Customer Context
Business Context
Formal RFP for a replacement travel platform. Requirements span product/reservation design, agent/channel tools, inventory, pricing, flights (GDS/NDC — 43 dedicated requirements), ticketing, single customer view (96 requirements), customer relations/complaints (80 requirements), operations, post-sales, finance, and reporting. Two-brand model (CAF/AAF) implies brand-level configuration for pricing, documents, and channel visibility. Flight-inclusive model is central to the business — GDS connectivity is a gating integration.
Timeline
Team
Competitive Context
Kaptio response should emphasise Salesforce-native CRM (strong SCV coverage), Edge Docs, Kaptio Pay, API ecosystem, and multi-brand configuration. GDS/flights must be addressed via integration partner strategy — this is the primary competitive gap.
Assumptions
- •1,016 enumerated requirements scored via spotlight fit/gap: 694 Yes (68%), 269 Partial (26%), 53 No (5%). Excluding FLT/TKT, coverage rises to 72% Yes / 28% Partial / <1% No.
- •GDS/NDC integration (49 requirements) is the primary platform gap and the dominant cost driver. A partner-led integration approach is assumed — Kaptio will not build a proprietary GDS.
- •Two-brand model (CAF/AAF) uses shared Salesforce org with brand-level configuration — not separate orgs.
- •Edge Docs + Kaptio Pay are the default document/payment stack unless RFP mandates otherwise.
- •Phase 1 excludes live flight booking automation — agents use manual flight pricing while GDS integration is built in Phase 2.
- •ATOL/ABTA/CAA regulatory compliance is mandatory and requires UK-specific configuration.
- •Data migration scope is unknown and will significantly impact timeline and cost once confirmed.
- •Commercial volumes (annual bookings, passengers, peak transactions) are unknown — required for Salesforce storage and performance sizing.
- •SCV (96 requirements) maps naturally to Salesforce Account/Contact/Activity model — bulk of SCV is configuration, not custom development.
- •Many "native system report" items in OPS become Edge Docs manifests/reports — not free, but lower effort than custom development.
How We Work
Kaptio's implementation approach and the roles & responsibilities split.
Approach
Outcome-based phased delivery aligned to RFP evaluation
Discovery Process
Structured workshops per requirement family (GEN/SYT, PRD/INV/PRI, RES/AGT, POS/OPS, FLT, SCV/CUR/MKT, INT/API, FIG/FIR/FIP). Produce fit/gap matrix referencing CAF requirement IDs.
Delivery Model
Iterative configuration with pilot products; operational readiness gates before expanding product catalogue. GDS integration on parallel track starting Phase 2.
Governance
Steering cadence per contract; weekly RAID tracking once awarded. Change control for any requirement not in signed baseline.
Roles & Responsibilities
Who does what — Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed
| Activity | Kaptio | Customer | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workshop programme | R | C | Customer SMEs mandatory for all workshops, especially flights and CRM. |
| Fit/gap matrix vs requirement IDs | R | A | Joint sign-off before build lock. |
| GDS partner selection | C | R | CAF leads GDS relationship; Kaptio advises on integration architecture. |
| Catalog + rate loading | C | R | Customer supplies contracts and inventory masters. |
| Data migration extraction | C | R | Customer provides legacy data exports; Kaptio provides import tooling. |
| UAT execution | C | R | CAF teams test all reservation and flight booking workflows. |
| ATOL/ABTA compliance validation | C | A | Customer owns regulatory compliance; Kaptio delivers tooling. |
| Integration credentials | C | A | Customer procures third-party API agreements. |
What We Know
Discovery progress and unanswered questions that affect estimation confidence.
Discovery Progress
7% Complete24 Unanswered Questions — Blocking Estimation Confidence
Delivery Plan & Investment
16 outcomes across 3 phases — what we deliver, how we get there, and the effort breakdown by role.
aWhat We'll Deliver
Core Foundation
(5 included)Product Experience
(4 included)Channel
(4 included, 2 deferred)Advanced
(2 included, 2 deferred)bHow We'll Get There
Implementation Phases
3 phasesPhase 1 — Foundation, CRM & pilot selling
Org setup (two-brand), CRM/SCV configuration, catalog baseline, quoting/confirming for pilot products, passenger data, pricing/offers. Excludes flights — call-centre agents sell land-only or manually-priced flight-inclusive packages while GDS integration is built.
