Mark Mitchell, American Airlines’ managing director of customer experience, is the point man for customer service at the airline. With the summer travel season now underway, I asked him how air travelers could have the best possible experience, and what airlines like American are doing to make it better.
Q: What can air travelers do to get the best possible customer experience from an airline like American?
Mitchell: Our goal is to provide travelers the best possible experience, and it begins long before someone steps inside an American Airlines plane. We strive to ensure that our tools, processes and interactions make it easy for someone to choose American — whether it’s booking online at aa.com or redeeming AAdvantage miles with our new flexible awards booking tool or making a call into our reservations system. And once in our care, the American Airlines team is committed to doing everything within its power to offer travelers the best customer service.
We take this very seriously. More than 200 employee-led teams across our network over the past two years have been working to identify issues and develop solutions within six key issues customers care about: delays and delay management, gate interactions and the boarding experience, on-board interaction, cabin interior condition, baggage handling and baggage resolution.
Q: Is it possible to run a profitable airline and have happy customers? Or does an airline have to choose one over the other?
Mitchell: We believe that customer satisfaction is a critical part of the path to profitability. American is committed to enhancing the customer experience, and we believe that will help turn our company around financially.
Although the economic environment remains challenging, we continue to look for new ways to improve operations to provide passengers the best experience possible. For example, we know on-time performance in the form of predictable and reliable schedules is important to our passengers. Some aspects that affect on-time performance — such as bad weather – we cannot control. But American is focused on those things we can control.
We implemented new procedures last year, including adding time to our schedule, re-adjusting flight plans to increase speed, pairing pilots and flight attendants with specific aircraft and deploying new technologies to help speed our customers through the airport. The enhancements were made with one simple goal – get our passengers to their destinations on-time, with as few hassles as possible. And while we do not control bad weather and delays because of air traffic control issues, we are seeing that the new system we have built is helping us to navigate a better airline when these events occur.
Q: What should customers expect from an airline like American?
Mitchell: They should expect that American will deliver on its promise to offer safe, dependable, on-time service. American is continuing to invest prudently in the airline, even during these difficult economic times to help us deliver on this promise more consistently. In addition to many technology investments to provide better tools for our employees and customers, we also began taking delivery of 76 Boeing 737 aircraft that will help us keep customers loyal to American while helping the company reduce costs.
Customers should also expect that American will continue to lead the industry in making booking travel easier. American recently introduced ”One-Way Flex Awards” – this gives our 63 million AAdvantage members more options to redeem travel. The new technology provides customers the ability to use miles on a one-way basis at half the round-trip mileage requirement and to combine different types of award travel on a single ticket.
Q: What should they not expect?
Mitchell: Travelers should not expect airlines to be able to account for bad weather or airport delays caused by congested airports or outdated air traffic control system in every instance. However, we continue to invest in new technologies that will help us better navigate through these issues and speed up recovery when they occur.
Q: American Airlines created your position in 2007. If I recall, the idea was to demonstrate American’s commitment to a better overall customer experience by adding a new leadership position within the company. How is the customer experience better today than it was when you started?
Mitchell: The customer experience has improved on many levels. I am fortunate to work every day with a dedicated team of employees from various backgrounds, including information technology, maintenance, flight and customer service, to support our frontline employees where the customer experience activities ultimately take place. Our role is to track results, identify best practices, and work across various functions and organizations to facilitate and ensure activities are successfully carried out.
By all measures, we have been successful. For example, in year-over-year comparisons between December 2007 and December 2008, American has seen complaints across all six issue areas decline by more than 28 percent and a marked improvement in customer experience ratings in five of the six customer service issue areas.
Q: Last year, American Airlines implemented a new customer blueprint that focused on delivering the basics, including safety, dependability, cabin cleanliness, baggage handling, courtesy and professionalism. Why was such a blueprint necessary?
Mitchell: The customer blueprint was born out of our need to formalize how we wanted to differentiate the travel experience for our customers and was based on feedback from the many different work groups involved in improving our customer experience scores. It also provides the basis for our roadmap and to establish priorities for our many customer initiatives.
