Harvard Business School Professor Rohit Deshpande explains Singapore Airlines’ strategy in interview

DSC_4963Image by Richard H Martin via Flickr

Singapore Airlines has always been admired for its consistently high-quality products and innovation, especially in times of crises. From using the latest aircraft like the Airbus A380, to customer service that even other airlines talk about. Recently, Harvard Business School Professor Rohit Deshpande talked about Singapore Airlines’ strategy for success in an interview on the HBS Publishing website, conducted by Scott Berinato. His conclusion – competing on price alone never bears fruit.

Thinking beyond price competition

Professor Deshpande explains in the interview that too many airlines around the world, and especially in the US, compete on price alone and this forces them to commoditize their businesses. They remove any additional frills and the concept of in-flight service is diluted substantially. This is exactly what Singapore Airlines doesn’t do. It never compromises on the quality of service, and charges a premium for that. In a world many airlines are eliminating services on-board, Singapore Airlines pampers those who’d pay for it  – and there are plenty of disgruntled traveleres today who would!

Maintaining brand consistency and buying equipment in downturns

In times of trouble, most airlines cut back on services, flights and the goodwill they may have built for their brand in good times evaporates away. Again, something exactly oppsite to what Singapore Airlines does. It maintains brand consistency even in bad times, and hence keeps the trust of their loyal customers. Moreover, it capitalizes on these times to order new planes, since the manufacturers are more likely to offer discounts when other airlines are not buying and the demand it low.

This works perfectly. By the time the industry situation improves, the airline is armed with a brand new fleet and is ready to impress further existing and newly acquired customers.

But can all airlines duplicate this success? How about just the ability to maintain customer service levels in hard times…is that too hard? What do you think? Let’s discuss.

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