CRM/SCV (320 requirements) is the dominant effort driver. Flights excluded from Phase 1 — agents use manual flight pricing until GDS integration lands in Phase 2.
Phase 2 — Operations, flights, documents, finance
Post-sales automation, GDS/NDC flight integration, manifests/operations, group handling, document generation, payment processing, supplier manifests, core reporting.
Flights/GDS integration (49 reqs, est. 150–250 dev days) is the largest single workstream. Finance cluster (70 reqs) adds significant operational finance configuration. Highest variance phase.
Phase 3 — Integrations, ERP, self-service
External system integrations, supplier API connectivity, ERP reconciliation, website booking, customer/agent self-service portals.
Sequenced after operational stability. Integration breadth drives variance. ERP choice gating for finance reconciliation.
cInvestment
Estimation Summary
11 of 15 outcomes have full data; 4 have partial data; 0 need more content. Average maturity: 80/100.
- →1 outcome(s) have no estimate in the table: integrate-flights-gds
- →Document pitfalls and risks
- →Create golden config for this outcome
- →Outcome has no estimate in the table — add to outcome-estimates.ts
Phase 1 — Foundation, CRM & pilot selling
| Outcome | Total | Lead | FC | TC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Your Kaptio Foundation | 8–15 | 2–3.8 | 4.4–8.3 | 1.6–3 |
Deployment Pipeline & Environments | 3–6 | 0.6–1.2 | 0.6–1.2 | 1.8–3.6 |
B2B & B2C CRM Setup | 9–19 | 1.8–3.8 | 5–10.5 | 2.3–4.8 |
Suppliers, Services & Contracted Rates | 17–30 | 2.6–4.5 | 10.2–18 | 4.3–7.5 |
Packages & Selling Price | 11–20 | 1.7–3 | 6.6–12 | 2.8–5 |
Quote Trips That Convert | 33–54 | 5–8.1 | 18.2–29.7 | 9.9–16.2 |
Confirm Bookings, Effortlessly | 13–23 | 2.6–4.6 | 6.5–11.5 | 3.9–6.9 |
Guest Details, Captured Seamlessly | 7–13 | 1.1–2 | 3.2–5.9 | 2.8–5.2 |
| Delivery Subtotal | 101–180 | 17.4–31 | 54.7–97.1 | 29.4–52.2 |
| Project Management (12%) | 12–22 | cross-cutting | ||
| Other Overhead (8%) | 8–14 | environments, tooling | ||
| Phase Total | 121–216 | |||
Phase 2 — Operations, flights, documents, finance
| Outcome | Total | Lead | FC | TC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Operate Bookings Day-to-Day | 13–23 | 2–3.5 | 6.5–11.5 | 4.6–8 |
integrate-flights-gds(unmapped) | 10–20 | 2–4 | 4–8 | 4–8 |
Group Business, Streamlined | 13–23 | 2.6–4.6 | 6.5–11.5 | 3.9–6.9 |
Sales Proposals That Convert | 11–20 | 2.2–4 | 5.5–10 | 3.3–6 |
Payments That Just Work | 13–23 | 2–3.5 | 3.9–6.9 | 7.2–12.7 |
Confirmations, Financial Summaries & Final Docs | 14–24 | 2.1–3.6 | 7–12 | 4.9–8.4 |
Supplier Communications on Autopilot | 7–16 | 1.1–2.4 | 3.5–8 | 2.4–5.6 |
Business Intelligence at Your Fingertips | 8–20 | 1.6–4 | 4–10 | 2.4–6 |
| Delivery Subtotal | 89–169 | 15.6–29.6 | 40.9–77.9 | 32.7–61.6 |
| Project Management (12%) | 11–20 | cross-cutting | ||
| Other Overhead (8%) | 7–14 | environments, tooling | ||
| Phase Total | 107–203 | |||
System Transition
The SoftTrip → Kaptio cutover model — parallel operation, not parallel booking.
Option A: Clean Break
All new bookings in Kaptio from day one. SoftTrip operates in-flight only.
Key Principle: No Data Migration, Clean Cutover
Fresh Kaptio org. All new bookings in Kaptio from go-live. Only forward-traveling bookings (post Feb 1 2027) manually transferred. SoftTrip fully decommissioned by February 2027.
