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06 July 2009

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TRAVELHOTNEWS.COM PROFILE: LINDSAY PEARLMAN

Lindsay Pearlman, Executive Vice President and General Manager Canada, born-and-bred Torontonian and self-proclaimed hockey dad loves to help others reach their potential
Charmaine Pang

Lindsay Pearlman, Executive Vice President and General Manager for Ensemble Travel Group in Canada

Today TRAVELHotNews.com takes a closer look at Lindsay Pearlman, Executive Vice President and General Manager for Ensemble Travel Group in Canada. Calling himself a “rarity – a born and bred Torontonian,” Pearlman’s father was a pharmacist and his mother a stay-at-home mom.

According to Pearlman, he had “an uneventful yet very fulfilling childhood…I was fortunate. I had a pretty good upbringing.” The ‘middle child of four’, Pearlman is the middle of three boys, with a youngest sister.

Pearlman went to York University, completing his degree in political science and international relations. While he learned a lot there, “I probably learned more about people waiting on tables through university. It’s how I paid for my university education.”

Travel industry was a ‘fluke’

Entering the travel industry came as a “fluke,” according to Pearlman, who joined Ensemble in 2007. “I worked for GE and American Express pretty much all my adult life, in pretty much every department except travellers’ cheques.”

Eventually, his career at GE and American Express took him to different sides of the business, including negotiating air contracts for both the corporate and the leisure side. An opportunity at the Travel Services Network took him full-time into the leisure travel business, where he has worked on the leisure side of things for the past five years.

Proud of helping others achieve

What is he most proud of in his career so far? Pearlman says, “I’ve been fortunate, I’ve had a lot of big wins throughout my career. One of the things I was most proud of…it might sound hokey but it’s true,” he recounts, is when “over the course of four years, every single one of my team members won [the highest award of recognition at American Express]. And when [each of them] got up to win the award, they thanked me for it. That was the greatest feeling.”

“Achievements come and go but if you can make an impression on somebody and carry that forward from a leadership perspective, nothing’s better,” Pearlman added.

When TRAVELHotNews.com asked Pearlman what kind of a manager he considers himself to be, he answered, “I think I am pretty hands off, I am a trusting boss; I’m pretty clear on establishing goals and objectives and give people the flexibility and the room to achieve those.

I like to create an environment where people can feel secure and they can reach, and if they fail, that’s okay, I’d rather have people try to do something and fail at it than be afraid of failure and not do anything at all.”

Would he change anything?

Looking back on his career, Pearlman would have done a few things differently. Going back to the days where he was in university, he admits, “I probably would have applied myself a little better and worked a little harder. My career’s been interesting. It’s evolved and I’ve been fortunate how it’s evolved.

He adds that he “would have either liked to have received my law degree or finalized my MBA, but overall, I don’t have a lot of regrets. I’m having a good time what I’m doing,” he asserts.

Career mentors

On mentors in the workplace, Pearlman says he had a boss at GE who “fast-tracked” him and pushed him to achieve more in his career, including doing things outside his comfort level, such as relocating to Western Canada. Pearlman lived in Calgary for several years before returning to Toronto.

“He showed me how to look at business more holistically instead of on a day-to-day basis, where are you going strategically, are you evolving, how do you fit in that, and how do you guide and direct it. I still keep in touch with him today,” says Pearlman, adding that he was recently in Montreal and ran into his old boss on the street, a pleasant surprise.

Things are moving quickly in the industry

With respect to the business environment in the context of the travel industry, Pearlman says the travel business is changing dramatically.

“It’s changing even faster than we’ve seen before, [and companies need to] ‘evolve or die’.You choose during times like these to either ‘turtle’ – withdraw – or you push through. And it’s human nature to want to ‘turtle’. But success means pushing through. We are empowering our members to push through. The ones that are doing it, in actuality they’re doing very well.

It’s a fantastic opportunity to recreate your business as a whole. The members that are successful are embracing it and changing the dynamics of their business. We’re seeing people that are taking a risk and adapting. Our economic reality is our reality. We don’t have a choice. It’s what we do about it, and if we can evolve as quickly as possible we’ll end up on the front end.”

Ensemble team is doing well

Pearlman is proud of what he has accomplished at Ensemble, highlighting that he is focused on the team effort. “I think we are on the right path. It’s about not only where the business is going, but how the team has evolved with the business.

It’s about creating harmony and a culture. Across the country, we are starting to see the fruits of our labours. From a goal perspective, if we keep on that path, I’m a happy guy.”

Canadian pastimes – golf and hockey

When not in the office, Pearlman keeps himself busy with golfing, which is mostly done with clients because of the amount of pressure on his time. “My handicap is a 3 – per hole,” he quips.

Staying true to Canadian culture, he is “a big time hockey dad, so I watch my [11-year old] son play hockey, it takes up a huge amount of my time” and he also likes to read. Pearlman also has a 14-year old daughter.

So which is his favourite hockey team? Pearlman sighs. “Shamefully said, I have to say I am still a Leafs fan. I saw them in Montreal, playing the Canadiens. When the Leafs scored a goal, you cheered very quietly, otherwise somebody would probably throw something at you.”

Read all about it!

A reader who typically has three or four books going at any given time, Pearlman says he won’t take up reading for an extended period of time after going on his marathon book-reading binges. Preferred reading material includes business books, personal improvement books, and what he calls ‘airplane novels’.

A reader who likes to apply lessons learned to his life, Pearlman likes to choose books that will offer him insight and a different perspective. “No one book does everything…it’s what works for me. It’s an interesting way of doing it, but I like to read. It gives me peace.”

