THE FLIGHT ATTENDANT HUMILIATED A QUIET MILLIONAIRE, NEVER REALIZING HE OWNED THE AIRLINE
Chapter 12
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At 7:15 p.m., the emergency board meeting began.Daniel sat at the head of a long conference table overlooking the Manhattan skyline.Nine executives appeared in person or through secure video connections.The chief financial officer, Martin Shaw, opened the meeting with a summary of the preliminary audit.“Our complaint resolution metrics have improved by twenty-two percent over three years,” he said. “Customer satisfaction scores have increased across most routes, and average resolution time has declined.”Daniel listened without interrupting.Martin continued.“However, a review of the raw data suggests that certain departments may have classified complaints in ways that reduced the number requiring escalation.”“May have?” Daniel asked.Martin paused.“We have confirmed several cases.”“How many?”“Forty-seven so far.”“Out of how many?”“Approximately eighteen thousand complaints reviewed during the initial sample.”Daniel looked toward the operations director.“Is that the full sample?”“No. It's the initial sample.”“Then stop presenting it as though we understand the scale of the problem.”The operations director shifted in his chair.“We're still collecting data.”“Good. Then tell us what we know, what we don't know, and what we're doing to find out.”The room fell quiet.Thomas placed a document on the screen.It contained anonymized examples of passenger complaints, along with the original classification and the revised assessment.One complaint described an elderly traveler who had asked for assistance after being moved to a different gate.The original report said the passenger had been uncooperative.The revised report showed that the gate change had never been communicated to him.Another complaint involved a passenger who had been repeatedly questioned about a valid ticket.The original report described a misunderstanding.The revised assessment identified an unsupported assumption by an employee.Daniel read each example.When he reached the final page, he looked up.“Who decided that closing complaints quickly was more important than understanding them?”No one answered.Martin cleared his throat.“The intention was to improve efficiency.”“Efficiency for whom?”“The company.”“And what about the passengers?”“The objective was to improve their experience as well.”“Was it?”Martin looked uncomfortable.“We believed the metrics would help us identify recurring problems.”“Then why were employees rewarded for reducing escalations instead of resolving the underlying issues?”The operations director intervened.“Because we needed measurable performance indicators.”Daniel nodded.“Measurable indicators are useful. But a bad indicator can produce a good-looking report while the real problem grows.”He placed his hands on the table.“We are not going to solve this by finding one employee to blame. We are going to examine the incentives, the reporting structure, the training, and the management decisions that allowed these patterns to develop.”A board member named Richard Cole leaned toward his microphone.“Daniel, with respect, we need to be careful. If we publicly acknowledge systemic failures before completing the investigation, we could expose the company to substantial legal and reputational risk.”Daniel looked at him.“Are you suggesting we conceal confirmed failures?”“I'm suggesting that we control the timing of our response.”“By waiting until we know how much damage has occurred?”“By avoiding unnecessary panic.”Daniel's voice remained calm.“People have already experienced the consequences. The only question is whether we are willing to acknowledge them.”Richard folded his arms.“You're taking this personally.”“I am.”The answer surprised everyone.Daniel continued.“I founded this company because I believed people deserved better. I told employees that we would treat passengers fairly and give workers the support they needed to do their jobs properly.”