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By Ebube Egbufor
Staff and stakeholders in the aviation industry have been charged to render quality customer service by trying as much as possible to understand and meet the desperate needs of customers for successful airport operations.
General Manager, Customer Service/SERVICOM, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Dr. (Mrs) Ebele Okoye, gave the charge at a one-day in-house sensitization programme on Customer Loyalty and Revenue Increase for the Port Harcourt International Airport stakeholders and staff last Wednesday.
According to Dr. Okoye, a customer is one who buys goods and services from a shop or business and who has the ability to determine the longevity and progress of the business.
She noted that every customer would love to do business with a company or organization that is not only friendly and understanding but shows empathy, treats them fairly without discrimination, provides options and alternatives when challenges arise as well as provides information of any changes on time.
Okoye noted that any business establishment that is able to identify the above customer needs would gain both customer loyalty and revenue increase.
Another way of identifying customer needs is by having listening ear and paying attention to all customers’ complaints with the view to proffer solutions and also learn ways to make changes if need be.
She urged employers to always motivate their employees by rewarding hard-working staff and also ensure they have access to further training, stressing that motivation encourages workers to be more committed and passionate about their jobs, thereby producing customer loyalty.
“The aim of this forum is to empower all staff and stakeholders on how to give quality service. Customer service is a core value in airport operations, irrespective of the organization you work in. We must understand and meet the desperate needs and expectations of customers which is key to operating an airport successfully”, she said.
Dr. Okoye encouraged participants to be passionate about their work, strive for excellence, adapt to change, embrace new work ethics and value their customers so as to attract customer loyalty which would in turn help in revenue generation, while calling on FAAN staff to ensure they maintain the core values of FAAN which include, safety, security and comfort of customers.
Managing Director of FAAN, Capt. Rabiu. H. Yadudu, in his address urged FAAN staff and stakeholders to be more customer focused in the discharge of their duties, noting that airport operations and management is a collaboratory assignment, so workers should work as a team towards achieving a common goal to ensure better customer experience/satisfaction at the airports.
The MD/CE pointed out that though the facilities at FAAN’s disposal may not be adequate enough to overcome all their challenges, the good news is that the authority is making efforts to upgrade the facilities.
This, according to him, include among others, the upgrade of the self- check-in kiosks that have the Baggage Reclaim System (BRS), which enables passengers check in, tag their baggage, choose their seats and print their boarding passes before departure, as well as the installation of the latest hand scanner and other modern facilities that will provide services quickly and easily.
