Daily Podcast: Air France-KLM’s Groundbreaking Exec Suite

Today’s edition of Skift’s daily podcast looks at the concern of business travel managers for employees in Eastern Europe, who KLM picked as its new CEO, and an innovative study abroad program.

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Episode Notes

As the war in Ukraine continues, corporations still operating in Eastern Europe are grappling with uncertainty regarding the trajectory of the conflict. So businesses active in the region are working out their next set of contingency plans to alleviate employee concerns, reports Corporate Travel Editor Matthew Parsons.

Risk management company International SOS, which has had a team in Ukraine since late January, is advising corporate bosses and crisis management teams on how to handle certain situations pertaining to the war. Julian Moro, an International SOS executive, said a huge part of his company’s work is managing the anxieties clients have about issues related to a possible escalation of the war.

We now turn to KLM’s major new hire. The flag carrier of the Netherlands has appointed Marjan Rintel to be its new CEO, making her the first woman to ever hold the position at the company, writes Airlines Reporter Edward Russell.

Rintel, who is currently the CEO of Dutch passenger railway operator NS, is making a return to KLM. She had served as the carrier’s head of hub operations prior to joining NS in 2014. Rintel will join Air France’s Anne Rigail as one of the few female CEOs in the airline industry when she takes over at KLM on July 1. Only 6 percent of global airline CEOs are women, according to a survey by the International Air Transport Association in March.

Finally, members of the Hispanic and African American communities are generally underrepresented in U.S. study abroad programs, in large part because many young people in those groups lack exposure to international travel. But an entrepreneur named Bola Ibidapo, inspired by her own travel history, is working to make studying abroad more accessible for those segments of the population through her foundation, reports Editorial Assistant Rashaad Jorden in this month’s At Your Service feature.

Ibidapo, the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, launched the Too Fly Foundation with her friend Brandon Miller close to six years ago. The Texas-based non-profit organization provides passport and travel grants to students and U.S.-based student organizations. Too Fly has helped more than 170 students study abroad in countries such as Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Costa Rica and Japan.

Ibidapo said that being one of two Black students in her study abroad program in Argentina influenced her decision to launch Too Fly, explaining she wants to help make young Hispanic and African American students more visible around the world. Students applying to Too Fly must have limited exposure to international travel, a demonstrated financial need and plans to go abroad for educational purposes.