It is tangible and visual, and it serves as a good reminder for all of us to keep the customer experience first and to remember to give our customers what they value most.
Q: The latest American Customer Satisfaction Index has just been released, and your airline scored a 60, which is down more than 3 percentage points from last year. What accounted for that drop, in your opinion?
Mitchell: I can’t account for the Customer Satisfaction Index, but I can tell you that American’s internal customer satisfaction surveys — from cabin cleanliness to handling baggage to onboard interactions with our flight attendants and delay management — show marked improvements from a year ago. And the benchmarks we measure ourselves against indicate otherwise as well. In fact, in mid-May, American paid out $14 million to approximately 72,000 frontline employees for meeting customer service and operational goals during the first quarter of 2009.
Q: It’s been a year since American Airlines added a $15 fee for the first checked bag. From a customer service perspective, how is that working out?
Mitchell: Customer acceptance on domestic bag fees has gone well. Even in the earliest days a year ago, the process went more smoothly than many expected. Since then, customers have come to understand — and we believe, accept — the process and the concept of paying for the optional services that you choose.
Selling food onboard is another similar example. Basically, those who use it, pay for it. Those who choose not to pay for it, don’t. That would include approximately 50 percent of American’s domestic travelers who do not check a bag and therefore do not pay a fee.
Incidentally, that percentage of carry-on travelers has not changed — it is about the same as before the fee was implemented. We have seen a decline in the number of second checked bags. Also, premium travelers are exempt from the charges. That includes top-tier AAdvantage members, full-fare travelers, as well as those traveling on military fares.
When it comes down to it, approximately 25 percent of American’s domestic travelers actually pay the first checked bag fee – that means about 75 percent do not.
Q: In Gerard Arpey’s recent remarks at your shareholders meeting, he said the key to American’s a la carte pricing initiative’s effectiveness is that it gives customers the ability to customize their travel experience as they see fit, according to what they value most. What are the customers you interact with telling you about a la carte prices?
Mitchell: The fact is airlines’ costs continue to outpace fare increases and have not produced the type of returns necessary to sustain a healthy business. The key to our unbundled — or a la carte — pricing initiative is that it gives customers the ability to customize their travel experience as they see fit, according to what they value most.
As an industry leader, American recognized that the industry needed to balance revenue with giving value to our customers. We began offering unbundled services such as buy-on-board food in 2004, and continued to lead this trend on the bag fee front in 2008, with the rest of the industry following.
We recently enhanced our buy-on-board food service in the coach cabin, selling Boston Market sandwiches and salads on some longer flights. We have assembled a team as well to focus on maximizing the customer value proposition across all the optional services we have available. This team is working diligently across our many channels to understand how to offer each of these in a way that customers get the value for what they choose to purchase.
Q: I want to stay on the subject of prices for a second. Transparency seems to be a big buzzword in the travel industry. Some online travel agencies have starting quoting total prices for certain items, like hotel and car rental rates. Do you believe your customers would benefit from having fares quoted that included all taxes and mandatory fees?
Mitchell: While total price may sound like a simple concept, in practice it is not. If one or two airlines were to choose to do that while others did not, their prices at first blush would appear to be more costly than those advertised or offered by competitors. Most Internet Web sites and computer reservation systems show the lowest prices first. Those who follow the industry know that it takes only a very small difference in price on any given route to drive customers away.
The bottom line is that the absolute full price, including any additional taxes or fees that are not already within the base fare, are fully disclosed to the shopper before they ever have to push the purchase button. They do see the bottom-line price before purchasing and that is the most important fact here. Full price before you buy.
Q: There’s a debate raging in Washington over passenger rights at the moment. I think it’s fair to say the airline industry has resisted most of these proposed new rules. Do you envision any scenario under which the defeat of the latest passenger rights legislation might lead to a better customer service experience?
