A challenging time demands strong, considered leadership. As the travel industry faces unprecedented challenges globally due to the impact of COVID-19, we are fortunate to have a steady hand at the helm.
At the end of last year Rome2Rio was acquired by Omio, the Berlin-based travel booking platform. This opened up the opportunity for us to expand our coverage areas and enhance the experience we delivered to users, building on the work Michael Cameron and the rest of the Rome2Rio team had done over the previous decade.
A new era
This partnership has delivered us stable and experienced leaders during the current crisis, with Yeswanth Munnangi (Yesh) taking over as CEO of Rome2Rio. Michael will remain part of the Rome2Rio family, moving onto our board of directors where he will be well-placed to provide guidance, mentorship and high-level support to Yesh and the Rome2Rio team.
In January, Yesh and his family relocated from Berlin to Melbourne so that he could take on the role.
Yesh brings a wealth of business and product experience and connections to the team. He was instrumental in helping Omio scale into Europe’s leading transport booking platform as Director of Business Operations & Strategy. He wore multiple hats at Omio across analytics, product, and commercial areas while also helping acquire companies in the space including Rome2Rio. He also comes from a US tech background having cut his teeth at Amazon with a focus on scaling new businesses.
Yesh’s user-focused vision, passion for solving problems in the travel space and his proven experience in setting a strategic direction will help Rome2Rio through the current crisis and into our next stage of growth.
So from the whole Rome2Rio team we offer a heartfelt welcome to Yesh and wish Michael well in his next ventures.
Some words from Yesh
“As the world – and the travel industry – face a challenge without precedent in living memory I’m grateful to be asked to lead Rome2Rio and I recognise the vital need to provide guidance, strategic direction and steady management during this period.
“I am fortunate to have an experienced team alongside me who have worked tirelessly to adjust to the crisis while retaining our strong focus on user needs so that we are ready to serve travellers when people start to move again.
“The fundamentals of our business are solid. We have a great technical platform that has helped millions of people experience their dream holiday, connect with family and friends across the globe, or just get from A to B.
“We believe there is a pent up demand in people across the world to move out and travel to new places as the world recovers. We are seeing big changes during the crisis, and these may continue for most of the recovery. We are ready if required to open up our product roadmaps to cater to new user needs.
“I am excited to join the team now with the opportunity to navigate this difficult period and continue to provide extraordinary travel experiences in the recovery phase and beyond.”