If you had a day to spend with AJ to fix QF what would you say ?

[Deleted member]

So here I am lamenting the woeful QFF marketing and all of the other annoying and seemingly incomprehensible decisions QFF makes. I though what if I had a day with AJ and that he listened to me about the things which need fixing.
i guess number one would be offshore call centres ...... like close them now !
PS. I have enjoyed the bulk of a nice langhorn creek Cab Sav before I posted this.

 

[ALH]

1. Improve the Call Centre experience. Train staff properly
2. Ditch the celebrity chef. Int J meals should not be inedible!
3. Don’t make it so hard to Claim missing points and Status Credits (3 to 4 months across multiple accounts)!
4. Sort out Priority baggage. It is a joke.
5. Follow the lead from other airlines and put a stop to Y passengers using the J toilets.
5. Most would say sort out Priority Boarding. Personally I couldn’t care less about this one, but it is sold as a benefit.
6. Less important, but really annoying when I look after a dozen family accounts and have to sift through the nonsense emails:
a) Not one of us plays golf.
b) Maybe rethink the barrage of useless marketing emails. Offering my Grandchildren QBR! ... and for example, my mum is the only one to be .
targeted with the following:



Edit: $ 589 per annum for 3 years to earn 34,000 QFF points

 

[dajop]

Depends, if you were spending the day with AJ, would it be as a customer, or as a shareholder?

I think there's probably very little to fix unless there is wholesale attrition from QF, which has not happened in recent years, and looks unlikely to happen in the medium-term future (I suspect QF, like the whole industry is likely to be facing a rocky road - or rather turbulent air - over the next few months). QFF is tenacious enough to keep people committed without being particularly generous.

 

[tgh]

Nice to see you back posting.. too many are disappearing...

Wearing my shareholder hat , AJ is doing a pretty good job.
Wearing my customer hat , the airline sucks and I only fly qf if there is no better option (there mostly is)

Imo he is probably making the best of the situation so I would say… carry on.. Don't need a day ...a minute would do….

 

[Cruiser Elite]

I’d suggest you grab another bottle digger and as Rossy would say - ‘let the cobblers cobble!’

 

[sudoer]

IMO the below three points would bring QF back up to the 5* airline it once was.

1. Sort out the call centres - not just wait times, but also improving the general ability of staff. The fact "HUACA" is widely suggested as a strategy to get basic tasks done really says it all. (Personally I couldn't care where the call centres are based so long as they are capable.)

2. Sort out the lounges - SYD Dom J, SYD Int J, AKL J/F, MEL Int J are all in dire need of refurbs, which have been announced and then put off. NRT is terrible too, but also kind of pointless refurbing as there will always be better options there.

3. Sort out the onboard F&B - enough said.

Given the premium QF charges I don't think those three points are unreasonable.

 

[Matt_01]

So here I am lamenting the woeful QFF marketing and all of the other annoying and seemingly incomprehensible decisions QFF makes. I though what if I had a day with AJ and that he listened to me about the things which need fixing.

Great question and to be honest I am not sure what I would discuss. I used to be a shareholder but not any more so would most like focus on the FF angle. I have been flying for years and have seen the up's and down's of QF, AN, VA and other airlines. I am over hearing about improvements to QF lounges, priority boarding etc. and other promises that do not materialise. Time to improve the tangible benefits for FFs.

 

[I love to travel]

I wouldn't waste my time. AJ is doing exactly what he wants with Qantas. It's all about keeping the market and shareholders happy in the short term. Their lack of fleet renewal is testament to this.

 

[love_the_life]

Agree with spbor90 above and would just add, give premium passengers, a premium experience. Too often it is hit and miss, not just F &B but the whole shebang from checkin to quality of service on board.

 

[DC3]

... Sort out the onboard F&B - enough said ..

Except for the coffee. I’m told that it’s great, apparently, but haven’t been game to try.

 

[Matt_01]

@ALH I assume this is from QBR, I am also with QBR but did not get this offer and I subscribe the economist outside of QF. So in addition to my comments at post #7 QF get your marketing together.

 

[esseeeayeenn]

Avoiding just repeating points made by others:
(1) Put 1st on all long haul aircraft;
(2) Get rid of the drink trolleys and the trays for major meals in premium cabins and adopt more personalised service;
(3) Introduce domestic premium economy (and stop pretending the existing front seats on 737s are business class);
(4) Work with OW for a more seamless international travel experience (restoring interlining luggage on separate PNRs would be a start, alliance wide points upgrades are rumoured and would be an excellent feature);
(5) Retrain staff to be more customer focused, foster a big attitude change, stop the hiding in the galleys and chatting between service times; and
(6) Don't buy any 737-MAX aircraft, ever.

