BOARD OF AIRPORT COMMISSIONERS SUPPORTS LAX GUEST EXPERIENCE WITH UNPRECEDENTED COMMITMENT TO EMPLOYEE TRAINING, PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Helping to ensure that the more than 50,000 employees of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) provide an exceptional experience to its millions of guests, the Los Angeles Board of Airport Commissioners (BOAC) today approved contracts for airport-wide customer-service training, performance management, and employee-appreciation programs -- one of the most strategic and comprehensive guest-experience programs of its kind specifically designed to engage the entire airport community and ensure service excellence. 

"The millions of people who travel through our airport are not just passengers or customers; they are guests who are valued and appreciated and deserve to be treated as such,” said Deborah Flint, Los Angeles World Airports chief executive officer.  “Our vision is to work with our LAX partners to foster an LAX experience that showcases the excitement of Los Angeles in ways that are modern, efficient, innovative, exciting, yet caring.”

Flint added, “Our investment in and support of these programs are unprecedented and are part of our big and bold commitment to be customer-centric, especially in the midst of our $14-billion capital improvement program.  How we treat people and how we make them feel during their airport journey is a critical part of our mission to connect the world to people, places and cultures.”

The Board awarded one-year contracts, with two one-year renewal options, to Customer Service Experts (CSE) for airport-wide training for up to $1.6 million, and $435,250 to Nothing Films for video production for the training component.  In addition, the Board approved a one-year contract, with two one-year renewal options, to CSE for performance management and rewards and recognition services for an amount not to exceed $961,378. 

The training, performance management, and employee-appreciation programs will be designed with input from two stakeholder groups that were recently launched by LAWA.  The Guest Experience Partners Council is comprised of representatives from the LAX service-delivery chain, including the Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection, airlines, concessionaires, service providers, and LAWA executives.  The Guest Experience LAWA Council is comprised of key internal stakeholders who play a major role in affecting change and improving the guest experience.  The goal of both councils is to enhance the overall airport experience and improve guest satisfaction through collaboration and partnerships. 

The contracts awarded today will be managed by LAWA's Guest Experience Team as part of its charge to increase guest satisfaction and create LAX experiences that are efficient, hospitable and memorable.  The goal is to align the entire airport community to deliver an exceptional guest experience across the continuum of services provided to LAX’s customers, regardless of whoever is responsible for delivering specific services.

Customer Service Expert’s strategic, service-improvement programs can be found in many major airports across the U.S.  This year alone, CSE will deploy more than 25,000 shoppers in more than 41 states, four Canadian provinces, and in 112 airports.  In addition to extensive experience conceptualizing and producing high-quality video projects for websites, social-media advertising, and the LAX is Happening Capital Improvement communication campaign, Nothing Films, Inc. creates award-winning cinematography for television series, pilots, features and documentaries.
A bout Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

LAX is the seventh busiest airport in the world and third in the United States.  LAX served more than 74.9 million passengers in 2015.  LAX offers 742 daily nonstop flights to 101 cities in the U.S. and 1,273 weekly nonstop flights to 76 cities in 41 countries on 64 commercial air carriers.  LAX ranks 12th in the world and fifth in the U.S. in air cargo tonnage processed, with more than 2.1 million tons of air cargo valued at over $101.4 billion.  LAX handled 655,564 operations (landings and takeoffs) in 2015.

An economic study based on 2014 operations reported LAX generated 620,610 jobs in Southern California with labor income of $37.3 billion and economic output (business revenues) of more than $126.6 billion.  This activity added $6.2 billion to local and state revenues and $8.7 billion in federal tax revenues.  The  study also reported that LAX’s ongoing capital-improvement program creates an additional 121,640 annual jobs with labor income of $7.6 billion and economic output of $20.3 billion, $966 million in state and local taxes, and $1.6 billion in federal tax revenues.

LAX is part of a system of three Southern California airports – along with LA/Ontario International and Van Nuys general aviation – that are owned and operated by Los Angeles World Airports, a proprietary department of the City of Los Angeles that receives no funding from the City’s general fund.