Changi Airport – The lesson for us all

After passing through Singapore for the first time in May 1996, I was left with the impression that if I was going to suffer a long layover, Changi Airport was the place to have it!

Changi, I later discovered, is the world's most awarded airport. It's almost become a destination in itself. It's a Singapore icon and a shining example of what a commitment to service can achieve.

Planners were right to focus on the airport. I spent several months back-packing around the world and can testify to how quickly my opinions formed about a town or even a whole country based on the first few experiences I had.

Of course it's not rational to think of things that way but we humans rarely are. We tend to 'paint everyone with the same brush.' The Changi experience is so good that it's very likely you have a positive impression of Singapore as a whole. The same follows for our companies!

In about every market sector we can name today, supply exceeds demand. The supply chain is now so good that there is an abundance of choice for whatever we want to purchase. However, service remains one of the few remaining sources of differentiation and competitive advantage.

But can anyone do it? Can any company 'do a Changi' and achieve the kind of service that continually delights customers so they want to return for more? I would offer that the answer is a resounding yes!

However, there are over 200 organisations operating in the airport, so it's certain that Changi's reputation didn't happen by chance, it didn't happen overnight, and it doesn't maintain itself automatically.

To begin with, we need to understand that service is not a stand-alone concept or idea. The 'customer service department' is often the last place an unhappy customer ends up when they have failed to get what they wanted. Imagine the morale of the people working there!

Companies who do strive for service excellence also have the added advantage of attracting and keeping higher caliber staff because service lifts everyone. We can't serve the customer consistently well unless we also serve each other.

If you wish to create a great service culture, begin by putting service front and centre and recognise that it's everyone’s responsibility. (Often it only takes one bad experience to ruin the whole impression). List all the possible interactions (or 'touch points') with existing and prospective customers. For each interaction understand what would meet their most basic expectation and what would delight them.

Chart the flow of a customer through the business from first contact, marketing, sales, delivery, invoicing, collection, payment, and support. Determine what information would need to be shared between these people or departments to make the experience seamless. Changi's 200-plus companies share a common service vision: 'Many Partners, Many Missions, one Changi'.

Making your service real has to start somewhere. At least begin by making your 'delighting' service ideas the new 'basic expectations'. When you're consistently delighting, brainstorm ideas on what kinds of service would leave customers thinking 'how do they do it?' and how you might implement that.

Lastly you're never 'finished'. In today's oversupplied market we need to continually come up with new ways to add to the service experience. Today's 'wow' factor can quickly become tomorrow's 'expected' service. Encourage team members to continually come up with new ways of serving the customer.

Ron Kauffman (author of Uplifting Service) advocates continually measuring how many ideas you get, how many you put into practice and measuring the effect they have on the bottom line. These are great metrics to track over time.

…and if you're ever stuck for ideas, a walk around Changi airport won't be wasted!