At Owner Advisory Board meetings and in other communications, owners have emphasized that they were satisfied with the service they receive from Flexjet. But they also have consistently indicated that they would prefer to interact with just one representative – someone who could look out for their interests and be their partner.

Our Customer Account Management initiative grew out of our discussions on how best to address those desires and create a better experience for our owners. “Very early on, we determined that this should be about owner relationships, rather than internal processes,” says Dawn Plonkey, Director of Customer Account Management.

A SUCCESSFUL TEST RUN
In recent months, a group of approximately 200 Flexjet owners have been discovering the increased convenience and value of having a single point of contact for all of their business with Flexjet. Certain Sales Directors’ territories were selected for the test study, in order to ensure continuity and the depth of knowledge Sales Directors have with their owners.

“These owners have been extremely pleased with the result,” Plonkey says. “We now plan to deliver this service to every owner, phasing it in over the first half of this year.”

FORGING STRONGER BONDS
The new program promises numerous benefits. “Perhaps the greatest advantage is that this establishes a deeper relationship experience for each owner,” Plonkey says. “Our Customer Account Managers become true advisors – supported, of course, by an integrated, knowledgeable team. Your travel advocate will be able not merely to answer questions and fulfill requests, but to offer informed recommendations, suggest options and guide you to the best, most efficient and cost-effective solution based on your individual desires and travel needs.”

Owners also have been urging Flexjet to explore new avenues to keep lines of communication open. The Customer Account Managers will be especially effective in that role. A Customer Account Manager, for instance, would be in a position to make recommendations when an owner could make effective use of one or more of Flexjet’s many programs designed to deliver maximum travel flexibility.

“We are building our team deliberately and carefully,” Plonkey says. “These will be key positions, very important in our owners’ overall relationship with us. We want to ensure that we have the very best, most experienced people.” Beginning early this year, we began intensive training for our new team of Customer Account Managers. The individualized training may require anywhere from four to 12 weeks, depending on the knowledge and experience each team member brings to the position. Once we have our team trained and supporting systems in place, we plan to bring this new level of partnership to all owners by midyear.