Improving the Airport Customer Experience (2016)

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A I R P O R T C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M ACRP REPORT 157 TRANSPORTAT ION RESEARCH BOARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 2016 www.TRB.org Research sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration Subscriber Categories Aviation • Safety and Human Factors • Terminals and Facilities Improving the Airport Customer Experience Bruce J. Boudreau Greg Detmer Susan Tam Stephanie Box Ryan Burke LeighFisher, inc. Burlingame, CA Joanne Paternoster ButterFLy consuLting Freehold, NJ Lou Carbone experience engineering Minneapolis, MN

AIRPORT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM Airports are vital national resources. They serve a key role in trans- portation of people and goods and in regional, national, and interna- tional commerce. They are where the nation’s aviation system connects with other modes of transportation and where federal responsibility for managing and regulating air traffic operations intersects with the role of state and local governments that own and operate most airports. Research is necessary to solve common operating problems, to adapt appropriate new technologies from other industries, and to introduce innovations into the airport industry. The Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) serves as one of the principal means by which the airport industry can develop innovative near-term solutions to meet demands placed on it. The need for ACRP was identified in TRB Special Report 272: Airport Research Needs: Cooperative Solutions in 2003, based on a study spon- sored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). ACRP carries out applied research on problems that are shared by airport operating agen- cies and not being adequately addressed by existing federal research programs. ACRP is modeled after the successful National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) and Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP). ACRP undertakes research and other technical activi- ties in various airport subject areas, including design, construction, legal, maintenance, operations, safety, policy, planning, human resources, and administration. ACRP provides a forum where airport operators can cooperatively address common operational problems. ACRP was authorized in December 2003 as part of the Vision 100— Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act. The primary participants in the ACRP are (1) an independent governing board, the ACRP Oversight Committee (AOC), appointed by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation with representation from airport operating agencies, other stakeholders, and relevant industry organizations such as the Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA), the American Associa- tion of Airport Executives (AAAE), the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO), Airlines for America (A4A), and the Airport Consultants Council (ACC) as vital links to the airport community; (2) TRB as program manager and secretariat for the governing board; and (3) the FAA as program sponsor. In October 2005, the FAA executed a contract with the National Academy of Sciences formally initiating the program. ACRP benefits from the cooperation and participation of airport professionals, air carriers, shippers, state and local government officials, equipment and service suppliers, other airport users, and research organi- zations. Each of these participants has different interests and responsibili- ties, and each is an integral part of this cooperative research effort. Research problem statements for ACRP are solicited periodically but may be submitted to TRB by anyone at any time. It is the responsibility of the AOC to formulate the research program by identifying the highest priority projects and defining funding levels and expected products. Once selected, each ACRP project is assigned to an expert panel appointed by TRB. Panels include experienced practitioners and research specialists; heavy emphasis is placed on including airport professionals, the intended users of the research products. The panels prepare project statements (requests for proposals), select contractors, and provide technical guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. The process for developing research problem statements and selecting research agencies has been used by TRB in managing coop- erative research programs since 1962. As in other TRB activities, ACRP project panels serve voluntarily without compensation. Primary emphasis is placed on disseminating ACRP results to the intended users of the research: airport operating agencies, service pro- viders, and academic institutions. ACRP produces a series of research reports for use by airport operators, local agencies, the FAA, and other interested parties; industry associations may arrange for workshops, training aids, field visits, webinars, and other activities to ensure that results are implemented by airport industry practitioners. ACRP REPORT 157 Project 01-26 ISSN 1935-9802 ISBN 978-0-309-37558-0 Library of Congress Control Number 2016945047 © 2016 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FRA, FTA, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology, PHMSA, or TDC endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The report was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board and approved by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied in this report are those of the researchers who performed the research and are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; or the program sponsors. The Transportation Research Board; the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; and the sponsors of the Airport Cooperative Research Program do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the object of the report. Cover composite courtesy of LeighFisher, Inc. Published reports of the AIRPORT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet by going to http://www.national-academies.org and then searching for TRB Printed in the United States of America

