A Practical Guide to Airline Customer Service. Colin C. Law

when in need

       Everyone plays a part to ensure customers are satisfied with the entire journey

      The cabin crew is serving meals on both sides of a wide-body aircraft. Mr. Yee is seated on the last row. After he has been served, a cabin staff noticed that her colleague on the other side of the aisle was still halfway through the service. She immediately went over to help her colleague out.

      Give up-to-date information

      One of the main duties of a service agent is to deliver updated and accurate information to customers.

      It is Mr. Yee’s first trip to Sydney. He asked a staff about the arrival process upon landing in Sydney Airport. The staff explained the immigration and quarantine procedures to him in details.

      Problem solver

      Service agents also help customers in terms of resolving problems. During times of irregular operations, service agents offer the following:

       Give passengers advice that is in their best interest

       Offer solutions to problems by identifying multiple solutions and allowing customers to select what best fit their needs and offering a feasible solution after weighing out an airline’s incurred cost and customers’ benefits.

      There was an unexpected flight delay. Mr. Yee had a choice of standing by for the next flight or getting a confirmed reservation on another that flight that departs in seven hours. Based on the situation, the staff recommended that he opt to standby for the subsequent flight while holding a confirmed seat on the other one flying out seven hours later to ensure Mr. Yee will be able to secure a flight back home.

Job rotation programs

      Some airlines have implemented job rotation programs in order to achieve customer satisfaction goals. These programs allow service personnel to work in various environments and gain experience in different departments. This system helps them to increase their knowledge of the airlines’ product so as to better address customers’ problems on the spot, provide prompt services as well as gain in-depth understanding of customers’ needs at different stages of the air travel process. For example, service agents who are based in the airports undergo a job rotation program whereby they are required to work in different functions such as ticketing, check-in, boarding and arrival.

      Job rotation motivates service agents by offering them new challenges and the chance to learn new skills. It also helps to improve communication between departments and for staff to better understand the roles and functions of other departments. Moreover, this increases job mobility as staff who are equipped with multiple skills will be able to take over their colleagues’ tasks in events of an emergency.

      Studies have also shown that job rotation leads to increased employees’ motivation and job satisfaction1 as they become more familiar with their jobs and are more confident when communicating with customers.

From corporate culture to service culture

      The corporate culture of an airline has a direct influence on frontline employees’ behavior and overall performance as it shapes the way they interact with customers. Southwest Airlines, the world’s largest low-cost carrier is famous for its corporate culture, which is also the driving factor for the airline’s success. The company cares about its employees and seeks to create a favorable workplace for all individuals regardless of their roles. In turn, this is translated into the service culture of the company as employees are motivated to treat their customers in the same manner. When employees are satisfied with a company and their jobs, they are motivated to go the extra mile to ensure customer’s needs are fulfilled and that they enjoy the airlines’ products and services.

      The Southwest Airlines Culture

      Southwest Airlines’ corporate culture focuses on every person in the company. This includes its employees and the customers. This business strategy has resulted in Southwest bagging the 7th position of Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies.2