Here’s something that should make you think twice about your company or organization’s business travel budget and strategy. According to a press release issued just this morning, Continental Airlines says it is eliminating about 3,000 jobs, or 6.7% of its staff, and grounding 67 aircraft in an attempt to cut costs amid rocketing oil and fuel prices. As a result, Continental says it will need fewer employees worldwide to support the reduced flight schedule.

Specifically, Continental says it will reduce the size of its fleet by removing the least efficient aircraft from its network. To accomplish this, Continental is accelerating the retirement of its Boeing 737-300 and 737-500 fleets. In the first six months of 2008, the airline removed six older aircraft from service. It says it will retire an additional 67 Boeing 737-300 and 737-500 aircraft, with 37 of these additional retirements occurring in 2008 and 30 in 2009.

From Continental Airlines:

Dear Co-worker:

We’ve always said that you deserve open, honest and direct communication. This letter and the attached employee bulletin and Q&A are part of that commitment.

The airline industry is in a crisis. Its business model doesn’t work with the current price of fuel and the existing level of capacity in the marketplace. We need to make changes in response.

While there have been several successful fare increases, those increases haven’t been sufficient to cover the rising cost of fuel. As fares increase, fewer customers will fly. As fewer customers fly, we will need to reduce our capacity to match the reduced demand. As we reduce our capacity, we will need fewer employees to operate the airline. Although these changes will be painful, we must adapt to the reality of today’s market to successfully navigate these difficult times.

The attached employee bulletin and Q&A outline some of the steps we are taking to address this industry crisis. The situation for all airlines is serious, and the actions we are announcing today are necessary to secure our future. We regret the loss of jobs caused by this crisis, and we will do our best to minimize furloughs and involuntary terminations.

These actions will help Continental survive this crisis. You have our ongoing commitment to keep you informed as the industry evolves and adapts to these unprecedented challenges. It is important that we all keep our focus on working together during these difficult times.

Larry Kellner
Chairman & CEO, Continental Airlines, Inc.

Jeffery Smisek
President, Continental Airlines, Inc.

When you’re in business or running an organization, you know that expenditures are necessary to achieve your goals. You probably have purchased computer equipment, a phone system, Web hosting services, and perhaps even vehicles for your business or organization. All of these expenses are the cost of doing business. They allow you to generate revenue or run your organization.

With today’s announcement from Continental Airlines, the same is true about videoconferencing. Some people look at the price tag and all they see is the expense. However, when evaluating the cost of a videoconferencing system, you also need to consider the potential benefits to your bottom line, including the following:

• Savings in travel costs: If personnel often have to travel long distances to meet with colleagues, clients, and associates, the savings on travel alone is usually sufficient to more than cover the cost of a high-quality videoconferencing system.

• Savings in travel time: With videoconferencing, the most travel you’ll ever be required to do is to walk to the videoconferencing room. And if the system is installed in your office, you don’t even have to travel that far. No more driving to and from airports, dealing with flight delays and long flights, and spending nights in hotel rooms.

• Improved efficiency and productivity: By being able to consult with key personnel and outside experts at a moment’s notice, you can perform your daily tasks much more productively and even collaborate remotely with colleagues.

The bottom line is this: Today’s announcement from Continental Airlines should give all of us reason to pause and think twice about business travel budgets and strategy. Other airlines are sure to follow in Continental’s footsteps, and when they do, rest assured that those of here at Face to Face Live, Inc. will be here to make sure you arrive at your videoconferencing destination on time, anytime!

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Securities trading and management firm Weeden & Co. is known for many things. The Weeden family’s involvement in the securities industry, according its website, spans generations and can be traced back to the early 1900s, when Frank Weeden, the son of a sea captain, signed on as the first salesman for a new San Francisco brokerage firm formed by Charles Blyth and Dean Witter. With that type of pedigree, people tend to take notice when you make bold predictions like those made by Weeden & Co. senior energy analyst Charles T. Maxwell, who recently predicted American’s may soon be paying $12 or more for a gallon of gasoline.

Educated at Princeton and Oxford, Maxwell entered the oil industry in 1957 and worked for a major international oil company for 12 years. His background has been in four traditional sectors of the industry—producing, refining, transportation, and marketing. In 1968, he shifted to Wall Street, where since 1972, in polls taken by Institutional Investor magazine, Maxwell has consistently ranked among the Nation’s top oil analysts.

What does all of this have to videoconferencing? Good question. Nowadays, whether you believe in the science surrounding it or not, everyone seems to be talking about global warming. From the conference room to the board room and in every office and cubical in between, all of us are being asked to reduce, reuse, recycle, and produce stronger results while expending fewer resources. Before you know it, your business or organization’s “carbon footprint” will be judged right alongside its balance sheet and profit and loss statement.

If you believe Charles Maxwell’s predictions about the rising price of gasoline (or if you believe the ‘talking heads’ who reference Maxwell on cable television shows like CNBC’s ‘Squawk Box‘), then perhaps it’s time to give videoconferencing another look (especially the high definition videoconferencing solutions from LifeSize, which are expertly managed by us–Face to Face Live, Inc.). If, however, you think Maxwell and his fellow analysts and pundits are full of hot air, that’s okay… just don’t let that stop you from analyzing the clear ROI afforded by a reliable high definition videoconferencing solution.

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