The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario (TIAO) is supporting Ontario’s tourism workforce with their new initiative, the Tourism Mentor Match. The program will connect new tourism employees with a mentor whose values, cultures, lifestyles and/or identities align with their own. 

This structured mentor relationship is facilitated by TIAO’s online platform for efficiency and ease of use.

If you are interested in participating, email Project Manager Leni Brem at [email protected].

CAA Club Group of Companies (CCG), which owns CAA South Central Ontario and CAA Travel, has launched a two-month paid training program called the CCG Travel Academy. Specific to travel agents, the training will teach detailed customer service skills through classroom lessons and job shadowing. Trainees will not only be paid, but will be given a job once finished the program, and TICO licensing will be reimbursed. 

Those interested in the opportunity should apply to one of the open roles on the company’s career page. Successful applicants will automatically be placed in the program that starts closest to their date of hire. The program will run twice in 2024 and then quarterly in 2025 onward.

A.I. Insights: Conversations with the Experts featuring Expedia TAAP’s Robin Lawther 

In this interview series, Canadian Travel Press’ executive editor, Bob Mowat, talks with leading experts in the field of artificial intelligence to gather insights on how A.I. will shape the future of travel.

For the fourth episode of the series, join Robin Lawther, Vice President of Expedia TAAP, to learn about the A.I.-powered technologies in place at TAAP that enhance the travel agent experience. Robin and Bob will discuss what the future looks like for travel agents and platforms like TAAP when it comes to leveraging generative A.I.

Click here to register, and make sure to check out more upcoming Travel Webcasts at www.travelpress.com/travel_webcast/.

Abdullah El-Safadi always had a desire to explore beyond the confines of an office. He felt called to a life of adventure and movement. An explorer by nature, Abdullah’s energy and curiosity ignited a passion for travel that has since turned into a fulfilling career. He has already visited all seven wonders of the world—as well as 56 nations—and he hopes to reach the 100 mark by his 30th birthday.

As Manager of Community Partnerships for Air Canada, Abdullah gets to travel all across Canada to support community events across Canada as a way of giving back to worthy causes and organizations that align with Air Canada’s values. When he isn’t travelling for work, he travels for pleasure, finding great joy in visiting new places and learning about the people there.

Immersing himself in different cultures all around the world has not only satisfied Abdullah’s yearning to explore—it built up his confidence in ways he could have never anticipated.

Learn more at https://discovertourism.ca/air-canada/.