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Getting to know you: Ruth Chandler, CPO, Skyscanner

Skyscanner is the world’s travel search site, saving you time and money by finding the best travel options wherever you want to go. 

We are free and unbiased – over 70 million travellers around the world trust us each month to help them find the best flights, hotels and car hire. 

Our secret is in our self-built technology and global reach, connecting you directly to everything the travel industry has to offer.  

Available online and through our popular app, we can help you find inspiration for your next trip as well as the best travel deals.

Where did your passion for digital come from?

Coming from a customer service background and working for such a customer focussed company in Skyscanner, I love how the digital industry is changing the customer experience in so many industries. The expectation from customers on what they can expect of products and services is rising so rapidly and it’s incredible to watch technology attempt to keep pace with that. 

What’s your favourite thing about the industry?

It’s an industry that doesn’t stand still and continues to evolve and develop and that is an exciting journey to be part of. 

Where do you see your company in five years?

Skyscanner wants to be the most used and most trusted travel platform in the world. We want to push the limits of technology to create an unparalleled experience, personalised at scale for tens of millions of travellers globally. It’s a huge ambition and a very exciting journey to be on.

What’s your role and what does a typical day involve?

As Chief People Officer, my role is to support and develop all of the brilliant people, across all backgrounds, who come together to build Skyscanner’s unique culture and continue to develop a product that disrupts the industry. With over 1000 people across 10 global locations, I put my energy into delivering innovative global solutions to the many varied challenges of a high growth global technology business. 

Looking to the future, what do you see as being the next big thing in tech?

I think tech companies want to give their customer a really tailored and unique experience to meet their needs, I see this more across all aspects of the digital space and that is really exciting. 

  Any new products, services, events coming up for your business?

We recently launched fee-free rail booking on iOS and Android to UK Travellers and we’ll continue to add more features for regular train commuters with an eye on scaling this. With our recent acquisition of Trip.com, we will soon be providing more rich content to help people learn more about the destinations they intend to travel to, and inspire people to visit places not on their radar.

 Why did you join ScotlandIS and importantly, why are you still with us?

Skyscanner is a Scottish company and we are proud of our Scottish roots. We want to help support other Scottish businesses across all business sectors that will support Scotland’s long term economic success. 

 What do you consider to be the biggest benefit of your ScotlandIS membership?

ScotlandIS has given us a great network to be able to knowledge share with other digital organisations in Scotland and a forum to exchange ideas that are impacting all digital organisations.

If you could give one piece of advice to an emerging business/startup, what would it be?

To be obsessed with what your customer and employees feel when they think about your brand and your product. If you get that right the rest will follow. 

What’s your favourite thing about your job?

I love the fact that Skyscanner is made up of so many great people from different cultures and backgrounds and bring different perspectives to the company. 

 If you were speaking to a classroom full of 3rd year high school students how would you pitch the industry as the best place to be?

If you would like to work in an industry that wants to create new things and always look forward, this is it!

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