 

[adenda]

IMO the below three points would bring QF back up to the 5* airline it once was.

1. Sort out the call centres - not just wait times, but also improving the general ability of staff. The fact "HUACA" is widely suggested as a strategy to get basic tasks done really says it all. (Personally I couldn't care where the call centres are based so long as they are capable.)

2. Sort out the lounges - SYD Dom J, SYD Int J, AKL J/F, MEL Int J are all in dire need of refurbs, which have been announced and then put off. NRT is terrible too, but also kind of pointless refurbing as there will always be better options there.

3. Sort out the onboard F&B - enough said.

Given the premium QF charges I don't think those three points are unreasonable.

No. 1, No. 1 and No. 1

 

[Dr Ralph]

Get rid of Jetstar

 

[esseeeayeenn]

Get rid of Jetstar

Jetstar is a real asset, it means QF isn't chasing that market and becoming a hybrid legacy/LCC like so many others.

 

[moa999]

Sort out the call centres
Sort out the lounges - SYD Dom J, SYD Int J, AKL J/F, MEL Int J
Sort out the onboard F&B

Their lack of fleet renewal is testament to this.

Agreed on the call centres. The wait times for non-elites in particular sounds crazy almost all the time.

The SYD and MEL lounges mentioned I believe are a waiting on airport expansions, as Qantas is hoping to get better spaces. Unsure about AKL - agree it's poor.

F&B it's up and down. Personally think it's time to ditch the celebrity chef. Maybe give multiple young chefs assistance for sub sections.

Fleet. Seriously.
By the end of this year QF will have gone from 11 747s a few years ago to 14 787s - that's billions in spend
Plus the possible/likely 359ulr order, and then a focus on the 737 fleet.

Jetstar Dom serves a purpose, makes good $s, and means we don't have AirAsia Australia. Jetstar 787s less certain - probably why they haven't bought a new plane in 5 years

 

[cjd600]

Call centres. Seriously.
Not sure which is worse...the "competency"or the wait times.
Filled with dread whenever the need to call arises. A roll of the dice.
Will leave the stuff after actually boarding a flight to others, including being a generation (or two) behind most in premium cabin hard product, slowly trying to catch up (to one generation behind)

 

[Gold Member]

A day only? Not enough.

 

[juddles]

Interesting question by the OP. And in bewilderment at the sheer numbers of thoughts I have, will try to restrict myself to just three points....

Let me think, as my own bottle of French Cab Franc and follow-up kick in.....

 

[juddles]

I actually think the QFF program is Ok when compared to other ones. Likewise, the call-centre frustration is almost omni-present with all major entities these days. (without digressing too much, I have recently had much experience helping my daughter with dealings with Social Security - or whatever they call themselves these days - with her claim for student allowance. I used to work for these people, and I am simply astounded at the lack of training or knowledge this HUGE government department has now - I suspect the call centre staff there get max about a months training!)

But back to QF, and trying to distill just three main issues I rate their highest in my personal experience. And curiously I think in advance these will all be somehow connected to QF's fame in inconsistency...

Number 1.- GET RID OF THE DEADWOOD in airborne staff. I know this is hard, due to industrial relations, etc. But it is my number one complaint about the QF experience. It has not happened once, not twice, but many many times that I, as a P1, sitting in 1A, get the dreaded "eyes roll" when mid-flight on a long haul I dare to ask for a bottle of water, whilst travelling in business. There is no known planet or universe where this sort of shiite is acceptable.... Can Qantas please acknowledge that they are in a service industry, competing with airlines where staff literally bend over backwards to be nice. Yet half of QF staff are glorious! Get it together, get rid of the jaded ones. Support and promote the staff that are amazing. It is not really hard to identify who is who here....

Number 2.- get rid of the ridiculous cash components of FF redemptions. They are a joke due to what other airlines offer. And revamp the metrics on Reward seats available on long-haul flights. I understand their need to protect revenue, but guarantee at least a couple of seats on every flight for premium seat redemption's. (Sorry, that morphed into two items)

Number 3.- Overhaul the entire status game. Provide clear and specific advantages / perks at each level. Find ways to introduce solid perks such as a guaranteed upgrade or two each year for higher levels. Make members of QFF understand and value the levels.