Ann Turner, vice president, Great Southern Travel

My primary role is business development for both the leisure and corporate side of Great Southern Travel.

Does your company deal with more leisure or business travelers?

Great Southern Travel provides comprehensive corporate and leisure travel services. Half of our business is dedicated to corporate travel and the other half is dedicated to leisure travel. It’s a mix that is a strong point of our company.

For leisure travel, where are some of the most popular destinations right now?

We’re seeing a nice resurgence in European travel. Hawaii and Alaskan cruises also are very popular.

What do you like best about your work?

That’s easy – the people! Great Southern Travel associates are outstanding. Their commitment to professional and quality travel services is remarkable and it’s a true pleasure working with them.

What’s the thing you find most challenging, and how do you deal with it?

Like most businesses, one of our challenges is the agency’s growth. We concentrate on well-planned continued growth and understand growth just for the sake of growth isn’t the right answer. We must always have the balance of profitable growth with the assurance that our quality of service to our customers is never

compromised. Our commitment to quality service must always be unwavering.

What changes do you see on the horizon?

Making more online travel options available to Great Southern retail travel customers is in our future.

How have enhancements at Springfield-Branson Regional Airport affected your business?

The nice enhancements at the Springfield-Branson Regional Airport have been very positive for our business. More and more people are using the airport, and likewise, we’ve seen more and more people using our on-site airport office. As the airport grows, we fully expect our business to grow at the airport.

What is the last good book you read, and why did you like it?

I find myself reading books and publications related to the travel industry. It’s both entertaining and beneficial to my work to learn about new travel destinations and the latest trends in the industry.

Tell us about your family and your spare-time interests.

I’m married to Bill Turner and have two wonderful children, Julie and Joe. Julie and her husband, Jason, have two children, and Joe and his wife, Traci, also have two children. We spend a lot of our time enjoying our four grandchildren and spend time at the lake or at the river.