Changi Airport celebrates service excellence in a landmark year

Changi Airport Group (CAG) today paid tribute to its airport partners at the Annual Airport Celebration held at Swissôtel Merchant Court Hotel. The event recognised the outstanding and relentless efforts of front-line staff from a line-up of agencies and companies based in Changi Airport. The airport community was lauded for its outstanding contributions in 2010, a landmark year which witnessed Changi managing a record number of more than 40 million passenger movements.

Mr Raymond Lim, Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, graced the occasion and presented 18 Changi Airport Service Awards to individuals and teams in three award categories – ‘Changi Airport Service Personality of the Year’, ‘Outstanding Service Providers’ and ‘Outstanding Service Teams’.

Speaking at the event, Minister Lim noted that Changi’s sustained and meticulous attention to its customers’ needs continued to bear fruit as Changi Airport registered an improved score of 73.7 points in the 2010 Customer Satisfaction Index of Singapore, which is above the average of 68.7 points for the transportation and logistics industry. “While efficiency, safety and security are essential pillars of a world-class airport, service excellence will continue to be a hallmark of the Changi Experience,” he said.

The Changi Airport Service Awards were introduced in 1994 and have remained a major feature of CAG’s quality service management programme, providing a platform to acknowledge and recognise exceptional individuals and teams who, with their dedication and commitment to delivering quality customer service, personify the Changi Experience for tens of millions of passengers and visitors every year.

This year’s 18 winners were evaluated and selected based on the degree to which the nominee went beyond the call of duty to assist passengers; their initiative, resourcefulness and creativity in handling the situation; and passengers’ appreciation/ compliments and consistency in service performance.

A customer service heroine
The 2010 winner of the prestigious ‘Changi Airport Service Personality of the Year’ award is Ms Kiranjit Kaur, a customer service officer at Changi Airport’s information counters. Kiranjit is a service veteran who has worked at Changi Airport in various capacities for more than 13 years and has garnered a slew of awards along the way.

In June 2010, Kiranjit went beyond her call of duty to assist a passenger, Ms H, who suffered from a thyroid condition which affected her sense of balance. Ms H fell down at the Budget Terminal and sustained a serious head injury. As she was travelling alone, Kiranjit accompanied her to the hospital in an ambulance.

Kiranjit stayed with Ms H throughout the consultation with the doctor at the hospital, contacted the passenger’s mother to alert her of the incident and arranged for Ms H’s admission into the hospital before returning to the Budget Terminal to hand over her duties to the next shift. This was more than three hours after the incident.

Concerned about the well-being of Ms H, Kiranjit then went back to the hospital to check on her well being after her shift had ended. Ms H’s mother who had arrived at the hospital by this time expressed her profuse thanks to Kiranjit for the help she rendered to her daughter.

Kiranjit had earlier, in February 2010, showed a similar commitment to customer service when she assisted American Ms Michelle Bragg, her friend and two baby daughters. The group, having arrived on a long flight, wanted to continue on their journey to Manila but did not have flight reservations. But as it was already past eight o’clock at night and they were very tired, the group needed accommodation for the night to rest.

Kiranjit helped Ms Bragg with the flight reservations and hotel accommodation and stayed back, even after her shift, to send off the group at the taxi stand. A very grateful Ms Bragg expressed her profuse thanks through Changi Airport’s feedback channel.

For her exemplary efforts in customer service, Kiranjit will receive S$5,000 in Changi shopping vouchers, a trophy and a certificate of commendation signed by Mr Liew Mun Leong, Chairman of Changi Airport Group.

A customer-centric airport
CAG has been identified as one of the four service excellence icons in Singapore, as part of SPRING Singapore’s Customer-Centric Initiative programme. CAG has introduced a number of ground breaking service enhancement projects to create a personalised, stress-free and positively surprising Changi experience.

Mr Lee Seow Hiang, CEO of Changi Airport Group, said, “The successes that Changi Airport has enjoyed in 2010 is the result of the close-knit partnership CAG shares with the multitude of government agencies, airlines, ground-handling agencies and other companies at the airport. I would therefore like to offer my sincere thanks to all members of the Changi Airport community for their strong support this past year. Congratulations to the Changi Airport Service Awards recipients – I hope that you will continue to be an inspiration to your colleagues in going the extra mile for Changi’s passengers.”

In his address to the airport community, Minister Lim said, “The airport has a total workforce of over 28,000. Collaborating with over 200 companies and agencies, and coordinating the efforts of tens of thousands of ‘Changi Ambassadors’ to deliver a single, consistent Changi Experience to all customers is no easy task. Changi Airport’s challenge therefore has been aptly summarised by the tagline ‘Many partners, many missions, One Changi’. ”

Besides being a service excellence icon, Changi Airport remains the world’s most awarded airport, collecting another 25 ‘Best Airport’ awards in 2010. To date, Changi Airport is the proud recipient of 367 awards since its opening in 1981.