in the green transformation of the travel industry?
• How credible can the travel industry be on the topic of sustainability? Are we only greenwashing?
• Are consumers willing to pay more for green choices?
• And what does this mean for the loyalty strategy of the BahnBonus program of Deutsche Bahn?

Sven Neweling, Head of CRM Strategy and Loyalty Programs, Deutsche Bahn

• Insights into case studies of 2024 Awards winners
• Benefits for shareholders and members
• Process of generating award-winning initiatives

Moderator:
Ravindra Bhagwanani, Managing Director, Global Flight

Award Winners:
TBA on site