Senior Management Profile
How Sam Galeotos Charted a Course to Leadership in Global Travel

Within a year after completing Wharton's Advanced Management Program (AMP) in 1999, Sam Galeotos left the security of a job in the travel industry that he'd been with for years to take on the Internet as president and CEO at CheapTickets, one of the earliest and largest travel agencies to tap into online technologies. "The Internet had been around a couple of years by then and had started to peak, but I knew it was going to be important," he said. "I believed then that the bigger players were going to come in and wreak havoc with the startups."

Thus began a wild ride through the turmoil of technology and the travel industry. Through the "havoc," the 44-year-old Wyoming native continued to find new ways to navigate along an ascending career path, leading to his appointment as CEO of Galileo International in August 2002.

At CheapTickets, he knew that they needed to become part of something bigger to succeed, which led to being acquired by Cendant in October 2001. "We understood we were a specialist in airline products and that Cendant had hotels, rental cars and time shares," Galeotos said. "To be a long-term player in this industry, we knew we needed to be doing all those things." Since that time, Galeotos served as CEO of strategic distribution and travel services for Cendant's Travel Distribution Services Division until being named to lead Galileo, a subsidiary of Cendant. In this position, he will continue overseeing strategic distribution and travel services at Cendant as he takes on expanded responsibilities as CEO at Galileo.

"The travel industry is not for the faint of heart right now," Galeotos said. "But I have a unique background in this industry, and I've spent a lot of time working with suppliers in this industry through all the turmoil and disintermediation that's been taking place."

Changing the Game

During his 20 years in the travel industry, he witnessed the rise of global distribution services companies, when airlines embraced travel agents to broaden their distribution. With the Internet, the pattern was repeated, with a twist. "History now repeats itself," he said. "Airlines are investing in online travel companies. I've watched the evolution of the technology and how it's not only influenced the direction of distribution and supply management, but has changed the game."

Consumers now have access to information once available only to travel agents regarding hotels, flights, rental cars, and other travel sources. And as consumers become "less apprehensive of making bookings online, it will become our mission at Galileo to facilitate this change," Galeotos said. "The consumer is king and queen of what goes on. It's all about solving their problems and their ability to have great access to information to do what they need in their travel planning."

Planning Back From the Future

Galeotos now is responsible for coordinating parent company Cendant's eight contact centers; supplier relationship development with airlines, hotels, and rental car companies; and two worldwide reservation systems. He uses a technique honed during his 5 weeks at Wharton's Advanced Management Program in 1999 to guide his strategic planning.

"What we discussed — throughout all our meetings during the 5 weeks, and which was reiterated by many of the professors — was the value of stepping back and looking at where we wanted to be and then working backwards to get there," he said. "I've been using that approach in my new position, looking at possibly changing the way things have been done, emphasizing creativity and problem solving."

The first fruits of this creative thinking are the creation of an online packaging engine and exclusive vacation rental packages from Cendant affiliate Resort Condominium, Galeotos told Travel Weekly.

"I see my new job at Galileo as an opportunity to take Cendant's travel assets (hotels and rental cars and time shares) and package them with our airline assets to deliver exceptional travel opportunities to the public," he said. "What we're concentrating on right now is stepping back and plotting through where we are creating value and where we can continue to create value for both consumers and suppliers."

A Systemic Approach

Wharton's AMP not only helped give him a heightened perspective on his industry but also helped him take a more systemic view of his own organization. "I've told many people about it, the view that as a leader you are first an individual, but you're also part of a group or a team, and ultimately you're part of a company or a society," he said. "So many people aren't even aware of this paradigm. It's amazing what you can come up with once you get this new perspective."

Throughout his career, Galeotos has gained a reputation as someone who gets things done but also as someone who knows that successful leadership depends on all of the people within the organization. "I may facilitate getting to the finish line, but the organization and our people have to maintain stamina and run the race," he said. "Success is shared. Team members at all levels must contribute to achieve our vision."

Getting to the finish line is more than a nice image for Galeotos. During the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, he was given the chance to carry the torch along the route as it made its way to the stadium. Various "Community Heroes" — volunteers who had made significant contributions to the Atlanta area — were nominated to run individual segments of the course.

    

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