The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, non- governmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to bring the practices of engineering to advising the nation. Members are elected by their peers for extraordinary contributions to engineering. Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., is president. The National Academy of Medicine (formerly the Institute of Medicine) was established in 1970 under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences to advise the nation on medical and health issues. Members are elected by their peers for distinguished contributions to medicine and health. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president. The three Academies work together as the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation and conduct other activities to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions. The Academies also encourage education and research, recognize outstanding contributions to knowledge, and increase public understanding in matters of science, engineering, and medicine. Learn more about the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine at www.national-academies.org. The Transportation Research Board is one of seven major programs of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The mission of the Transportation Research Board is to increase the benefits that transportation contributes to society by providing leadership in transportation innovation and progress through research and information exchange, conducted within a setting that is objective, interdisciplinary, and multimodal. The Board’s varied committees, task forces, and panels annually engage about 7,000 engineers, scientists, and other transportation researchers and practitioners from the public and private sectors and academia, all of whom contribute their expertise in the public interest. The program is supported by state transportation departments, federal agencies including the component administrations of the U.S. Department of Transportation, and other organizations and individuals interested in the development of transportation. Learn more about the Transportation Research Board at www.TRB.org.

C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M S AUTHOR ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The research discussed in this report was performed under ACRP Project 01-26, “Improving the Airport Customer Experience,” by a research team of recognized experts in airport customer service. LeighFisher was the primary research consultant. Bruce Boudreau, Director at LeighFisher, was the Principal Investi- gator, and Joanne Paternoster, CEO of Butterfly Consulting, was the Deputy Principal Investigator. The other authors were Lou Carbone, Founder and CEO of Experience Engineering, and Stephanie Box and Susan Tam, Senior Consultants at LeighFisher. Greg Detmer, Peter Mandle, and Dan Ochse, Directors at LeighFisher, reviewed and critiqued drafts of the guidebook. Serena Quan coordinated the internal produc- tion and word processing. Susan Zavada prepared the artwork and graphics. Bill Bowman assisted with data gathering and preparing the bibliography. The framework used in designing the template for the implementation section of the guidebook was first developed at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) in 1998. Joanne Paternoster, then Assistant Director of Customer Services and Standards for the Aviation Department, and her cus- tomer service team of Waguih Ouess, Maggi Villane, Earlyne Alexander, Greg Phillips, Peter Fushan, Jon Clark, Joseph Vaccaro, Fred Baer, Robert Flannery, John Toth, Camille Puso, and Myrna Rivera, worked in close collabo ration with the PANYNJ management teams at each of its airports as well as the agency’s corporate staff departments, the airlines, business partners, concessionaires, third-party contractors, other stakeholders, and all of the airport employees to develop a collaborative approach to customer experience management that recognized the interdependent nature of the services and service providers at airports. The research team would also like to thank the many airport staff who took the time to share their insights, experience, and opinions and to respond to follow-up queries. The research team is also indebted to the terminal architects who contributed their time for interviews regarding trends in terminal design. CRP STAFF FOR ACRP REPORT 157 Christopher W. Jenks, Director, Cooperative Research Programs Michael R. Salamone, ACRP Manager Theresia H. Schatz, Senior Program Officer Terri Baker, Senior Program Assistant Eileen P. Delaney, Director of Publications Doug English, Editor ACRP PROJECT 01-26 PANEL Field of Administration Dominic A. Nessi, Los Angeles World Airports, Los Angeles, CA (Chair) Siegfried C. Adler, SC Adler & Associates, Inc., Long Beach, NY Brian E. Davis, Allegiant Air, Las Vegas, NV Stephen P. Gordon, Oakland International Airport, Oakland, CA E. Lynn Hampton, Lynn Hampton Associates, Alexandria, VA Maggi Villane, The Port Authority of NY and NJ, New York, NY Scott W. Wintner, The Snowberry Group, Oakland, CA Jared Raymond, FAA Liaison Doug Mullen, Airlines for America Liaison Aneil Patel, Airports Council International–North America Liaison

