Hate Heathrow? Then write to Andy
LONDON – InterContinental Hotel Group chief executive Andy Cosslett has been doing a lot of traveling recently.
He flew to Perth in Western Australia from IHG headquarters in Windsor, England, for IHG Asia/Pacific’s Leadership Conference.
Less than three weeks later, he flew from the UK to Singapore to be on hand for the shock news that IHG Asia/Pacific chief executive Patrick Imbardelli was resigning after admitting that he had falsified his CV.
Clearly, the IHG group CEO has had enough of London’s Heathrow airport.
He writes on the IHG website (www.ihgplc.com):
“My job demands a lot of international travel which leads to constant use of airports. As a proud Brit, it saddens me to the core every time I pass through London Heathrow Airport and see the poorly thought through systems and rudeness that travellers are forced to deal with.
“With 10 million of our guests going through Heathrow every year this is a concern for us.
“It is certainly true that security has to be the number one priority, but this has made travelling through airports a lot more difficult than it should be.
“From my experience of airports across the world I can see which of them have thought about the issues from the viewpoint of the passenger.
“Those that haven’t are forgetting what the hotel business knows only too well, which is that everything you do should be seen as an opportunity to give the customer satisfying experiences and a good impression.
“We work every day to do this and it is a shame that Heathrow doesn’t seem to be doing the same.”
Log on to the IHG website because Andy wants to hear your opinions about Heathrow.
-by Ian Jarrett
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