Mitchell: We believe that the issue of how passengers are treated on flights when delayed on the ramp has been addressed by each carrier individually. Our goal at American is to ensure our customers and their belongings get to their desired destinations safely and on time. In the event of bad weather, we’ll always make the safe decision. As I mentioned earlier, we have implemented a host of new initiatives designed to enhance the customer experience, especially when planes are uncontrollably delayed at airports due to bad weather.
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I noticed in his very first statement that nothing was mention tha you can also buy your tickets at any Travel Agencies…Wonder what would happen if all the agencies would take a day or week and not sell America Airlines….
Customer acceptance of baggage fees has gone well???? Maybe I’m in the minority (but, I don’t think so) but I think implementing those fees was one of the worst things the airlines could have done. The only things it really does is make it more difficult to know what you’re really going to pay for a flight, make checking in for a flight a slower process, boarding a plane a slower process, etc. And, airlines continue to try to find other ways to keep reaching into their customer’s pockets!
The other frustrating thing about this is that, once the airline has the money, they will likely never give it back (at least from my experience), even if they grossly mishandle the baggage. So … what are you really paying for?
Although its still the same warm soda, icky airport experience and so on, I have to say that the best flight attendants I’ve seen in the US are on AA… so props for that.
Still think charging for the first bag though is starting to push the line. Am looking forward to the ‘jetbridge use’ fee (I mean, I could CHOOSE to walk in the rain, right?).
Not that he is going to reply to this, but here goes:
You are almost certainly responsible for most delays with airports and air traffic control. Those delays are almost (if not 100%) predictable and consistent. There is no excuse for not modifying the schedule of flights delayed “due to air traffic control” more than 50% of the time.
The airlines (American included) can’t on one hand fight the FAA tooth and nail as they work to reduce landing slots at NYC area airports, and then turn around and push blame for delays due to congestion back onto the airports and the FAA.
To state otherwise is to insult the intelligence of the flying public.
SirWired
Tappity-tappity-tappity. It’s the sound of a PR man doing the old tap dance routine. Good grief! These people are better than politicians at avoiding a straight answer to a direct question!
Chris, I admire you for not screaming, “Give me a straight answer, wouldja!” into the phone, or via e-mail. Sometimes, simply printing an interview subject’s answers, in tota, says far more than any commentary. That’s the case here.
Once again, I am reminded of the song from “Chicago.” “Give ‘em the old Razzle Dazzle and they’ll never catch wise!”
In the immortal words of The Bard, “I am undone.”
Well, yes, AA did just give me PART of what I wanted for an upcoming trip to NYC. I was able to use my frequent flyer miles for one of those one-way tickets they are advertising. However, the one-way cost me 25,000 miles (that used to get me a round-trip ticket) and I could only use them for one direction–the other direction didn’t accept miles so I had to pay cash. Bottom line is I used my miles just to get rid of them before the FF tickets take even MORE miles. And the ticket did wind up costing me about half what it would have cost otherwise, so I came out ahead dollar-wise but very cranky “bargain”-wise and feeling taken advantage of FF miles-wise.
Mr. Smith,
If you want happy customers, here are some initial suggestions.
1) Convey one bag within a reasonable weight limit for free in the ticket price or start charging for each carry-on bag just like checked bags.
2) Offer a small, non-perishable snack to everybody for free.
3) Stop trying to reduce seat pitch.
4) Price your tickets so you make a profit on ALL routes.
5) Use superior service and reasonable amenities to gain market share instead of trying to emulate a cheap bus line.
6) Have all passengers from age 0+ and up to buy a ticket and sit in a seat belted seat.
7) Get rid of the 20 year old MD-80s (really DC-9s when they were put into original service)
8) Stop mispresenting the cause for delays and waiting to notify passengers until no alternatives are available for alternative routing.
Once again, we get the airline executive saying that we as customers have accepted the fact that we have to pay for services we “choose”. But really, since when is the idea of bringing luggage on to a plane a “choice”? Who travels with absolutely no luggage at all? I’m getting so tired of the airlines trying to spin that as something that is suddenly optional. The reason the checked bag fee has “gone well” from the airline’s perspective is that we, the consumers, don’t have a choice about it!
