27
Our strategy and objectives
our business
FOCUSED ON
OUTSTANDING
CUSTOMER
SERVICE
Meeting the rising expectations of our customers remains central to our strategy of transforming British Airways into the world’s leading global premium airline.
Our investment in our staff, our fleet and our facilities are all about making sure we provide the very best in customer service.
We want all of our customers to enjoy a premium service at every point of their journey, whenever and wherever they travel with us.
28
British Airways 2009/10 Annual Report and Accounts
Our strategy and objectives
We have lived through unprecedented market conditions over the last 18 months. Throughout this we have remained focused on our strategy to become the world’s leading global premium airline.
The actions we are taking now to make our cost base more efficient and our unstinting focus on outstanding customer service are critical parts of this long-term vision. They will determine how strongly we emerge from the current downturn and will help us to create a sustainable and profitable future for the business, benefiting our customers, colleagues and shareholders.
In this section, we explain the strategy in detail and describe the actions we’re taking to pursue it.
GLOBAL
What we offer will appeal to customers across the globe.
Wherever we operate, individuals and business travellers alike will want to fly with us whenever they can.
PREMIUM
We will make sure all our customers enjoy a unique premium service whenever and wherever they come into contact with us.
Our customers will recognise that the service we offer is worth paying that little bit more for.
AIRLINE
We will remain focused on aviation – moving people and cargo is our core business. We will develop new products and services to complement this.
British Airways 2009/10 Annual Report and Accounts
29
OUR FIVE STRATEGIC GOALS
Longhaul premium customers are key to our profitability. We will use our deep understanding of what is required to be their airline of choice to drive our design choices on product, network and service.
We will also maintain a strong presence in the cargo, economy and shorthaul segments, which play a critical supporting role.
Deliver an outstanding service for customers at every touch point Our customer-facing staff have long been passionate about delivering outstanding customer service. We want to build on this through a revolution in the way we lead, train and reward, so that all our customers, on all routes and classes, enjoy a premium experience.
We will invest both in improvements targeted at our premium customers, such as service style training, and in those benefiting all customers, such as
Terminal 5 and ba.com.
Grow our presence in key global cities
We aim to provide the best global connectivity for our customers. We will build our presence in the top tier global cities, either directly or through our expanding network of airline partnerships. Whilst the established global cities such as London and New York remain critical, we will place a special emphasis on developing our position in the global cities of tomorrow.
Build on our leading position in London
London is our home city, the emotional and financial heart of our business. It is also the world’s biggest and most competitive international air market. Ensuring
Heathrow remains a world-class hub is vital to give us a strong London base to serve the largest international longhaul markets. To support this, we will look to influence government policy decisions, and work with the airport owners on the continued development of the infrastructure.
Meet our customers’ needs and improve margins through new revenue streams Airline revenue streams will always be the core of our business. However, we will look to augment this
by