Revisiting the Airline Question

Back in June I posed the question, "What would YOU do if you were an airline CEO?" (see post here). I promised to give you my own thoughts on this question...and I was reminded of that when I read a news clipping today about Delta Airlines' being the first and only U.S. airline to offer broadband Wi-Fi access on its entire domestic mainline fleet. More on that in a moment.

If I were an airline CEO, I would initiate a major strategic initiative to transition the management culture to focus on the basic principles of the "service-profit chain." I wrote about the man who coined the term, James Heskett, in a recent post here. To put it simply, concentrate on employee relationships as the key to rebuilding customer relationships. This may seem counterintuitive for a business that is so capital-intensive. But I would argue that there is so much about the customer experience that airlines cannot control--weather delays, FAA-imposed ground stops and arrival holds due to congestion, the dehumanizing process of TSA security procedures, etc.--that focusing on employees becomes a critically important management option. And, focusing on internal branding--helping employees learn how to "live the brand"--will translate into a branded customer experience in all of those interactions between travelers and airline employees on the ground, on the plane, and in the call centers. An airline with a human face...

So this puts Delta's move into a different light. I don't diminish the temporary advantage that this might give Delta, but it's not strategic. It is a technology play that can be easily copied, and even more importantly, it is brand-neutral; it does nothing to reinforce Delta's specific brand values as a part of the experience, which means by definition it cannot provide any real differentiation. Like the "bed wars" initiated by Westin's launch of the Heavenly Bed® in their hotels, the profit advantage of this investment will be quickly competed away, failing the necessity of balancing shareholder value and customer value.