Interview: Passing the Torch: Jackie Friedman Reflects on Building Nexion’s Culture and Her Own Next Adventure
Interviewing: Jackie Friedman, Nexion Travel Group
Interview By: Joanie Ogg, CTC, MCC, Co-Owner and Co-Founder – Travel Professional NEWS
After 22 years with Nexion, the last 19 of them as president, Jackie Friedman is stepping back. She joined the company in 2004, not long after Sabre had acquired what was then a small travel technology platform, and helped steer it through a 2010 divestiture to Travel Leaders Group (now Internova), a pandemic that upended the industry overnight, and a wave of growth that turned Nexion into one of the tightest-knit communities in travel. Along the way, she became known as much for building culture as for building a business: CoNexion, Travel Leaders of Tomorrow, and a “three-way success model” that ties Nexion’s fortunes to its advisors’ and its partners’ alike.
As she prepares to hand the reins to a new president, Nexion friend and fellow industry veteran Joanie Ogg sat down with Friedman to talk about the milestones she’s proudest of, the pivots that shaped the agency landscape, what today’s advisors are getting right, and what her own Mondays will look like a year from now.
Joanie Ogg
Good afternoon my friend. Thank you for sharing time with us today. I am thrilled to be able to feature your “Story” with our travel industry readers.
You joined Nexion in 2004, and you were the VP of Operations, and then you became president just three years later, which was pretty amazing. And twenty-two years later, here we are. It’s quite a run. Looking back, what is one moment or milestone that stands out as the one you’re proudest of? I know you’ve had so many amazing successes, my friend.
Jackie Friedman
If I had to pick just one, I would say how we all got through COVID together. It was the most difficult time, but it was a time that really showed me what this team and this industry are all about which included overcoming adversity, keeping each other lifted up, finding creative ways to stay connected and keep spirits up. The fact that we brought so many new people into the business during that difficult time, because they had the time to train and onboard them the proper way, which they may not have had if things were operating at normal speed. I would say that’s probably the accomplishment that stands out the most.
Joanie Ogg
Yes, that’s absolutely true. Getting through that was an amazing feat, and getting through it as strong as you and your team did was incredible. In those early years when you started out with Nexion, did you ever think, in your wildest dreams, that Nexion was going to be what it is today?
Jackie Friedman
Never! I think you remember, when I started with Nexion, it was shortly after Sabre had acquired the business, and it was a travel technology platform. When I went to San Jose, which is where the business was based at that time, I began to learn more and more about the business. You know, even then, I didn’t really realize what it could be. It really wasn’t until probably the 2010 time frame, when we were acquired by what was then Travel Leaders Group, which is now Internova. That was the first time we were part of the core business. When we were at Sabre, it was a small acquisition and not part of the core business. So, I think the trajectory and the real growth spurt of Nexion started back in 2010. We had nice growth when we were part of Sabre, but it really changed when we became part of a travel agency group versus a GDS.
Joanie Ogg
Well, history clearly shows how successful that change was for Nexion’s growth, you did a great job of that. Was there any turning point that almost didn’t go as planned but then turned into a great move?
Jackie Friedman
That’s a great question. When I was first told that we were being divested to Travel Leaders Group, I was concerned about such a big change, because it was the unknown. I had been with Sabre for years, and I was operating within my comfort zone. There were a few moments before the deal actually happened where I questioned, is this a good move for me? Is this a good move for Nexion? Because again, you don’t know what you don’t know. It ended up probably being the pivotal moment, but before it happened I definitely had questions about it. There were moments when I wondered if I should go find something else. I am very glad I did not!
Joanie Ogg
That is a good point. I know you and I have talked about this before, what an incredible, thriving community exists at Nexion. When I’ve had the privilege of attending your CoNexion events, it’s truly the epitome of seeing and experiencing that connection live.
Can you share why you believe this sense of family and teamwork has guided Nexion to such great success over the years?
Jackie Friedman
I think it comes down to culture. Our many events are a shared culture of growth for our team and our Nexion advisors. We create these events because they help our advisors succeed, and Nexion will only be successful, and our partners will only be successful, if our advisors are successful. I think having that kind of success model early on, with everyone on the team grabbing hold and doing their part, is what makes it all magic. CoNexion is the granddaddy, and we have so many other events and sharing opportunities to help everyone grow. It is a labor of love and hard work. It really comes down to a shared vision that everything we do is to connect our advisors whenever and however it works best for them individually.
Early on we realized that there is no one way to connect with everybody, so when we launched Travel Leaders of Tomorrow, we got very, very good at delivering remote, virtual training, and we had a team that was very gifted at it. Clearly, that served us very well throughout the pandemic years when we didn’t have a chance to meet in person. We try to meet them where they are, in a sense. Some of them love in-person events. Some of them love destination, or what we call immersive journey, events. Some of them love our small specialty events where they’re a little bit more boutique, like our luxury sales events. We have our Group Sales Summit as well as Corporate Connections.
Joanie Ogg
I love that, Jackie. The shared culture and shared vision. You and I have been in this industry, as we’ve talked about, for many, many years, and we’ve really had a lot of fun being on panels together and watching it evolve. We’ve talked about its future, and we’ve cheered each other’s wins, but from where you sit now this is a big shift for you. What is something you think today’s advisors get right that our generation had to learn the hard way?
Jackie Friedman
There are many, but let me focus on a couple. One, today’s advisor is a business owner and a travel advisor. They wear multiple hats. They don’t just need to know how to sell travel, but they also need to know how to run their own business and build customer relationships. They also have to acquire new customers, retain the ones they have, and the list goes on. Today’s advisor is much more of a specialist. When I started, someone would walk into an agency, sit on the other side of the desk with a brochure, and say, “I want to go here.”
