Expedia Inc.

Placement organization

Name of organization: Expedia Inc.
Town/city: Prague
Country: Czech Republic
Website: http://www.expediainc.com/about/

Student

Name of student: Jacqueline Spiess

Specialist area: ITTI
Placement period: 2015-2016

Information about placement organization

Type of organization: Online travel agency
Organization’s activities: Expedia is an online travel company which helps travellers to easily plan, book and travel with a wide selection of vacation packages, flights, hotels, car rental, cruises, in-destination activities, attractions and services.
Target group of the organization: Worldwide
Company culture: Expedia has a clear company structure which is rather hierarchy. However, the realationship between employees is amicable.
Number of employees: 300
Dress code: casual
Did the organization meet the agreements you made beforehand? Yes

Information about your placement

In which department(s) are you working? I am working as a lodging partner associate in the German tearm. A lodging partner associate actively supports hotel partners working with Expedia.
Brief description of your daily activities: Handlings requests of hotel partners via email and phone. There are three levels:
After two weeks training program you will be able to assist hotels with easy financial and hotel products requests.
The second training program (one week) enables you to work more financial requests and the last training program (one week) focuses solely on hotel products (room types, rates, promotions etc.)
Brief description of your company assignment: Topic: Hotel reviews in travel decision making. A case study on Expedia.

Brief description:
Expedia is one of the largest online travel companies in the world which offers on more than 150 websites flight tickets, hotel rooms, tourism activities etc. The hotel reviews, which the user can find all over the websites, are an important part for the company. The company assignment attempts to identify how important these reviews are for travelers and to which degree it influences their decision making process.

Comment briefly on your supervision by the organization: Every team is supported by two leads who support you with handling inquires of hotel partners. There is also one supervisor who is responsible for recruiting, assessment of associates, all related issues to annual leave, payment or sickness. The supervision by the organisation is great and people are always trying their best to help you.

Requirements for students on placement

What kind of personal skills are required for this placement? Team player, stress-proof, able to multitask and prioritize.
Additional company requirements for this placement? Communication skills.
English: Advanced
Spanish:
French:
German:
Italian:
Other languages: The language depends for which team you are working.

The trip

Mode of transport to reach your destination: Airplane/Bus

Accommodation

How did you arrange your accommodation? Internet
How did you go to work every day? By metro

Visa / work permit / vaccinations

Do you need a visa? No
Do you need a work permit? No
How did you arrange the necessary documents:
How much time did it take to arrange the necessary documents?
Did you need certain vaccinations? No
How long in advance?

Language course

Did you take a language course before you started your placement? No
Would you recommend to have a language course prior to this placement? No

The costs in euros

Travelling expenses (e.g. return ticket): € Prague can easily be reached by plane. Example DUS – PRG about 100 EUR return flight
Accommodation (monthly): € around 300 euros
Local transport (monthly): € 15
General costs of living (monthly): € Costs of living are rather low in Czech Republic.
Costs of visa: €
Costs of work permit: €
What did the company pay for/to you? Transportation
Meal vouchers for every working day
Above basic salary in Czech Republic

Culture

How did you prepare for the country’s culture?
No need to prepare.
Did the culture of the country influence your performance during the placement in any way? No

Future students on placement

Future students are free to contact me for further information: Yes
My e-mail address: 140106@nhtv.nl

Other information

Recommendations on what to do and what not to do: At the beginning you reallly have to get used to Czechs as they are rather distanced.
Leisure possibilities in the city/surroundings of where the placement took place: Prague is an amazing city. There are so many things to do and to see.

Media

Youtube link Youtube placement video link