Airport Experience® News - Customer Service Issue 2023

The Fresno lease item also includes a requirement that concessionaires ensure the POS allows for the installation of airport or airport partner applications that can be integrated to exchange data and make possible future opportunities to support passengers and airlines with vouchers, coupons and other mutually beneficial marketing programs. The American Association of Airport Executives also is working on data sharing through its Airport Consortium on Transformation program. The organization has been putting together pilot programs to test initiatives across several areas of the industry, particularly over the last few years, and one of its working groups is studying technology and data sharing, says Carter Morris, executive vice president. The organization’s digitization working group is working on several initiatives relating to sharing data among airports and between airports and their partners, he says. There are no pilot projects in play yet, but “that group right now is in the formative stages in identifying what data feeds and data elements would be the most helpful,” he says. “There are a number of paths they’re going on.”

Almost Inevitable In some ways, with improvements in technology and the ability to monitor passenger movements in nearly real-time, the seeking of data to maximize potential makes sense. It has some big-time supporters. Oris Dunham was a director at three large hub airports, head of ACI World and remains in the industry as managing partner of the Dunham Group. He acknowledges that, for example, Delta Air Lines probably isn’t eager to share customer data despite the advantages it might provide for airports. But with technology, starting with smart phones that create so much usable data, he believes sharing it is the best way to improve on the experience. “I think this is probably our future for our we are going to make things better,” he says. “I really do believe that technology and AI (artificial intelligence) is going to be interesting. It scares a lot of people, but I just think it’s going to be one of the most interesting things that’s going to happen in the next 10 years.” The Oliver Wyman consultancy agrees. In a recently published article on the evolution of airports, the company called

Above: Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport is working with partners to determine how to better collect and disperse data to understand its travelers better and improve their experience.

Above: Travel Retail Partners Founder Stu Holcombe loves using data but wants to make sure when its shared with airports, the parameters of use are defined and that the flow goes both ways.

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AX NEWS CUSTOMER SERVICE ISSUE 2023