ACRP Report 157: Improving the Airport Customer Experience is a guidebook that docu- ments notable and emerging practices in airport customer service management that increase customer satisfaction, recognizing the different types of customers (e.g., passengers, meeters and greeters, employees) and types and sizes of airports. It also identifies what airports can do to further improve the customer experience. This guidebook will provide airport staff, specifi- cally customer service managers and others with responsibilities for managing and improv- ing the customer experience, with comprehensive resources of management practices and understanding of current trends, information sources on customer service improvements, and practical tools that can be used for implementing a customer service improvement pro- gram. The practices, strategies, tools, and techniques described in the guidebook are expected to benefit a number of airport stakeholders, including airport operators, the travelling public, and members of the airport community such as service providers, concessionaires, airlines, government agencies and other airport tenants, elected officials, and airport board members. The guidebook provides key drivers of customer satisfaction, including the top positive and negative influences for the customer experience; methods to engage airport stakeholders to improve customer satisfaction “from roadway to runway,” including the use of innovative technologies; a template to implement a strategy for a customer satisfaction improvement program for a variety of types and sizes of airports, including staffing and budget consider- ations; and guidance to develop performance indicators to measure customer satisfaction. Airports strive to continually improve customer service to meet the growing challenges of customer satisfaction. However, the stress of air travel has become a risk to customer sat- isfaction. Additionally, airports of different types and sizes face different challenges. Where options exist, travelers may avoid airports with a poor customer service reputation. Alter- natively, good customer service may have a positive effect on the airport and its community and is part of a trend that has rapidly gained momentum as more and more airports have made improved customer service a priority. While data exist to help airports benchmark their customer service performance, there is no comprehensive guidance available on how to improve the overall experience. Under ACRP Project 01-26, research was conducted by LeighFisher in association with Butterfly Consulting and Experience Engineering. The information in the guidebook was gathered by identifying airports that have had notable success in improving customer ser- vice. Airports to target were determined using several methods: airports mentioned in articles compiled in the literature review, airport ratings of Skytrax and ACI-ASQ surveys, and an email survey to ACI-NA Customer Service Working Group. This resulted in a list of 22 airports for a general survey and 18 for a secondary survey. Separate surveys were also conducted with six leading terminal architects. F O R E W O R D By Theresia H. Schatz Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

1 Chapter 1 Introduction to the Guidebook 1 1.1 Introduction 2 1.2 Purpose of the Guidebook 3 1.3 Overview of the Guidebook 4 1.4 Definitions 6 1.5 Methodology and Data Collection 7 1.6 Intended Benefits of the Guidebook 8 Chapter 2 Evolution of Approaches to Customer Service at Airports 8 2.1 Historical Overview 11 2.2 Customer Experience Management Continuum Worldwide 16 2.3 Controlling the Uncontrollable—Improving Airport Customer Experience Through Others 20 Chapter 3 Improving the Customer Experience— A Research-Based Primer 20 3.1 The Strategic, Holistic Approach 30 3.2 Key Drivers of Customer Satisfaction 34 3.3 The Role of Airport Customer Service Standards 37 3.4 Creating and Sustaining the WOW Factor 42 3.5 Lessons from the Past and from Other Industries 46 3.6 Performance Management—Managing for Results 52 3.7 Two-Way Communication with Customers 55 3.8 Engaging, Energizing, and Motivating Staff Airport-Wide 57 Chapter 4 Customer Service Needs and Expectations by Customer Type 57 4.1 Domestic Passengers 59 4.2 International Passengers 60 4.3 Non-Passenger Customers 62 4.4 Families 63 4.5 The Aged and Aging 63 4.6 Customers with Special Needs 64 4.7 Profiling the Airport’s Passengers 65 4.8 Market Segmentation C O N T E N T S