Musically minded

Pearlman also loves music and has an eclectic collection of records, ranging from Motown, jazz, rock, ‘stadium bands’ and more. Does he play an instrument? “God, no!,” he smiles. Regarding current music, “I really like the acoustic guitar guys like the John Mayers, some of the new jazz musicians like Diana Krall.”

He tries to see concerts when he is not spending time with the kids or on the road, and laments that “I am turning into one of ‘those guys’. The middle-aged guys that are forking out the bucks to see the Eagles play,” he chuckles.

East Asia is great, but Canada rules!

Pearlman says a dream destination for him is East Asia, but one of his tried-and-true “favourite places on the planet, and you’ll laugh, is Western Canada. It’s Banff. I don’t think as Canadians we realize what a precious gem that is,” he adds, saying “that’s when you realize how good we have it here, is when you go elsewhere.”

“I’ve done the coast-to-coast Canada thing a couple times, actually. You don’t know what you have in your own backyard. When you go coast to coast, you ask, ‘Are we in the same country?’ People on the East coast are totally different than those on the West Coast, and all points in between.” He also admits that sometimes, “We Torontonians can be a bit jaded” while remarking on Canada’s healthy rivalry between East and West Coast.

As someone who appreciates architecture, Pearlman says Paris is unparalleled. And, “what churches are to Paris, is what mosques are to Istanbul. Istanbul is just an unbelievable place. It’s a total throwback, and the nicest, nicest people you’ll ever meet.”

“The one thing I’ve learned is, the more you learn the more you realize you don’t know anything. The more you travel the more your eyes open up. We live in such an insular world here that you don’t realize how big it is until you travel,” he philosophizes.

It’s all about adapting to the experience

Diplomatically, Pearlman says he has had no definitive ‘best or worst’ travel stories, but rather “there have been surprises, and how you deal with the surprises.” A positive experience was a river boat cruise of Southern France, which exceeded his expectations.

But “in destination, sometimes it’s not what you expect, and you adapt to it, or it’s brilliant. I’ve had a few of those ‘Aha!’ moments when you see something that you’ve read about and seen in pictures and you go ‘wow’.

Venice blows me away. Even New York. It’s close, it’s right there, but New York’s a pretty cool place to be. Try riding the subway and going to Yankee Stadium…that in itself is a Seinfeld episode! So you find little things, little gems here and there.”

Worst travel experience

Speaking of worst experiences when travelling, he notes “it’s not in-destination, it’s getting to destination that’s the worst experience,” adding that his most difficult travel experience was on a group trip where someone in the group suffered a heart attack and died.

“It was just horrible. I got the call at four o’clock in the morning. Watching this poor man signing forms three inches thick in a language he didn’t understand, so if there was ever an ad for travel insurance – which, thank goodness, we had – that was the ad.”

The more you know about Lindsay Pearlman…

TRAVELHotNews.com: What would you be doing if you weren’t in the travel industry?
LP: In a perfect world? I’d probably be sailing a small ship through little islands all over the world.

TRAVELHotNews.com: Do you sail?
LP: No.

TRAVELHotNews.com: Have you changed now from how you were as a child growing up?
LP: Depends on how you talk to. Some say I haven’t changed whatsoever. And have I changed? I’ve gotten taller, I’ve gotten greyer, Some would say I’ve gotten fatter, (laughs) but the one thing I’ve tried to do is to retain a sense of humour, and that’s one of the things my kids keep instilling in me. Just have a good time. Sometimes it’s really hard not to, you get caught up in the day-to-day stuff, but if you step back and have a good chuckle once in a while, it’s amazing. You know, the old adage, ‘Laughter is the best medicine’ – it really is.

TRAVELHotNews.com: What is the strangest thing you have ever eaten?
LP: I was at a Michelin three-star restaurant in the south of France, I was served dinner, didn’t know what it was, it was beautifully presented, and it was sea urchin.

TRAVELHotNews.com: Who would play you in the movie of your life?
LP: Probably Vince Vaughn, hope for George Clooney.

TRAVELHotNews.com: Words to live by?
LP: ‘Honesty and trust’ are the first ones that come to mind; ‘The truth shall set you free’, and ‘Treat others as you expect to be treated’.

TRAVELHotNews.com: What is the word you most often use?
LP: Please! (laughs)

TRAVELHotNews.com: Cats or dogs?
LP: Dogs

TRAVELHotNews.com: What is in your pocket right now?
LP: Lint (just kidding), my driver’s licence, cash and some cards.

TRAVELHotNews.com: What song makes you get up and dance?
LP: “Beautiful Day”, U2

TRAVELHotNews.com: What advice would you give to your 19-year-old self?
LP: Push yourself to achieve the most that you can achieve. And that allows you to decide [what you want to do]. I tell my kids that all the time. Push yourself to achieve what you can do, so you can decide – not let life decide for you.

TRAVELHotNews.com: Most embarrassing moment?
LP: I’m in a very, very nice hotel in Venice, check into the room, and I look and there’s the toilet, and I couldn’t figure out how to flush the toilet. So I see this thing sticking up and I pull it, it turns out to be the brush for it. It was embarrassing because I had called downstairs and asked them how to flush the toilet. There was a button on the floor and you had to step on it. At the end of the trip, I said, “Honestly, show of hands…how many people couldn’t figure out how to flush the toilet on the first night?” It was amazing how many hands went up.

TRAVELHotNews.com would like to thank Lindsay Pearlman for his time and cooperation for this interview.