AA has become, in my experience and that of my traveling friends, the carrier most likely to cancel lightly booked flights for specious reasons. One business traveler now refuses to book American after having arrived at airports to be told he’s being “rerouted” through some improbable connection and suffering extensive delays.
My experience included trying to book Business / First travel to Europe at exactly the 11 month advance point and being rewarded with clumsy, multiple change schedules (one requiring an overnight at my expense) hardly qualifying as premium travel tho I was being billed lots of FF points and cash for the experience. As the previous poster noted, I was just anxious to burn off points before they degrade further.
I’m no longer able to hoist a bag into the overhead bins and I don’t appreciate being penalized for that.
I used to love AAs transcontinental nonstops. Now it’s JetBlue all the way.
I guess the real question that we as passengeres have to ask is whether we want items included at a higher price or a la carte with a lower base rate. The difficulty is in determining what should be included in the base rate, even if it cases an increase and what should be sold a la carte.
Personally I tend to the a la carte since many items I can do away with to save money.
It just occurred to me this fee was exceptionally well thought out hitting its target without upsetting the base. Basically it is a way of increasing the costs only on those people who are the least revenue generators.
Consider the three major travel groups.
The business travelers is unlikely to pay this fee. They are either elite levels due to frequent travel or don’t check bags due to a combination of short trips and travel sophistication. The airlines are fine with that as business travelers tend to pay the highest fares.
The leisure traveler who is a frequent traveler who regularly books with the same airline and has achieved status is exempt. This person will book on their preferred airline, even if its a little higher, or less convenient, then other airlines, particularly the discounters. Thus the legacy carriers can stil extract a premium from this person
The very infrequent leisure travelers pays this fee. This is the person who books the cheapest fare regardless of the carrier. They get the rock bottom rates which may or may not cover the cost of their transportation. This is a fee targetted to that person as a way of increasing the cost of their seats.
Also, if you buy an expensive ticket, you are exempt from the fee.
Ummm…his picture makes him look like he just ate a sour lemmon or a rotten prune, good job, photographer. (And you know the airline paid like hundreds of dollars for that picture too.)
Anyone who isn’t even serious about their public image, putting out a weird distorted picture of themselves, probably isn’t going to be that serious about the bigger company image either.
I agree with other commenters, baggage fees are the WORST thing the airlines could have done for their IMAGE.
At the end of the day, they are still selling the tortured flying sardine can experience. And when you add fees to that tortured, packed dignity-less experience, and insisting on the right to keep people in the can for hours upon hours when there’s a problem at the airport, well, I wouldn’t want this guy’s job.
Here’s an idea – let’s have a huge class action civil suit against Boeing, Airbus and the airlines for simply designing the aircraft this way, treating humans as sardines. Why in the world didn’t they design the airlines with two levels of compartments, like passenger trains? Sound proofed compartments, where the doors open automatically and with seats where you must sit and strap in when the “red light” is on, offering comfort and privacy?
I am so sick of flying on sardine cans where I am an insect in a bottle and my blood pressure is raised every step of the way by the cruelly designed torturous and inconvenient experience. Truly this design was made by an antisocial psychopath who took great delight in torturing people at every level.
HELLO this design has not evolved in over 60 years!!! Why do we keep settling for it?
The other advantage of compartments being sound proof is it is the perfect solution for screaming kids / families.
You could also have “lockdown” compartments where convicts, dangerous criminals can be transported with super secure doors, and whatever else unpleasantries for THEIR flight – prison planes, lol.
Mr. Mitchell, I find it strange that you think things are improving.
I appreciate that AA has always gotten me to my destination safely.
I’m sure that the poster who earlier talked about airlines trying to emulate bus lines neglected to mention that most bus lines offer more room on their seats than an airline does – and when the person in front of them lowers their seat back, their hair is not in the face of the person behind them.
