Process.
I was on a plane to Lisbon last week to attend a leadership conference.
I hoped for and did learn a lot from the event, but the first lesson was actually on the flight.
Indeed, even before takeoff there were several lessons all to do with process (or lack of).
- The flight was full so at the gate passengers were asked to volunteer to have their hand luggage stored in the hold – “those in groups 4-9, please come forward now, it’s free and you’ll get priority boarding….if not enough people volunteer then we will have to ask you to leave your bag with us at the gate…” Why weren’t they offered this at check in? The airline must have known it was a full flight. Why incur the inevitable delay as people were made to remove their valuables and reluctantly hand over their bags?
- The boarding was done by group number, starting with group one which I was fortunate to be in. However we weren’t first, as pre boarding included anyone with young children and people needing assistance, (and quite right too), however group one must have comprised over 25% of the passengers, so a scrum started. This was added to by those in groups 2-3, (no doubt anxious about the baggage storage capacity), who congregated at the boarding point blocking easy passage…it almost turned nasty.
- The flight was delayed pulling off the gate by almost an hour. In addition to the baggage issue, cabin crew were apparently held up by security checks. I appreciate this was a very early flight but surely sufficient time should be allowed for?
- The cabin crew member started the (pointless) “safety” briefing and after the usual drivel about how plane types vary, she stopped and over the tannoy announced: “Oh they’ve changed the format…” she then clearly decided to read it through before recommencing. It wasn’t confidence inspiring, that’s for sure.
- The breakfast itself exceeded expectations to be fair, but depending on whether you had the cabin crew member at the front or back of the same trolley, determined if you were offered pastries and hot drinks with your meal or if you had to wait till all the breakfasts had been served, (by which point many passengers had finished their meal).
I’m not sure if the issues were caused by:
A. A lack of process
B. Not following process
C. Poor training
D. Culture issues
I suspect a combination of “all the above”.
How about your business? Which of A-D above requires attention?
Join over 6,000 property professionals, including leading estate and letting agents and receive information, insight, ideas and inspiration (four-i) from top estate agency coach Peter Knight, straight to your inbox every Monday. Join now
Find out more about Property Academy and the services we provide here.
Agree or disagree with the views expressed in this newsletter? Share the article and your views on social media today.
Follow our social channels here:
