Values in Action

Vipul Prakash - Chief Operating Officer – MakeMyTrip & Goibibo

 

Values Define Character. Character Defines Culture. Culture is Character in Action.

 

Bhutan is known to be the world’s happiest country, which is what motivated me to plan a family holiday there in 2017, much before I joined Go-MMT. My wife and I, along with our daughters, were all set. The plan was to spend a week in Bhutan, after which I would return to Delhi for my work commitments, and my wife and daughters would head onwards to Sikkim to make the most of the summer holidays. 

 

From planning our trips, to booking tickets and stays—I had been doing it all on MakeMyTrip for so many years, long before I even started working here! In fact, Harbant and Deepika were my best buddies. This time too, the booking process was straightforward and easy. The summer holidays began and soon, after a lot of debate over what needed to be packed and what didn’t, we were set to leave for our vacation. 

 

Our time in Bhutan was truly unforgettable. Travel has the most special way of creating memories and strengthen the family bond through shared experiences of a new culture and place. I hope it was a great learning experience for my kids too! Although if I were to mention to them that they were supposed to “learn” something while travelling, they would probably avoid it like the plague.

 

After a week, I bid adieu to my family and headed back to Delhi as they packed up to drive to Sikkim. When I touched base back home, I got the news that there was serious unrest in Darjeeling, which happened to be en route to Sikkim. I felt a surge of panic flow through me. I immediately regretted leaving my family behind—but what could I do now?

 

In a state of absolute distress, I called the MMT customer care and flooded them with questions. What they could do to help my family? Was my family safe? What was the situation on the ground? When could they fly back? With great amount of empathy and patience, the customer care executive answered each one of my questions and reassured me in every way. I felt much better after that call. The situation was absolutely under control, and much to my pleasant surprise, I received constant updates from the team. I was informed when my family checked out of the hotel, when they were in the cab and when they finally boarded the flight back. The care I received as a customer on that day, fills me with gratitude even now.

 

Today, as a Go-Tripper, I see first-hand that this value is deeply rooted in the organization’s culture, regardless of whether the customer is external or internal.