Technology veteran to lead innovation for Sabre’s customers and the travel industry
SOUTHLAKE, Texas – March 19, 2013 – Leading global travel technology provider,
Sabre, has appointed
Deborah Kerr to chief product and technology officer. Formerly with HP and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, she will lead the company’s global technology organization, overseeing innovation, development and delivery of software for airlines, hotels, travel agencies, corporations and travelers.
“Deborah’s extensive technology experience, and proven record of bringing disruptive technology to the marketplace makes her a perfect choice for Sabre,” said
Sam Gilliland, chairman and CEO, Sabre Holdings. “She will build on what we’ve already achieved with our revenue-generating and cost-saving technology, and embed emerging capabilities in areas such as mobile, big data and cloud capabilities, so our customers can stay ahead of the game in travel.”
See what else Sam has to say about Deborah’s appointment, and the technology initiatives and emerging trends she will lead at Sabre.
Kerr joins Sabre from
Fair Isaac (FICO), where she was executive vice president and chief product and technology officer. Prior to that she spent four years at HP, where she was chief technology officer at HP Enterprise Services and also served as vice president of business technology optimization products at HP Software. Kerr also spent time at Peregrine Systems, and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. She is an expert on
SaaS solutions, technology issues and trends.
Kerr will lead Sabre’s efforts to continuously innovate in all areas that Sabre serves its customers. Kerr replaces Barry Vandevier, who left in late 2012 to pursue a new opportunity outside the travel industry.
Today Sabre is the world’s largest SaaS provider to the aviation industry, with its flagship reservations system used by fast growing global carriers including Aeroflot, AeroMexico, Etihad Airways, JetBlue, LAN, Virgin America and Virgin Australia. Many of the world’s largest airlines in the world also use
Sabre’s IT solutions. In the last five years, Sabre expanded its
SaaS model to hotels, and is now the fastest growing provider of property management, reservations and distribution solutions in the hotel industry. The company also operates the world’s largest
marketplace for travel buyers and suppliers, and owns online travel agencies,
Travelocity.com and
lastminute.com. It has large IT development centers in Southlake, Texas; Bangalore, India; Krakow, Poland, and Buenos Aires, Argentina.