It was much more of an order-taking process. We were agents of the airlines. Almost everyone in travel booked and ticketed air travel, hotels and resorts, car rentals and we just put it all together. There were a great many components. Today’s advisors are opting to become an expert in fewer things. I always say, know more about less rather than less about more. And so they can build a business around a passion or interest that they have.
For the most part, people aren’t going to come to them the way they did back in the brick-and-mortar days. There are exceptions, we have advisors who do have a storefront, for any number of reasons. But for the most part today, they have to be good at getting the business. They have to specialize.
They are enabled by technology. Clients have access to information at their fingertips now, so advisors need to add additional value to the sale. When you and I started, the internet wasn’t a thing and we couldn’t have dreamed that artificial intelligence would even exist, let alone become a growing resource for people selling travel. My hat goes off to advisors today because they really have to wear multiple hats and be proficient at all of them! It’s been fun being part of their journey, and I’m excited to see what the next few years will bring for our industry.
A lot of the major pivots in our industry have come as a result of disruptions. Action was born out of a disruption. The initial airline economic changes, the capping and cutting of commissions, and then, of course, 9/11, the financial crisis in 2008, COVID and the list goes on. The internet was supposed to be the death of travel advisors, and we know that wasn’t true. Now people are saying the same thing about AI, and I can honestly say that’s not true either. My overall advice for advisors is to look at the disruptions, then look back at the role advisors have played through the evolution of the industry. That is not going to change. So just figure out how you work with it and don’t let it work against you.
Joanie Ogg
You have worn a lot of hats beyond Nexion. You’ve been asked to serve as board chair of The Travel Institute and CLIA Starboard. And you are godmother of AmaViola. That’s just a few of them. I know there are many more. Is there a piece of that broader industry work that you’re especially attached to, or that you hope to stay involved with after you step back?
Jackie Friedman
I will stay on The Travel Institute board. I would also like to stay involved with ASTA, where I can be of assistance. I have agreed to be on the new river foundation that AmaWaterways is creating. I will remain in some capacity with the Family Bonds Foundation, which, as you know, is a charitable organization that helps people in our travel industry. I also plan on keeping my finger in the industry by becoming an IC and selling travel! I guess you can say I’m coming full circle. I will be joining one of our advisor teams.
I have no desire to cure my travel affliction. People say, “Are you really retiring? Are you going to be good at it, or will you be like some others who retired and then came back?” I believe I will be good at it, because I’m going into it with the understanding that I’ll dabble a little. I will keep my foot in a few different ways and I’m always open to doing a project here or there. I’ve purchased a home in a 55-plus community in Florida, and I’m putting down some roots! I am very excited about my new home.
Joanie Ogg
What does your transition period look like now? Because you’re going to be very busy helping once a new president is named. What is the one piece of advice you would share?
Jackie Friedman
To understand and maintain the culture. To take the time to really understand Nexion’s secret sauce, which is that community, that culture – the way the team collaborates and works together and to understand and respect that as the business continues to grow.
Joanie Ogg
Okay, I have one more follow-up question for you. In our time capsule, we’re catching up with Jackie Friedman on a Monday in September of 2027, a year from today. What does retired Jackie Friedman’s Monday look like?
Jackie Friedman
I’ll get up in the morning, but not too early. By then, I’ll have moved into my beautiful home in Naples, Florida. I’ll go out on the lanai, which has an eastern exposure, so I get the sunrise and can enjoy the sun when it’s not too hot. I’ll have a cup of coffee, then maybe head over to the community center, maybe take a water aerobics class. They have an art studio, so maybe I’ll learn ceramics, see if anyone wants to play mahjong, and then head back to work for 45 minutes or so on any client bookings.
Then I’ll probably start packing for my next trip!
Joanie Ogg
This is the absolute perfect answer. It’s all about how you visualize what your next chapter will look like. How does Jackie think that day is going to go? Because that’s really what making a big decision like this is all about. You have to project. You have to put yourself in that place and be able to picture what experiences and feelings you’ll have and what your desires will be. It sounds like you’ve given this some seriously good thought.
Jackie Friedman
I did, and I did it intentionally. You know, I hear too often about people who work for so long toward retirement, but then they retire and have nothing because their sense of identity and everything else was so tied to their business. I realized I needed to create a structure that lets me stay as busy as I want to be. I think that’s the biggest key is I can be as busy as I want to be, whether that’s the work I dabble in or the hobbies I spend time on. One thing that’s not going to change is my love of traveling. What will change is that I’ll be able to go for a little longer.
I’m also looking forward to having the ability to stay in the moment while traveling, and to let go of the ties of emails and calls.
Joanie Ogg
So do you have a trip that’s already on the calendar for after your retirement?
Jackie Friedman
Oh, I have several! I will be joining some advisor groups. I’ll be going to Japan in April. I have a trip planned to Sydney, Australia, for New Year’s, followed by an Azamara Australia/New Zealand cruise. I have a trip to Norway planned for the summer of 2028.
Joanie Ogg
I love it. Well, it sounds to me like you truly have a fun schedule ahead of you. Not only should you be feeling wonderful about what you’ve accomplished, but you’re also looking forward to the future, and you have a really good handle on what your want to focus upon.
Thank you Jackie for sharing your time with me today. I have enjoyed our time in this industry as colleagues and good friends. It has been such a great pleasure to see your amazing success and to share in your plans for your next chapter. Have nothing but fun my friend!