|
The problem with live TV is that anything can – and often does – go wrong. The same might be said for the switchover of large IT systems. There is a very real possibility that the exercise will encounter unforeseen problems and result in anything from minor challenges to a complete meltdown.
That is why an interesting example of cooperation in the airline industry deserves to be highlighted. Two discount carriers, JetBlue of Forest Hills, N.Y., and WestJet, a Canadian airline based in Calgary, Alberta, both switched over to new reservation systems recently.
The airlines had both been using a reservation system from Navitaire of Minneapolis called Open Skies. However, as the airlines grew, their needs outstripped the functionality of the Open Skies platform, which was designed primarily for smaller airlines and startups.
WestJet has had a particularly hard time making the transition to a new reservation system. It had originally hoped to go live on a new reservation system from Travelport, called AiRES in 2006, however, the development of that system was continually delayed. Eventually, WestJet pulled the plug on that project, and took millions of dollars in writedowns.
WestJet and JetBlue independently decided to go with a different system from reservation systems leader Sabre Holdings. Sabre provides reservation systems to some 300 airlines, and also owns the Travelocity online travel service.
Now, this is where the story gets interesting. As the Wall Street Journal reported this week, WestJet, which was first to switch over to the Sabre system, invited the IT team from JetBlue to watch the transition. It was a rare show of cooperation that would provide great benefits to JetBlue, even if it came at the expense of a red face for WestJet.
To make a long story short, the switchover did not go well. It took weeks for WestJet to iron out the bugs, and in the meantime, customers were left waiting on the phone for hours trying to reach agents to sort out problems. The airline’s customer satisfaction ratings took a hit in the process, and while the airline denies it was a factor, the company’s chief executive decided to retire in March.
Meanwhile, JetBlue, which had the benefit of being able to observe everything that went wrong at WestJet, was able to take extra precautions and initiate backup procedures. The result was a relatively smooth transition, although still far from perfect. Among other things, JetBlue hired on 500 contract reservation agents to handle customer calls and prevent long wait times.
There are many lessons to be learned from this example, but the one that immediately comes to mind is how important it is to share real-world experiences. Normally, such networking takes place at computer industry or vendor conferences, but WestJet took a step out on the limb to invite another industry peer inside. (The airlines are not direct competitors.)
While JetBlue appears to be the main beneficiary, you can bet that the exchange of information and lessons learned will offer paybacks to WestJet over time and have certainly established a degree of goodwill between the two companies.
Only registered users can write comments.
Please login or register. |