67 Chapter 5 Customer Experience Management Approaches and Customer Service Programs at Leading Non-U.S. International Airports 68 5.1 Differences—U.S. Airports Versus Leading Non-U.S. International Hubs 71 5.2 Skytrax Leading International Airports 72 5.3 Singapore Changi Airport 74 5.4 Seoul Incheon 75 5.5 Amsterdam Schiphol 77 5.6 Munich Airport 79 5.7 Vancouver International Airport 80 5.8 Overview of Customer Experience Management at Leading Non-U.S. International Airports 82 Chapter 6 Airport-Wide Customer Experience Management Approaches at Leading U.S. Airports 82 6.1 Shared Characteristics of the Four Broad Types of Leading U.S. Airports 85 6.2 The Strategic Customer Service Brand Airport 89 6.3 The Programmatic Customer Service Airport 91 6.4 The Customer Service by Major Initiative Airport 92 6.5 The Customer Service Culture Airport 93 6.6 Advice to Others 95 Chapter 7 Customer Service Trends in Terminal Design 96 7.1 What Do Airports and Customers Want in a Terminal? 96 7.2 Evolution of Terminal Design and Impact on Customer Service 100 7.3 Innovations and Technological Trends Affecting Terminal Design and Layout 103 7.4 Aesthetic Considerations, Sense of Place, and Ambience 106 Chapter 8 Improving the Customer Experience— Services and Amenities 106 8.1 Cleanliness and Janitorial/Maintenance 107 8.2 Sense of Place 109 8.3 Wayfinding and Signage 111 8.4 Queue Management and Waiting Time Perceptions 111 8.5 Walking Distances 112 8.6 Loyalty and Rewards Programs 115 8.7 Contract Management 115 8.8 Parking 117 8.9 Ground Transportation and Curbside 118 8.10 Check-in/Ticketing/Bag Drop 118 8.11 Security 119 8.12 Concessions 121 8.13 Consumer Services 122 8.14 Amenities 123 8.15 Restrooms 125 8.16 Flight Information and Passenger Information 126 8.17 Holdrooms 126 8.18 Domestic Arrivals and Baggage Claim 128 8.19 Other Innovations

130 Chapter 9 Improving the Customer Experience—People 131 9.1 Educating and Training 136 9.2 Monitoring and Managing Performance of Airport Staff 138 9.3 Rewards and Incentives for Airport Staff 139 9.4 The Information Function 143 9.5 Improving Customer Service Through Tenants and Contractors 146 Chapter 10 Improving the Customer Experience— New and Innovative Technologies 146 10.1 Information Technology and the Smart Phone 151 10.2 Information Technology and Facilitation 154 10.3 Digital Media and Signage 156 10.4 Virtual Assistants and Robots 158 10.5 Concession Information 159 10.6 Arrival Information 159 10.7 Ground Transportation 160 10.8 Parking Technologies 161 10.9 Social Media 164 10.10 Bluetooth Monitoring/Beacons and Tracking 166 Chapter 11 Improving the Customer Experience— Summary and Implementation 166 11.1 Notable Practices for Managing and Improving Customer Service 184 11.2 Prioritizing and Evaluating the Range of Services 186 11.3 Emerging Practices and Technologies 189 Chapter 12 A Template for Implementing a Customer Satisfaction Improvement Program 189 12.1 Overview—Designing a Customer Satisfaction Improvement Program 191 12.2 Detailed Checklist for a Strategic and Iterative Continuous Improvement Approach to Customer Service Excellence 199 12.3 Evaluating and Selecting Best Practices That Are Transferable and Aligned with the Airport Brand Checklist 202 12.4 Working with Business Partners, Stakeholders, Elected Officials, and Airport Awards/Commissions to Garner Support, Buy-in, and Approval to Proceed 203 12.5 Implementing Customer Satisfaction Improvement Programs and Managing Change 205 Appendix A Customer Service Offerings of the Airports Profiled in Chapter 5 225 Appendix B Bibliography and Collateral Material List