Train Company Case Studies (Part 4)
The two train companies Amtrak and NSW TrainLink, both have an operating customer service department.
CUSTOMER SERVICE STRUCTURE IN AMTRAK — OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE
1. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT AND ITS AREAS OF AUTHORITY
- The National Railroad Customer Corporation (Amtrak) is committed to ensuring that all passengers, including those with disabilities, are provided with quality customer service and everything needed to make their trip safe and enjoyable.
- Customer Service Commitment — The company will not, either directly or through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements, discriminate against any otherwise qualified individual with a disability.
- Improving customer experience is an overarching goal for the company and is embedded in initiatives for each service line.
2. USEFUL INSIGHTS
HOW THE DEPARTMENT OPERATES
WHO IS IN CHARGE OF WHAT
- The customer service quality supervisor, customer service representatives, and employees of Amtrak are in charge of giving quality customer service to every passenger, including those with disabilities and providing them with everything necessary to make their trip safe and enjoyable.
- Customer service representatives are responsible for providing the passengers with superior customer service from behind the ticket counter or on the station floor or platform.
- They possess the ability to maintain a positive, good-natured attitude.
- The representatives are responsible for greeting, servicing, and the general comfort of each passenger.
- Customer representatives must be comfortable interacting with customers, speaking on a public address system, and using Amtrak computer systems.
WHAT THEIR DAILY ACTIVITIES LOOK LIKE (DEPARTMENT OPERATING MODEL)
- Customer service representatives assist customers with boarding and detraining.
- They provide directions to passengers when searching for the correct train or proper car location.
- The agents meet and greet all passengers and offer assistance as needed.
- They also provide useful information in an easy-to-understand language while avoiding railroad jargon.
- Other activities include responding to passenger questions courteously and helpfully, listening to passenger complaints, ideas, and suggestions.
- They also take the appropriate steps to resolve passenger complaints, look for service recovery opportunities when passengers have expressed dissatisfaction. [Source 1]
- Customer service representatives look for opportunities to enhance passenger comfort and satisfaction, assist disabled passengers with meal service, the movement to a feature car (if requested), restroom, etc.
- They help customers with wheelchair and wheelchair lift operations as necessary.
- They must be knowledgeable about stations and connecting services, offer suggestions regarding Amtrak products that might increase passenger travel comfort and satisfaction, and thank passengers warmly for their patronage.
WHO OR WHAT THE DEPARTMENT REPORTS TO (ORGANIZATIONAL POSITION)
- Stephen Gardner — Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Operating and Commercial Officer. Gardner is in charge of the day-to-day operational leadership for Amtrak. He is responsible for operations, safety, marketing and revenue, strategy and planning, information technology, product development, and customer experience, and government affairs and corporate communications.
- The duties and responsibilities of a Senior Manager of Product Development & Customer Experience (PD&CX) are to assist in leading PD&CX efforts, including developing and executing the PD&CX strategic plan in alignment with the company's corporate strategy as well as all the PD&CX components. This position works under the authority of the Director of Product Development & Customer Experience. [Source 7]
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OUTLINE
CUSTOMER SERVICE STRUCTURE IN NSW TRAINLINK — OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE
1. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT AND ITS AREAS OF AUTHORITY
- The customer is at the center of everything we do, and we are committed to connecting communities by delivering excellent customer service every day at NSW Trains. The company's focus remains on creating a better experience for its customers, and they look forward to welcoming two new train fleets in the coming years to deliver a safer, more reliable, and comfortable journey.
2. USEFUL INSIGHTS
HOW THE DEPARTMENT OPERATES
- NSW TrainLink delivers quality day-to-day customer service by providing visible and empowered staff, accurate and timely information, a safe and secure journey, and clean, well-maintained stations.
- A key focus is to improve customer journeys continually, exceeding the standards our customers expect. Their network operation starts from track to train to signal and customer service, as well as maintenance of our assets and those of NSW TrainLink.
