We are the first choice of the Nepali passenger owing to our excellent on-board service, value for money and diversified destinations

Jayaprakash Nair is the Country Manager of Qatar Airways for Nepal. Nair has been associated with Qatar Airways for the last 16 years in various positions and worked with the airline in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Maldives, UAE and other countries. Nair did his graduation in Commerce from Kerala University. He later did his Aviation Management from Indian Institute of Management. In an interview with Business 360, Nair talks about his experience in Nepal and shares future plans of the airline. Excerpts:

How has Qatar Airways been faring in Nepal?

Qatar Airways started in the year 1995, and the re-launch happened in 1997 under our current CEO. We started flying to Kathmandu even before the re-launch. It means we have been in the Nepali market for 22 years, and the journey has been very good. In Doha, there are around 500,000 Nepalis residing. We have been providing transportation facilities to those since our inception. Nepali diaspora is very big, they are in places like US, Australia and Europe. They go for vacations and also visit relatives abroad, and for that, Qatar is the most preferred airline. In addition, we have been bringing in a lot of tourists from around the world.

What has your experience been of Nepal?

Nepal has every single prerequisite for tourism. It has warm hospitality and friendliness. Nepal has a fantastic weather all year round, and the natural beauty here is beyond explanation. There is so much potential here that with slight infrastructural improvement like good roads and domestic connectivity and more five star hotels, Nepal can be number one tourist destination in the world. There were around 800,000 tourists in Nepal last year, and looking at the data, there will be more tourists this year. I am very hopeful.

How is the performance of your airline in the first half of 2017, both globally and in Nepal?

Globally, we are doing exceptionally well in terms of business. We are adding lot of new destinations, operating more flights, and we received Best Airline in the World Award from Skytrax for the fourth time in 2017. We also received Best Business Class, Best First Class Lunch and Best Airline in the Middle East Awards. Business in Nepal is good as usual, and is growing gradually. We are also increasing the number of flights for Nepal.

What is the competition like?

We are market leaders in Nepal and we enjoy a very high reputation. We are the first choice of the Nepali passengers owing to our excellent on-board service, value for money and diversified destinations. So we are not facing any challenge from anyone. We did a lot of hard work to be the market leader, and we are constantly improving our services. We are embracing change and accommodating new things. We have 200 aircrafts and we are in the process of buying more aircrafts. We are serving more than 150 destinations presently and a lot of new destinations are coming up. So I can say we are doing very well in Nepal.

What are the epectations in 2017?

As I mentioned before, Nepal has everything to be the best tourist destination in the world. The majority of tourists that come to Nepal are backpackers. Their average spending is only around 50 dollars a day. Nepal should focus on bringing in more premium tourists. Tourism directly and indirectly creates many job opportunities and contributes to the country’s economy. A lot of Nepalis are going abroad seeking job opportunities. If Nepal can cash its true potential, which is tourism, not a single Nepali would have to go abroad looking for job. That’s where Qatar Airways is helping Nepal. As our mode of operation is hub-and-spoke, we are assisting in Nepal’s tourism by bringing in tourists from all over the world. We will continue to do this in the future too.

Can you tell us about your management philosophy?

I am very passionate about my work and I believe in empowering my team. I believe that if you treat your employees well, they will take care of your business. I have created a very friendly working atmosphere. I always welcome new ideas and a give a lot of power to my team. They can always make their decisions, and they are very happy and motivated. We provide a lot of trainings to our staff. Apart from technical job related trainings, a lot of soft skills are also being developed. I have been able to create a very nice and positive working atmosphere here at Qatar Airways. And of course, the customer is king. We provide our best to our customers. We have a very high reputation in the market and the expectation from us is also very high. We try our very best to always live up to customer expectations.