Date of Conferral
2021
Degree
Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)
School
Business Administration
Advisor
Carol-Anne Faint
Abstract
There has been a continuous increase in customer complaints against airlines in the United States. The airlines’ customer service complaints were up 90% in April 2017 compared to April 2016. Airline customer service managers who do not address customer complaints may experience reduced customer satisfaction, customer retention, and profitability. Grounded in the service quality model, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore customer service strategies airline customer service managers use to mitigate negative customer incidents. Participants were three airline customer service managers from two airlines who developed strategies to minimize negative customer incidents. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, company documents, and social media platforms. Yin’s five-step data analysis approach was used to analyze the data. Five themes emerged: recruit competent employees, enhance training, strengthen communication, elicit customer feedback, and improve service policies and standards. A key recommendation is for customer service managers to develop and implement robust training to empower frontline personnel with education and skills to improve service quality and mitigate customer complaints. The implications for positive social change include potentially mitigating unpleasant customer experiences, cultivating trust and loyalty between the airlines and the travel community, and increasing customer satisfaction.
Recommended Citation
Muzinda, Monica, "Customer Service Strategies to Minimize Negative Customer Incidents in the Airline Industry" (2021). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 10603.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/10603
