New Managers Position
A Closer Look at Customer Care
While many if not most businesses are giving
their customers new or additional computers
to talk to, Piedmont’s idea is to give them a
better listener than a machine can ever be
— a person trained to listen to their problems
and to understand those problems from the
customer’s point of view as well as from the
Company’s point of view.
“Empathizers”. For a one word description,
that hasn’t yet made the dictionaries, this
seems like a good choice to define Piedmont’s
Managers — Customer Service. Empathy is
actual identification, both intellectual and emo
tional with other people, in this case Pied
mont’s customers.
With a new program conceived last summer
and recently inaugurated by the trafi^ic depart
ment, the needs of the Company’s customers
are getting closer attention than ever before.
Formulated by Division Station Supervisor Don
Shanks, Piedmont’s Customer Service Training
Program is well underway. Two classes have
been held and 15 new Managers — Customer
Service are now working in the Company’s
larger stations. The combined locations of
these managers cover some 70 Yc of the system
boardings.
In organizing the training program Shanks
studied the methods of several carriers and
drew largely on similar plans originally devised
by United and Delta Air Lines. Eventually all
agents and station managers will participate
in the course. The initial training is done
through conferences, rather than being taught
by an instructor. This approach requires total
involvement of all personnel and is proving
tremendously successful. The newly trained
managers will go back to their stations and
hold the same type of classroom sessions they
have attended under Shanks’ leadership.
In the 40 hour course the new managers
learned, and in turn will help other personnel
to understand that a passenger’s problem solved
to the Company’s satisfaction may not be solved
at all. It may, in fact, be further complicated
in the customer’s eyes. Solutions must be
mutually acceptable to achieve any degree of
success.
The customer service managers will work
closely with the station managers but will be
directly responsible for handling all the cus
tomer complaints involving their individual lo
cations.
Those who’ve recently been promoted to
Manager — Customer Service include Jeannie
Dial — Washington National, Pete Gray —
Norfolk, Bill Hamilton — Tri-Cities, Tom
Rorick — Charlotte, Bob Johnston — Atlanta,
John Queen — Asheville, Rodney Bowers —
Roanoke, Ron Kelly — Cincinnati, Norris Smith
— Winston-Salem, Don Knight — Greensboro,
Dick Morgan — Louisville, John Lasater —
Fayetteville, Maurice Booth — Raleigh-Dur-
ham, Jim Birthisel — Charleston, West Virginia
and Kent Moses — Richmond.
Among the first
group of trainees
in the Customer
Service Training
program were,
clockwise, Jeannie
Dial, Pete Gray,
“Professor" Don
Shanks, Bob Johnson,
John Queen and
Rodney Bowers.
/
pieamanim
VOL. XXIII, NO. 1
JANUARY, 1972
Year End Figures Show Traffic Was Up
Airline’s traff'ic figures for 1971 showed
gains in all categories.
The total number of passengers who flew
Piedmont increased 5.50% to 2,843,019 for the
year. The passenger load factor was 47.57 % ,
an increase of 6.28% over 1970. This is among
the highest load factors posted by any of the
nation’s airlines, regional or trunk.
Piedmont’s revenue passenger miles for 1971
totaled 785,272,212 representing an increase
of 5.42% over 1970. The available seat miles
showed an actual decrease of 0.81% meaning
that the substantial increase in number of
passengers carried was achieved without an in
crease in capacity.
Mail carried by air was up 2.12% over 1970
to 15,900,365 pounds. Air freight increased
2.58% to 32,992,903 pounds.
In commenting on the results. President
Davis said “We are delighted with the gains
we’ve made in 1971 despite the generally de
pressed economic situation in our country and
particularly in the aviation business. Piedmont
and the industry in general is looking forward
to a vastly improved traffic and profit picture
for 1972.”
The 1971 financial statistics for the Company
will be published in mid-March in the annual
report to stockholders.
Piedmont's Passengers
Post No Complaints For
Second Time In 10 Months
The Off'ice of Consumer Affairs of the Civil
Aeronautics Board has, for the second time
in the past ten months, received fewei’ pas
senger complaints about Piedmont Airlines
than any other carrier in the continental
United States.
The Office reports monthly on the number
of complaints per 100,000 passengers carried
for the twenty-six U. S. airlines. In Decembei',
1971 the Board received no passenger com
plaints about Piedmont. In March of last year
Piedmont also led the industry in happy pas
sengers.
The December report also included statistics
for the first full year of operations by the
Board’s Oflfice of Consumer Affairs. The num
ber of Piedmont complaints was among the
lowest of all the carriers for the year as well.