Gulf Air prepares to head north to make the case for customer care

The northern European capital has been selected by the Worldwide Airlines Customer Relations Association (WACRA) for its annual conference and Jassim has been elected chairperson of the Association and will head the conference

More than 50 global airlines fwill be attending and Jassim has the full backing of Gulf Air.

Chief executive. Samer Majali said, “Customers are our mainstay without whom we don’t have a business; therefore, it is imperative that we ensure and maintain high levels of customer service and relations. As customers’ preferences keep changing, Gulf Air’s representation at the WACRA summit will further enable us to exchange ideas and benefit from other member airlines’ experiences so that we remain on top in delivering world-class customer service.”

  Jassim, who has just returned from WACRA’s regional board meeting in London , said, “WACRA has been spearheading and driving customer service and relations among global airlines through continuous interactions and exchange of ideas. This year’s WACRA conference has a special significance as it is being held in the country, where the infamous Icelandic volcano ash cloud incident occurred last year, and this year made a significant impact on several airlines’ operations.”

“Aviation is one of the most volatile industries in the world plagued by   a number of uncertainties: rising fuel prices, natural disasters, geo-political developments and many others. Passengers are the first to be affected in such situations but as a service industry, we have to ensure they are least affected by providing the best customer service possible.”

“At the event, WACRA member airlines as well as representatives from the host country Iceland’s tourism board, will share their experience on how the situation was dealt with in terms of customer service and learn lessons for the future. The conference theme has been appropriately named as Fire and Ice - Energizing the Customer Experience.”

“Above all, it is a great opportunity for us to project the Kingdom of Bahrain and its national carrier, Gulf Air at the international forum, sharing our six decades of experience in the business.” 

The conference will also discuss other relevant topics such as the best ways to deal with customer complaints, the correlation between customer care and branding, how customer care can be used as a marketing tool, how to handle social media complaints, how to look at the state of self-service technology in our industry and the concept of Mystery Shopping, which is becoming more popular in the world of customer care.

The WACRA Board, under the Chairmanship of Jassim, also includes Dr. Barry Green from Etihad Airways, as well as senior managers   from Air France, Malaysia Airlines, Martinair, Icelandair and Continental Airlines.