As in everything we do, there are systems and processes we can employ to make all our inter-personal interactions effective.
Making a complaint is no different.
I once again validated this simple fact whilst recently travelling on last minute ticket, found on Air France, on an overnight flight to South Africa from Heathrow, via Paris, on Xmas eve/day ‘08.
If you have a moment, I’d like to share with you my experience, the thought processes involved, the strategy I employed and the outcome achieved. Perhaps it might help give you pause for thought in the future when you are faced with untenable situations and may enable you to amicably and successfully (for all parties) resolve an unpleasant situation whilst retaining everyone’s dignity and self worth.
After fourteen years on the front-line in the hotel and catering industry you can be assured I’ve experienced my fill of rude, ego-fuelled, rage-filled, counter-thumping, self-righteous, attraction-seeking ‘complainers’ whose aim seems solely to belittle the very person summoned to help them, boost their own sense of self-importance and to demand rights to unrealistic compensation. I’ve always thought this bizarre and I try never to be ‘that guy’. My observation is that it’s always the ‘little’ (in mentality not stature) people who feel it’s important to ‘give as good as they get!’
As I boarded the Paris-Johannesburg leg I was unpleasantly greeted by an extremely intoxicated and wholly incoherent fellow passenger, seated next to me in economy. The combination of unintelligible mumblings, as he attempted to initiate conversation, and the interesting bouquet of bodily odours, prompted me to take action immediately the seatbelt signs had been switched off.
The sonorous ‘ping’ was to be my call-to-action.
In the few minutes between realising my unfortunate predicament and taking action to resolve the situation I simply took a moment to review all the inter-personal competencies we advocate employing through implementing the Kintish system of business networking skills.
Which key skills would I need to elevate into consciousness and to utilise to ensure a successful outcome?
The first was simply to be conscious and in command and control. To take time to pause and to assess my predicament, without just barrelling blindly forward with anger and frustration (remember this is an eleven hour flight so it was untenable).
To get the best out of any situation we must do some preparation and planning. So in the few moments before ‘launch’...
I had to decide what outcome I was looking for, as I had decided that I was not going to return to my seat once I’d left it to complain.
As in any negotiation/interaction you have to be clear on what you want. Best case: reallocation to another available seat. This would be no mean feat, however, as it was now Xmas day and the flight, as I could see, was full.
Worst case: permission to sit on the air crews’ fold-down jump seats.
You know?, the ones that you find adjacent to the loos and galleys (though I knew this was against the regulations).
I wanted to show that my problem was actually their problem, too, and that by helping me make a complaint constructively, and in line with their procedures, that I could help them ensure they weren’t put in this situation again. We’d all been let down by the ground crew who had allowed this guy on to the plane, in this state, in the first place. The potential for disruption
How could I gain their empathy? What tone should I use?
As the seat-belt light pinged ‘off’ I went off in search of the Purser. Briefly and calmly I laid out my problem and stated that I was not returning to my seat. I asked her to verify my claim by going over to look at my now unconscious travel mate. I empathised with her, that the flight was full and stated that I could see that options to help me were limited.
Once she had verified my claim and had begun to apologise for the inconvenience, I asked her “...if you were me, what would you do to make an effective compliant?” She helped me with the forms and I clarified that she, too, would write a few words confirming my statement, to validate my problem. By being calm and humble, honest and cooperative, and by thinking WII-FY (What’s in it for you) not only did I gain her full help and support, but her team, the cabin crew, really couldn’t have been more helpful and supportive. They went out of their way to be kind, sympathetic and as accommodating to me as they could. I spent the next half an hour out of everyone’s way, reading my book, on the jump seat.
Mission accomplished, without any unpleasantness.
A little later a very well presented and authoritative chap arrived at my seat, with the economy purser. It was obvious that he was the overall operational ‘head-honcho’, with gold braids on his jacket cuffs, and he had arrived to apologise and sympathise with me. After spending a few moments chatting fairly light-heartedly (relationship building small-talk) he then clarified that I understood there was little they could do as the flight was full and he then went on to chat on to the lady to whom I’d made my original complaint. He showed me that he had taken possession of my written complaint and left. He returned 5 minutes later to explain that he actually did have a spare seat and that I would be moved there without further delay.
It was in club class.
Did they have to do that? Well, I knew that regulations would not permit me to sit on the galley seat for the entire flight, so they had to do something. But I’m convinced it was the manner in which I’d built relationships and got them to like me, whilst making the complaint, instead of burning my bridges in an emotionally charged, ego-centred outpouring of irritation, that took me ‘beyond the curtain...’
It worked for them, it worked for me and it will work for you in the future.
• Simply be conscious.
• Get people to like you, even in adverse situations.
• Take a moment for a bit of preparation and planning.
• Think WIIFY. Be mindful that your problem is their problem (for their passengers, their management, their staff, their reputation and the reputation of their brand: Air France). How can your complaint help them improve their service in the future
• Be nice. Don’t antagonise those who are there to help you. Be reasonable, be approachable and keep the emotion of ego based reactions under control. It is inappropriate.
• Be brave. Do complain, but when doing so stay outcome driven
- be very clear on what you want.
Feel free to share with me similar events that you experienced or witnessed over the holiday period, how it was handled and what the resultant outcome was.
Mark Perl is a leading expert on the subject of Business Networking. He specialises in SME’s, business networking for solicitors, along with CPD training for the legal profession
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