I don’t care if you do not feed me on the plane. I do not care if you charge me $15 to check a bag. I don’t even care if your flight is legitimately delayed due to weather or safety reasons.
I can deal with all of those things, it just takes planning.
What I do care about is that seat pitch and the fact that I do not have enough room on the plane to open my laptop without running the risk of the person in front of me wrecking the screen. Those seat backs should not recline unless the person behind is left with enough room. Period. I pay for a seat. I don’t expect to have someone’s hair in my face.
I know the airlines get another row or two in the plane when they do that, but the point is, I pay for a seat on your plane, not a half a seat or 2/3 of a seat.
I could 124 economy seats on your MD-80. Removing two rows leaves you with 114, or would require a 9% increase in fare.
Instead of thinking about everyone being the Greyhound passengers who newly discovered flying but will only fly if they get a ticket for the same as the bus, think about the rest of us who would gladly pay an extra 9% in order to not have the seat in front of us in our faces.
I’ll tell you something, my wife and I even paid to upgrade to first class the last time we flew your airline. We’d left New Orleans and it was too early to get breakfast in the hotel. Much to our surprise, the first class breakfast was a biscoff biscuit. However, the big surprise was that the seat width of the first class seat certainly was pretty much the same as economy. The space between the seats was more, but it was really not woth the money. We paid more than 9% more for the “first class” experience.
After that flight, we decided to see what else there was on offer. I had not taken a flight on United Airlines in 26 years. That’s right, 26 years! After all of the horror stories you read about that airline, and after taking 8 flight segments on them recently, I can tell you one thing – whatever people say about them, they are “better than AA”. Not a lot better, but their economy plus seems to be roomy enough for not that much extra money.
I’m not saying I’ll never fly AA again, but certainly I would say you have a lot of work to do, and you can start by making it so those seats don’t recline in my face.
If you want to use “a la carte” pricing, then offer me more seat space without charting me two to three times as much money (or more). Make it affordable for me and profitable for you to offer those seats, and we’ll both be happy.
United got me to pay for a checked bag AND more legroom. Also, their cabin staff actually did come around with food for sale (unlike yours, who didn’t happen to bother).
I’m not saying UAL is perfect by any means, but you have your work cut out for you.
Making the seats so close together did not make you into a profitable airline, so it is time to be done with that experiment and give a reasonable amount of space.
Thank you.
If people think they are flying in sardine cans and don’t like it, please, for the rest of us, don’t! You can always drive or take a train (but I’m sure you’ll complain about those options also.)
Let’s be real. A major part of the unpleasantness of flying these days is all the compaining on the part of the passengers! I love it when people say that airlines are responsible for weather problems. Or diverted flights due to unruly passengers. Or air traffic control issues that, drum roll please, are actually not the airlines’ fault but rather equipment issues due to governmental budgetary constraints.
I really wish the conversation could progress beyond the same old tired complaints.
News flash, back in “the day” flying was prohibitively expensive for the majority of average citizens and flight attendants were treated like dirt. There were no “frequent flier miles” for free flights or 50 choices for flying from New York to Chicago at any hour of the day. Today, just about anyone can have the luxury to travel. If you want to be more comfortable, pay to be in business or first class. That way you can eat all the sodium loaded food and drink all the mid-range wine to your hearts content. But if you want to cheap it out in the back, don’t compain about a “cheap” experience!
The reality is that the people have spoken. Personally, I’d happily pay an extra 9 percent to have more legroom. But when AA did that, people flocked to other airlines because they were cheaper. AA was forced to remove the extra space to be competitive.
Many, many, people simply want to cheapest possible flight. As long as that is the mentality, then airlines have a strong incentive to try everything to present the lowest based price possible.
Personally, I wish the airlines had more tiers of service like a hotel or car rental company. On AA for example, most domestic flights have 1 or 2 tiers of service. Its either steerage, or pay huge amounts for domestic first class.
I’d be happy for a wider seat and greater pitch, without the first class amenities. Just give me a comfortable seat and I can deal with everything else
Nailed it.
