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Changi Airport Group (CAG) celebrated yet another year of quality service – encapsulated in the Changi Experience – at its Annual Airport Celebration. Held at Changi Terminal 3, the event recognised outstanding contributions by Changi Airport’s front-line staff last year.
Guest-of-Honour, Mr Raymond Lim, Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, presented 18 Changi Airport Service Awards to individuals and teams who epitomised the Awards’ hallmarks of Personal Touch, Service Partnership and Empathy. Speaking at the event, Minister Lim said, “I would like to congratulate the award winners for your contributions. Each of you has gone beyond the call of duty and shown exemplary service. Service excellence is the vital ingredient to creating a memorable and unforgettable “Changi Class” experience for the passengers and visitors you have served.”
Awards were presented in three categories – ‘Changi Airport Service Personality of the Year’, ‘Outstanding Service Providers’ and ‘Outstanding Service Teams’.
Going beyond the extra mile
The 2009 ‘Changi Airport Service Personality of the Year’ is Ms Fauziah Mohd Ali, a customer service officer at Changi Airport’s information counters. Fauziah, who started work at Changi Airport in 2000, is no stranger to service awards. She is the proud recipient of several honours, including a Changi Airport Service Award (Gold) in 2007 and a Service Excellence Award (Silver) last year, which are testimonies of her consistent commitment to service excellence.
In May 2009, Fauziah went the extra mile to assist a passenger, Mr W. Moyo, a speechimpaired Zimbabwean student who was stranded in Singapore for five days due to a missed flight. Fauziah demonstrated her resourcefulness and initiative by helping Mr Moyo reserve the next direct flight out of Singapore, negotiating with the travel agent to waive fees as Mr Moyo did not have any money on him initially. She also arranged for his hotel accommodation by explaining the situation to the hotel manager.
Fauziah kept in constant contact with Mr Moyo’s family in the US and UK throughout his five days in Singapore, and accompanied him to the bank to withdraw money after his sister had arranged a bank transfer from the UK. All this assistance was rendered after her working hours. Fauziah also invited Mr Moyo to a Mother’s Day dinner with her children and friends. When it was time for his flight home, Fauziah sent Mr Moyo off at the airport and subsequently confirmed that he had arrived safely in Zimbabwe.
For her selfless and exemplary efforts in customer service, Fauziah has been named ‘Changi Airport Service Personality of the Year’. She receives S$1,000 in Changi shopping vouchers, a crystal trophy and a certificate of commendation signed by Mr Liew Mun Leong, Chairman of Changi Airport Group.
Another award-winning year
Last year was an eventful one for Changi Airport Group which was formed only on 1 July 2009 following the corporatisation of Changi Airport. Changi remained the world’s most awarded airport, collecting another 25 ‘best of’ awards during the year, bringing its total number of awards received since 1981 (when the airport first opened) to 339. At today’s event, Minister Lim thanked the 28,000-strong team working at Changi Airport for their hard work and effort in helping Changi to stay ahead of the competition in the past year. He said, “The success of Changi has always been because of the teamwork between the airport, airlines and other airport partners. Your efforts are not forgotten.”
Minister Lim added, “As airport users and international travellers become more demanding, it is vital that service excellence continues to be a key focus of Changi. The “Changi Experience” has been Changi’s distinguishing trademark. I am encouraged to note that CAG, as one of the founding Customer-Centric Initiative (CCI) Icons of the “GEMS Up” movement 1 , continues to work with its partners to improve service standards”.
Mr Lee Seow Hiang, CEO of Changi Airport Group, said, “My thanks to all members of the Changi Airport community, whose strong support and earnest effort helped to make 2009 another successful year for Changi. Congratulations to the Changi Airport Service Awards recipients – your acts of exceptional service are a source of pride and inspiration for all of your colleagues at Changi. May we continue to have many more examples of such outstanding acts of service and extraordinary deeds of help and assistance.”
The Changi Airport Service Awards were introduced in 1994 and have remained a major feature of CAG’s quality service management programme, providing a platform to acknowledge and recognise exceptional individuals and teams who, with their dedication and commitment to delivering quality customer service, personify the Changi Experience for tens of millions of passengers and visitors every year. The Annual Airport Celebration is part of a suite of activities to celebrate the success and achievements of Changi Airport with the entire airport community. In addition to the Changi Airport Service Awards, CAG has organised a week-long carnival to thank everyone who works at the airport. From 11 to 15 January 2010, airport staff will enjoy complimentary services such as foot and neck massages, arcade games and fortune- 1 GEMS Up is the second phase of “Go the Extra Mile for Service” which aims to elevate service
excellence to the next level from 2009 to 2011.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
