Shannon Airport has become Ireland’s first transport hub to be awarded Fáilte Ireland’s Service Excellence Programme’s Business Award.
The Programme is aimed at helping tourism businesses reach and maintain the highest standards in customer Service Excellence, which can result in major benefits such as business growth, additional repeat business, increased visitor spend and positive recommendations.
The Business award is presented when 75% of staff and management in visitor facing businesses complete Fáilte Ireland customer care training.
Speaking at the presentation of the accreditations, Martina Bromley, Head of Enterprise & Hospitality at Fáilte Ireland said that the Programme is an important aspect of Fáilte Ireland’s business development and training supports, adding:
“We are delighted to present Shannon Airport and businesses within the airport with the Accredited Service Excellence Programme’s Business Award. The programme is aimed at helping tourism businesses strengthen competitiveness and to help differentiate Ireland from its international competitors as a location where the customer is at the centre of everything a business will do. Shannon Airport and the related businesses can now rightly claim recognition for ‘best in class’ customer service and providing a great visitor experience.”
Welcoming the awards, which coincided with the launch of the Airport’s new Customer Charter, Andrew Murphy, Managing Director of Shannon Airport said:
“We have always striven to be innovators in everything we do at Shannon Airport and would like to thank Fáilte Ireland for selecting Shannon to be the first airport to participate in their Service Excellence Programme. It was wonderful to see our airport community come onboard to complete the customer care training. The awards give us an accolade that will greatly assist in our mission to always put our customers first. Combined with our new Customer Charter they demonstrate our commitment to passengers to keep making Shannon even easier for them to use.”
Dr. Dean Panter, National Development Manager Hospitality Operations at Fáilte Ireland said that this is a well-deserved achievement for Shannon Airport and its related key businesses. He emphasised:
“This is about commitment to the continued provision of “best in Class” service provision; turning each interaction with the visitor into a positive experience; providing the welcome to Ireland that we are renowned for worldwide; strengthening competitiveness whilst helping to differentiate Ireland from its international competitors. I would like to thank and congratulate all who took part in the Piloting of this newly developed On-line version of the Service Excellence programme; where better to conduct a Pilot?”
The Accredited Service Excellence Programme is suitable for all management and front facing staff in a tourism related business who come into contact with visitors. The Award can be achieved in three ways. Firstly for individual staff upon completion of a full day or online workshop. Secondly as a Business Award whereupon 75% of front facing staff have completed the Programme and thirdly as a Destination Award if a number of set criteria are met including an agreed level of key businesses in the area having achieved the business award and a number of community awareness workshops being completed.
The following businesses undertook the training at Shannon Airport:
- Shannon Airport
- Aer Lingus at Shannon Airport
- American Airlines at Shannon Airport
- Avis / Budget at Shannon Airport
- Enterprise Holdings Ireland at Shannon Airport
- Europcar at Shannon Airport
- Hertz Rent a Car at Shannon Airport
- International Currency Exchange at Shannon Airport
- Sky Handling Partner Ltd at Shannon Airport
- Swissport at Shannon Airport
- United Airlines at Shannon Airport
- WH Smith at Shannon Airport
- Zest at Shannon Airport