Christopher: Next time when you interview a clown like this, can you ask him if he actually believe what eh says? Can you ask him if he actually believe us (your readers, his customers) to believe his statements? Ask these things last. And make sure you convey his non-verbal reaction to us.
I love the quote “……the key to American’s a la carte pricing initiative’s effectiveness is that it gives customers the ability to customize their travel experience as they see fit, according to what they value most.” He is absolutely right, which is why I choose to fly Jet Blue now instead of American whenever possible.
“managing director of customer experience” kind of says it all. Give a man a silly title and he’ll blame it on the weather – just like everything else
It is you who decides how much leg room I have – not Boeing. How often is your plane 100% full? Ever? Then why not take out a row or two and let us sit like human beings? I’m 6′3″ and you want me to sit in a seat with legroom that leaves my 5′7″ wife feeling cramped. I travel a lot but don’t usually have the luxury of buying biz class as my fare is paid for by my employer. Give us a decent seat pitch. That is one thing that would really improve the customer “experience.”
@Alan
American tried that. I was called MRTC or more room through coach. It was an abyssmal falure. You can blame your fellow passengers.
I’m a big fan of American’s Advantage program, so I offer this criticism as someone who is rooting for this company.
I found the whole interview emblematic of the problem with U.S. airline customer service. Mitchell stresses items not under American’s control throughout the conversation, even when it’s not really an answer to Chris’ question at hand. This is exactly what every airline rep, flight attendant, and ticket agent does. Imagine how frustrating it is to keep hearing about what is not their fault, rather than what they will do to mitigate the problem. Focus on your customers’ needs rather than covering your bottom.
A couple of years ago I was returning to Santiago, Chile from Boston, via DFW. AA (which I generally like) knew more than an hour before boarding that the DFW-SCL flight was cancelled because of no equipment. I have the print-out to prove that (given to me by a flight attendant). At that time seats were still available to SCL by going through MIA from BOS. No one told us about this. So, about 40-50 connecting passengers had to stay overnight in DFW. At least they put us up in the Gaylord, a 5-star hotel. Since the flight would not leave until 9:00 pm, and hotels put you out at noon, I told the counter that I needed a 2-night stay, and extra meal vouchers, which were provided. I WOULD HAVE PREFERRED TO GET HOME ON TIME, A DAY EARLIER!!
Mr. Mitchell with all do respect why is it that baggage handlers are allowed to steal the consumers blind. American Airlines policy of reporting within 24 hrs. is not realistic! It requires sometimes 21 or more hours to reach your destination and then you are to exhausted to go thru your luggage to check to see if all your belongings are there. American airlines takes no responsibility for their employees that steal. I flew from Logan on May 25th at 12:45 pm.Flight #46221 I had an emergency prior to packing for the airport and was not thinking clearly, my jewelry was packed in a yellow flowered cosmetic bag which I usually carry in my purse but it got put in my luggage. When I arrived in LA late. I went Straight to bed and then to work the next morning. With the difference in time I had already surpassed the 24 hr period. I then discovered my suitcase had been ransacked and the error of the case placed in my bag. It was GONE!!!! Why is it this acceptable! The American public is being robbed yet no one wants to take responsibility or take action. I intend to write the Governor, Senators,Congressman, Boston Police, Boston Globe, Better Business Bureau, etc. etc. until someone takes action to protect the consumers. If this happened in any other work place people would be arrested and jailed like the common criminals they are. You are shuffled from place to place. TSA said they get hundreds of calls everyday about items missing from luggage at Logan Airport. Perhaps it is time to protect your customers from employees who steal and cause heartache because these items can’t be replaced. Thank you for listening and I hope you have the power and courage to right the wrong to all the passengers that have be robbed and to top it off we are charge 15.00 to have our personal property stolen. P.S. Some employee really scored because my jewelry was worth well of $10,000.. Thank you American Airlines!!!!!!!!
I’ll tell you what passengers value most; Mitchell. Not Being Nickle and Dimed.