Total Quality Management

CASE ONE:

The Case of the Stranded Traveler

One of the authors traveled to Texas to attend a meeting. Before leaving home, he made a reservation to be picked up by a shuttle company (one with operations in several cities) and taken to his hotel, about one-half hour from the airport. The company’s promotional materials strongly recommended securing reservations, as this would ensure “priority service.” He was instructed to call the shuttle service once inside the terminal. He was told on the phone where to wait, what the sign on the van would say, and that it would pick him up within about 10 minutes. He was happy to hear that van would be arriving soon, because it was raining and unseasonably cool, even for February, and it had been a long flight.

After 20 minutes, although many of the company’s vans had passed by, the van with the correct destination sign still had not arrived. One of the company’s drivers pulled over and asked the traveler which van he was waiting for. The driver radioed the dispatcher, who told him that the correct van would be there momentarily.

After another 15 minutes, another of the company’s vans pulled over, but it was still not the right one. The woman driving this van asked the traveler which van he was waiting for and, after hearing the story, also radioed the dispatcher. She requested and received permission to change her route to take the traveler to his hotel.

The traveler relaxed in the back seat of the van, believing that his experience with “priority service” was almost over. As it became increasingly clear that the van was not leaving the airport, but was circulating among the terminals, the traveler asked the driver what was going on. She said that drivers were not allowed to leave the airport with fewer than three passengers. She had requested permission to drive the traveler immediately to his hotel to make up for the inconvenience he had suffered, but the request was denied....