Key Milestones
System Activity Over Time
Advantages
- +Clean break — agents only create bookings in one system from go-live
- +Shorter parallel period (~4 months)
- +No ambiguity about which system to use for a new booking
- +Simpler training — agents only learn Kaptio for new work
Trade-offs
- –Higher go-live risk — all new bookings immediately depend on Kaptio
- –Manual transfer of forward-traveling bookings (post Feb 2027)
- –No gradual ramp — full commitment from day one
Scoping Session Discussion Point
Which transition model does GRJ prefer? Option A (clean break — all new bookings in Kaptio from day one) or Option B (gradual handover — travel-date cutoff with both systems taking new bookings)? Both approaches have been proven at other operators — Kaptio has delivered both models successfully.
Risks & Next Steps
Known risks and open questions that need answers before finalizing.
Risks (7)
GDS/NDC integration (49 requirements) is a platform gap — Kaptio has no native GDS connectivity
Mitigation: Partner-led integration (Amadeus/Travelport). Evaluate NDC maturity for Air Transat specifically. Budget 150–250 dev days. Start partner selection immediately.
Flight-inclusive operator without flights at Phase 1 go-live — call-centre workflow must accommodate manual flight handling temporarily
Mitigation: Design manual-flight workaround for Phase 1 (agent enters flight details manually, pricing from external GDS tool). Minimise rework when automated integration lands in Phase 2.
CRM/SCV scope (320 requirements across MKT/SCV/CUR/AGT) could expand during configuration
Mitigation: Lock SCV baseline in workshop; phase advanced CRM features (lead scoring, personas, campaign attribution) to post go-live iteration.
Unknown data migration scope — customer data, booking history, supplier contracts, financial records
Mitigation: Demand discovery access to legacy system data model; price migration as contingent tranche with explicit effort estimate once scope is confirmed.
ATOL/ABTA regulatory compliance adds UK-specific configuration and document requirements
Mitigation: Dedicated compliance configuration session in foundation workshop. Reference existing UK tour operator implementations.
BSP reconciliation and e-ticket generation (TKT cluster) requires airline-specific integration beyond GDS
Mitigation: Evaluate BSP/ticketing scope as part of GDS partner selection. Air Transat-specific interface (TKT-005) may require dedicated development.
Finance cluster (70 requirements) includes sophisticated payables, receivables, and trust accounting
Mitigation: Detailed finance workshop with CAF finance team. Phase operational finance (Phase 2) separately from ERP integration (Phase 3).
Open Questions (12)
Sorted by priority — high priority questions have the biggest impact on estimation confidence.
What is the target implementation timeline?
highRequirements workbook is a capability evaluation — no dates or go-live target stated. Timeline determines phasing strategy.
Which GDS are you currently using (Amadeus, Travelport, Sabre)?
high49 FLT/TKT requirements depend entirely on GDS partner integration. Current GDS relationship determines migration path and integration architecture.
What NDC capabilities are available for your primary airlines (especially Air Transat)?
highFLT-005 states "all air related inquiries to be developed against NDC". NDC maturity varies by airline — critical for architecture decisions.
What are the incumbent systems being replaced (reservations, CRM, finance, operations)?
highNot stated in requirements workbook. Impacts data migration scope, integration requirements, and parallel running approach.
How many staff will use the system and what are the role types?
highNot stated. Drives Salesforce licence count, training scope, and support model.
What is the annual booking volume, average passengers per booking, and peak-week transaction count?
highRequired for Salesforce storage planning, API capacity sizing, and performance testing approach.
Is there an existing Salesforce org that must be reused?
highChanges provisioning, data migration strategy, and licence model.
What data migration is required from legacy systems?
highCustomer records, booking history, supplier contracts, financial data — scope unknown but likely significant.
Which legal entities issue invoices and in which currencies?
mediumDrives BU configuration, tax setup, and document templates. Two brands may map to one or two legal entities.
What is the target ERP / finance system of record?
mediumFIG/FIR/FIP clusters include ERP-dependent requirements. Target system determines reconciliation integration scope.
What is the current complaints and compensation process, and is there a defined compensation matrix?
mediumCUR cluster (80 requirements) is substantial. Understanding current complaint taxonomy and compensation rules determines configuration scope.
What marketing automation and email campaign tools are currently used?
mediumMKT requirements reference campaign tracking, email shot results, and GDPR consent — scope depends on current martech stack and desired integration.
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