WHO IS IN CHARGE OF WHAT
- The customer service attendant will be required to undertake a broad range of station functions with a sound knowledge of policies, procedures, and guidelines. Their tasks will include train operations, customer service, and station presentation.
- They aim to deliver consistent, predictable, good quality customer service every day through our visible and empowered staff.
WHAT THEIR DAILY ACTIVITIES LOOK LIKE (DEPARTMENT OPERATING MODEL)
- Customer service attendants help customers by answering their queries, assisting them with their luggage, and giving them information about train services.
- Their role is to answer customer queries for the whole day, inspect station environments, records train movements, deliver information on delays, and support with crowd management.
WHO OR WHAT THE DEPARTMENT REPORTS TO (ORGANIZATIONAL POSITION)
- Julian Narborough A/Executive Director Customer Service — He built best-in-class, customer-centered operations, defining and leading transformational strategies that engage teams from concept to completion. Whether leading operations, technology, or service teams, his message remains clear: "the customer is the center of everything". He provides clear direction during periods of transformation and expertly navigates change in complex environments that are often resistant to change.
- Customer service attendants fall under the customer service delivery team.
ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OUTLINE
- The directorates include customer service, operations delivery, train crewing and support, engineering and maintenance, finance and business services, group rail, people and corporate affairs, group rail, safety, environment and risk, planning and portfolio delivery, and future network delivery.
EXECUTIVE TEAM
- Howard Collins OBE — Chief Executive Sydney Trains/Master of Business Administration Fellow Member of the Institute of Directors Fellow of Institute of Civil Engineers.
- Julian Narborough — A/Executive Director Customer Service/Masters of Business Administration Advanced Management Program (Harvard Business School).
- George Stojkovski — A/Executive Director Operations Delivery/Diploma in Business Management.
- Hayden Donoghue — Executive Director Train Crewing and Support/Bachelor of Business (Agribusiness) Master of Business Administration Graduate Certificate Supply Chain and Logistics.
- Stewart Mills — Executive Director Engineering and Maintenance/Bachelor of Science (Hons) Mining Associate of Camborne School of Mines, Executive Fellows Program Australia and New Zealand School of Government.
- David Callahan — Executive Director Planning and Portfolio Delivery/Master of Business Administration Bachelor of Social Science, Graduate Australian Institute of Company Directors, Executive Fellows Program, Australia and New Zealand School of Government.
- Anthony Eid — Executive Director of Future Network Delivery/Advanced Diploma Management.
- Nev Nichols — Executive Director Safety, Environment and Risk, Group Rail/Bachelor Degree Electrical Engineering Post Graduate Diploma Management Fellow of the Institute of Engineering and Technology Fellow of the Institute of Railway Signal Engineers.
- Peter Crimp — A/Executive Director of Finance and Business Services, Group Rail/Bachelor of Commerce Masters of Commerce (Hons) Chartered Accountant.
- Meg Graham — Executive Director of People and Corporate Affairs, Group Rail/Bachelor of Business Management.
- Irene Rusak — General Counsel/Bachelor of Laws Graduate Diploma of Applied Corporate Governance Fellow of Governance Institute of Australia.
- Michelle Sloane OAM3 — Director Communications, Media and Government Affairs/Master of Arts (Psychology) Masters of Business Administration Graduate Australian Institute of Company Directors.
RESEARCH STRATEGY
We began our research by looking for the customer service structure of the two train companies requested. We obtained the annual reports of Amtrak and NSW TrainLink from their company websites. From there, we collected all the necessary information for this request. Both train companies have an operating customer service department. As such, we only answered the resulting questions for that category. We visited LinkedIn and Jobgetter to gather information on the people in charge of the customer service department. Most of the sources are 2019 annual reports of the two companies which makes it credible for this research.
The findings from our sources indicate that both companies are focusing mainly on their customers/passengers, including the disabled. The goals of the two companies are very similar, which is to improve the customer experience of their passengers.