Former Cyprus Airways CEO joins UK travel-tech firm

Former Cyprus Airways CEO Paul Sies has joined travel-tech company Journey Mentor as president and chief executive officer, according to an announcement released on Monday.

Journey Mentor, which is based in the United Kingdom,  offers small and medium-sized airlines, travel
agents and TMCs with a range of white-label services related to the travel ecosystem, including searching, booking, pricing, buying and inventory control.

Journey Mentor stated that Sies’ appointment is the latest step in the company’s strategy to steadily grow and develop the business.

As the CEO, Sies has been tasked with providing overall direction and leadership to the company and will be responsible for creating and implementing strategies to enable growth and drive profitability.

The company said that “Sies is renowned in the aviation and hospitality industries, having held board and C-level positions at various airlines and travel providers over the past 35 years”.

The announcement noted that during this period, Sies “has been instrumental in turning around challenged airlines and hospitality companies as well as launching new airlines”.

The company explained that during his two-year stint as Cyprus Airways CEO, Sies successfully created and implemented a new strategic plan and divided the business into three main revenue streams (ACMI, Charter and Scheduled Operations), implementing a new fleet, distribution and pricing strategy.

They added that he also built a network which resulted in Cyprus Airways returning to an important and successful player in Cyprus, offering year-round connectivity in a very seasonal market.

Moreover, the announcement stated that his tenure at Air Malta, before joining Cyprus Airways, spanning four years, saw him enact significant changes, transitioning the airline from a legacy to a hybrid business model.

In addition, during his time at Air Malta, Sies played a crucial role in the airline’s survival amidst the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

In this context, he is credited with spearheading a restructuring plan and successfully securing EU funding, ensuring the airline’s resilience during a turbulent period.

Prior to his role at Air Malta, Sies served as CCO for various carriers, including Virgin Express, BMI Regional, Syphax Airlines, and Wataniya Airways.

His experience in the travel industry also includes roles as CEO and Non-Executive Director (NED) at Hillman Travel, as well as Senior Management Consultant positions at IATA and PS&M.

Additionally, Paul contributed to the launch of Nile Air in Cairo, Egypt, while working as a Senior Management Consultant at Sabre Airline Solutions.

“I am most excited to join Journey Mentor. I have worked for over 35 years in the aviation and hospitality industries and have seen the challenges they have faced. More recently, they have been struggling to meet the increasing demands because of the limitations of ageing systems that were built 50 years ago,” Sies stated.

“Overcoming these technological limitations is something Journey Mentor has achieved and it’s a great pleasure to have the opportunity to start implementing this into the market and offer tailored solutions to travel agents, airlines, and many more players in the travel industry,” he added.

Sies continued by saying that “it has been clear that in this post-Covid era, the way people want to travel and procure has changed significantly”, noting that “they are looking at single transactions and are more willing to do this online”.

Sies also stated that “Journey Mentor gives back control to the passenger even in a 100 per cent online environment”, stressing that “change is long overdue in this industry, and we believe that this is the right time to initiate this change”.

Gordon Hague, chairman of Journey Mentor, said that “we are delighted to have Paul join us as CEO” of the company.

“It is a measure of the business we are trying to build that we are able to attract high-quality people who have been at the heart of the aviation industry and achieved so much in it. Paul brings his vast industry knowledge to this position coupled with the technology know-how of what this industry needs as it adapts to fulfil the ever-increasing demands of travellers,” he added.

“He has impressed the board with exciting ideas on how to take the company to the next level and shape the future of Journey Mentor as a global business. We look forward to working with him and leveraging his extensive experience,” Hague concluded.