Customer Service – the Elixir

            The most recent Airline Quality Rating, done by Wichita State University and the University of Nebraska, ranked United No. 8 of 18 big and small airlines for 2006. American, Delta and US Airways scored worse "The service stinks," one first-class American Airlines passenger wrote recently on airlinequality.com, a popular travel site where customers report on airline service.  Customer complaints in the U.S. continue to escalate and the Congress is seriously considering again legislating a Passenger Rights bill it kicked around in 1999 and in 2001. This past weekend, Northwest Air continued it spate of flight cancellations, this time relating to a “spike” in pilot absenteeism.

            One of the maxims of air travel is that a passenger can be checked-in at the counter by a warm, professional agent; greeted by name during a flawless boarding process; enjoy the jovial humor of the in-flight crew, arrive at their destination safety and on-time; but without their bags the whole customer experience is a failure. So how do airlines struggling to maintain new-found profitability create a customer service-focused corporate culture for its customers?

            A recent interview by the WSJ with the CEO of Virgin Atlantic Airways provides a first-rate model. Steve Ridgeway speaks inspiringly of Virgin’s service culture and it’s highly touted staff. At the cornerstone is – “we put the customer at the heart of the business”. Instead of operations people moving metal from point A to point B who, as Mr. Ridgeway knowingly states “don’t like passengers because they turn up late and drop peanuts everywhere”, Virgin is legendary for being driven by their customer proposition.

Few companies can be price leaders like Wal-Mart, Ryanair, and Southwest. But Virgin Atlantic with only 37 aircraft chooses to be a quality leader. It has become their culture; it drives many of the decisions surrounding the quality of products and the services the airline provides consistently. As Mr. Ridgeway says: “It’s in our DNA”.

            The launch next week of Virgin America promises the same service fiber of Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Blue in the pacific. To compete successfully with top-of-class carriers like Virgins, the Singapore Airlines, and Cathay Pacific, airlines will have to provide ticket value and much improved service for their customer. Hiring practices, customer service training, in combination with a top-down service focus are essential elements to overcoming the deficiencies that plague many bankruptcy-emerging carriers today. In the long run, customer service is the elixir of growth and profitability. Cheers!

James Alexander