Bremen-based Flyline can look back on two decades of success and expansion. The wholly owned subsidiary of British Airways (BA) started out as a call centre with 30 employees. The company chose Bremen as its base because the clearest German is spoken here, managing director Michael Spring says with a chuckle. In the beginning, Flyline was the result of a restructuring process through which BA aimed to modernise and increase efficiency. Before long, Bremeninvest was lending a hand. The economic development agency helped the company to merge its original sites near the university and in the Vahr district of Bremen. From the outset, the plan was to establish a large BA contact centre at Airport-Stadt Bremen. Today, Flyline Tele Sales & Services GmbH employs 400 permanent staff at the Bremen airport business park. In this interview, managing director Michael Spring outlines the company’s history and the challenges it is currently facing.
What did Flyline do in the beginning?
Michael Spring: We started out working exclusively in the telesales sector for BA. It soon became clear that our parent company was looking to establish a new pillar outside of its core business, for example for other airlines that were working with BA.
What were the key milestones for Flyline in Bremen?
Michael Spring: Our first milestone right at the beginning was establishing ourselves internationally. A total of 80 BA booking centres were merged into six, and at that time call centres were also being consolidated in the USA. We had to organise a night shift during this phase, partly due to the time difference. That was back in 2001/2002. The rapid development of the internet brought us to our second milestone. Since then, we have established ourselves as BA’s language hub, and we have also made inroads into other markets. In 2017, we added Russia and parts of Eastern Europe to our business in Bremen – that was the third milestone and the icing on the cake.
Do you rely on native speakers?
Michael Spring: We provide services in nine languages, and the customer expects communication to run smoothly.
On which areas of business do you focus and what are your main sources of revenue?
Michael Spring: 80 per cent of our business is with our parent company, BA, and we also do some work for Iberia, the airline that merged with BA. We handle their entire European travel agent business. Non-conventional airline business accounts for 15 per cent of our activities, which includes working with companies in the tourism sector. Their customers include airlines, airports, hotel chains, logistics companies and hospitals, with activities covering everything from telesales, sales and campaign support, help desk functions and complaints management to social media monitoring and analysis of business processes. How do your employees gain their expertise? Michael Spring: For a start, I have a background in the tourism industry. And our broad experience in a range of sectors has contributed to a pool of knowledge that we can draw on to equip employees with the skills they need. In some areas, we also work very closely with our customers, so that we are able to build up knowledge here too.
Does Flyline have specific working time models for its 400 employees?
Michael Spring: All employees are on permanent contracts. We do not have any temporary staff or workers paid by the hour. And with good reason – given the complexity of our business, our employees have to spend a lot of time in training. But we do have part-time staff, many of whom are mothers returning to work. We are also flexible when it comes to remote working. We currently have 80 employees who work from home or alternate between working at the office and from home. This is really easy to implement and integrate into operational procedures thanks to the latest technology. For us, it makes little difference whether an employee is located in Munich, say, or at our headquarters in Bremen. We even have a member of staff who works for us from the Netherlands.
What communications technology do you use in the Flyline contact centre?
Michael Spring: Everything runs via IP telephony. But we are also opening up new communication channels and are currently in a transitional phase. There is a lot of talk about the lack of skilled workers. Is that a problem for you too? Michael Spring: So far, we have always managed to hire the staff we need for our multilingual communications right here in Bremen. The university is a great help with this, and some of our employees also study part time. We can also take advantage of our links to the international companies that operate here in Bremen. The city has a good reputation among young people, who are happy to come here from abroad. What’s more, our offices are really easy to get to on public transport, especially as the tram stops right in front of our building. We also offer our employees a free pass for Bremen’s tram network.
Do your language requirements mean you employ people from non-EU countries?
Michael Spring: Yes, we do. Sometimes there are problems with residency permits, but these problems are not specific to Bremen. Bremeninvest has helped us to resolve such issues many times, for example through contacts at the relevant authorities or job centres. We offer German courses to employees from non-EU countries to make it easier for them to find their feet here. This is a scheme that we believe will help us to attract employees from abroad, and we would like to see stronger government support for it. What are Flyline’s plans in Bremen over the coming years? Michael Spring: Our aim is to remain BA’s top contact centre in terms of quality. We also want to build on our position in the BA world and stand out by continually improving our processes. We are a creative team that is constantly coming up with new ideas.
Mr Spring, thank you for talking with us.
Andreas Gerber
acquisition and projects
Team leader Bremeninvest
P +49 (0) 421 9600-123
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Geographical distance and cultural differences make it hard to relocate or start up a company in another country. Luckily, help is at hand from the team at the World Trade Center (WTC) in Bremen. They'll do all they can to make your international business a success.
In December 2016 ministers from the European Space Agency (ESA) member states met to determine the roadmap for the European space sector for the years ahead. Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria and Bremen submitted joint recommendations. In the following interview Dr Peter Vits, Bremen's State Coordinator for the Space Sector, talks about Bremen's strengths and opportunities.
The sky is not the limit, at least not in Bremen. All parts of the aerospace sector are represented in the city, from R&D to production. Aeroplane wings, Ariane rockets and Galileo satellites – Bremen is one of the leading locations in the international aerospace industry. Here are five factors behind Bremen’s story of success.
In 2015 Bremen won the right to host the International Astronautical Congress for the second time, after having successfully held the event in 2003. Its bid was the result of a collaboration between the Bremen regional government and Bremen’s space industry and space research sector. Event partners include the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the German Aerospace Centre.
The Bremen region has long been a pioneer in electric mobility and is now set to enjoy further success after Mercedes-Benz and Borgward announced that they will be making electric vehicles in the city.
Bremen knows how to make cars: the Mercedes-Benz plant by the Weser river has been in operation for almost 40 years, is the focal point of the city’s automotive industry and automotive clusters, and is now the company’s biggest global facility in terms of vehicle production numbers. Reason enough for an ever-growing number of suppliers and logistics firms to base themselves in Bremen.
For 30 years, the Cargo Distribution Centre in Bremen has delivered excellence – as an investment location and a logistics hub. Today more than 150 companies employing approximately 8,000 people are based at the site. It offers direct links to the ports, the autobahn and has a close proximity to Bremen City Airport.
Language barriers, unfamiliar legal and fiscal systems, qualifications that need to be recognised. There are many additional hurdles that entrepreneurs have to overcome when setting up a new branch or a new company in a different country. Bremeninvest is committed to offering you advice and support from the outset.
You might expect a Bremen-based company specialising in innovative instruments and implants for spinal surgery to be located at the Technology Park. But you'd be wrong. NuVasive Germany GmbH has its head office at the heart of the city centre next to Wallanlagen Park. Now employing a team of 44 people, the company generates annual revenue of more than €10 million – a figure that looks set to rise.
