First Bag on the Belt and the Service Level Agreement

We’re pleased to have James Lawther share his thoughts today on Service Excellence. He does this through a recent family vacation to Spain, where he, his wife, and kids experienced the all-wonderful joys of international travel with kids and, of course, 15 luggage bags.

As can be expected, our readers as well as our article contributors are of the international flavor. This means, of course, that some of what you’ll read today might seem misspelled. But don’t worry, that’s just James’ inferior non-American English coming out (just joking).

Thanks James and to all our international readers and contributors.

Read more about James Lawther after his article.

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Picture the scene

I had just spent two weeks in Spain on holiday with my wife and young children and was on the homeward bound leg, experiencing the joy of international travel:

• I’d stood in a check in queue, with my bored children
• I’d stood in an oversize baggage queue with my fractious children
• I’d stood in a security queue with my vocal children
• I’d stood in an emigration queue, with my obnoxious children
• I’d stood in a boarding queue, with my fighting children
• I’d stood in an immigration queue, with my sulking children

All that was standing between me and a short ride home to a cup of tea (and the opportunity to dump my children in front of the TV) was the baggage reclaim queue.

Nearly there

I just had to wait for my luggage on the carousel

I have been here before; my expectations were not set high

To my amazement as I walked up to the carousel the belt started, things were looking up, then, even better, one of my bags circled round, I grabbed it, maybe that well earned cup of tea was going to materialise far faster than I thought

May be the children would shut up

May be my wife would stop looking at me like it was my fault

Then the belt stopped

It had delivered precisely 5 bags, one of them was mine

The others weren’t

After 25 minutes it finally started up again and looking like Sherpa Dad with 15 bags I set off to find my car.

What is going on?

What sort of operational system does that to a customer?  Starts working the instant they want it to, then stops, stone cold dead, finally delivering the goods half an hour later to a man who has lost the will to live?

Now, I can’t swear this to be the case, but I will lay a bet.

I bet it is all to do with targets and incentives.

The airline has a service level agreement with the baggage handling company.

It says something like:

The first item of customer baggage from each plane must be on the carousel within 5 minutes of the plane landing

There are stiff financial penalties associated with non compliance.

To avoid these severe financial penalties the baggage handling company has a crack team of baggage handlers (a small fast bloke and a big strong bloke).

The minute the plane lands the small bloke launches himself into the hold and throws out 5 bags.  The big chap then manhandles these into a wheel barrow and sprints across the tarmac to deposit them on the luggage belt.

Job done the rest of the crew wander up and eventually the bags appear.

I may be a little off with the exact details, but I stand by my bet.  Do you want to take it?

So what can be learnt?

1. If you apply a big enough incentive you will get the outcome you asked for
2. Often the outcome you asked for is not what you really wanted
3. Your management dashboard will tell you your service level agreements are being met, everything is great
4. Everything is not great
5. There is no substitute for going and looking at what is actually happening
6. There is no substitute for going and looking at what is actually happening
7. (I know I just said that, it is the important bit)
8. Finally, if you are fit, strong and handy with a wheelbarrow there are lots of job openings in the UK’s major airports.

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James Lawther gets upset by operations that don’t work and apoplectic about poor customer service.

James has worked for numerous large manufacturing, retail and service companies including Unilever, Mars and Capital One a variety of operational improvement roles. He also ran his own operations improvement consultancy where his clients were as diverse as local and national government, debt collectors and magic circle lawyers.

He is currently head of Operational Excellence for a FTSE 100 insurance company.

Visit his web site The Squawk Point to find out more about service improvement.