Moments of Truth

If you are a business leader, you should read this book. It is a fascinating story of a corporate turnaround. Moments of truth occur when your company touches a stakeholder and proceeds to deliver products or services that satisfy or disatisfy. It is that simple and yet very difficult to execute consistently. If you have heard of "Service Maps" or touchpoints where customer contact occurs, my hunch is that the consultant or leader proposing the concept has read this book or been instructed by someone who has. The book is a good read and provides deep business insights that you can you use to motivate and lead people and organizations. IF you work for government or non-profit entities you too can learn from this book because its messages and concepts are applicable to all leaders and organizations.

In this short book, Jan Carlzon relates how he righted three travel companies as CEO by listening to the knowledge accumulated by frontline employees and helping them do their jobs, rather than the other way around. Mr. Carlzon was spectacular in turning around the fortunes of Vingresor, Linjeflyg, and finally SAS. As head of SAS he was able to dispense with business as usual by listening more to the frontline employees, and scrupulously insisting on removing 'yes-men' from his inner circle, a policy that has also served Southwest amazingly well over the years. Although his tenure was not totally without controversy, Carlzon talks frankly about unions (he looks on them as partners and long-term stakeholders), and tough decisions, such as sticking with the trusted DC-9 when other airlines were buying newer planes merely for the sake of having newer planes, despite negative balance sheet implications. This is a book that should be read by every business major, MBA, and airline employee about what is possible by working together. Sadly in recent US history most airline executives have been self-centered boors who don't care about the airline business, and have no long term stake in the company. Largely they have stayed around a couple of years, raked in millions (in some cases hundreds of millions) of dollars and then left a bankrupt or weak carrier in the lurch. Carlzon makes it clear that he is a capitalist, but a capitalist that realizes that if management and employees work together, solutions can be reached that will benefit all over the long term. To the Boards of Directors of any airline anywhere I say this: read this book, learn how it should be done, and go out and get a Carlzon-school thinker for every executive position in your company. The long term results will amaze you. I could not recommend this book any more highly.

Every passenger who travels by air comes across five short interactions of about fifteen seconds each with the airline staff. Jan Carlzon calls these as moments of truth. It is these moments that largely determine the image of the airline and customer experience. Frontline employees who are responsible for this interface , meeting customers and serving them, are the ambassadors of the airline who can find a place in the hearts of the customers for their airline. With such strong beliefs driven by a organization wide movement towards customer delight, SAS turns around and soars high, Capt. Carlzon in command .Leadership is responsible to create the right conditions for decisions and action by line managers, flattening the pyramid and utilizing the vast energy released by groups of enthusiastic people. Primarily, it is people, not aircraft that matter.- Consider the fact that you need to walk a mile to board the connecting flight at a transit airport. This is because aircraft have been parked by size and make at the airport hangars and not by passenger convenience. - Till the food is served, one is not sure if the special meal ordered is on board. No one either at the check-in counter or boarding gate is able to assure this in advance and provide a sense of comfort to a tired passenger far away from home. - A mother with her infant has anxious moments till she finds a cradle on board. She would have loved to have an empty seat next to her to take better care of her loved one.Not to worry when you fly SAS. SAS employees, on the ground and in the air would do everything to ensure that you have a very pleasant flight. For them "Love is in the air". This is just one aspect of what Carlzon has narrated, in first person in this book. If this is impressive, the rest is spectacular. This book was written in the 80's and I am not sure what has happened to SAS since then. Take away from this book are moments that truly appeal to our hearts. Take care of customers and employees, who in turn will take care of the company's top line and bottom line. Welcome aboard and happy reading. Love is in the air !

Jan Carlzon is a business leader who learned how to diversify his strengths and fortify his weaknesses. He is one of the few CEO's (before Jack Welch :) who had the boldness, bordering on foolishness, to take huge risks. He had 'safer' options available to him but he earned his salary by pioneering the expansion of product-service development beyond aircraft; maneuvering past the notion that market share is everything; and shifting emphasis to a value organization nurturing the best customer service in the world for the business traveler under extremely competitive conditions. Surprisingly, he made SAS profitable over and above everyone's expectations, including his own!Carlzon presented a clearly defined strategy and it was effectively communicated to the stakeholders and employees, focused internally and externally, in equal portions. Carlzon took the innovative step of training his workforce to take responsibility for reaching goals, directing managers to support and encourage "frontline" employees to make decisions normally reserved, and maintain a steady work environment that was flexible enough to immediately respond to pursuing quality customer service.At the time Carlzon wrote this book, the timing was before the rapid expansion of powerhouse Southwest Airlines. He focused on the best technology, concentrated on the type of aircraft, upgraded systems at the airport and improved distribution systems, which were key elements towards a profitable company. On the technology side, Robert Crandall, former CEO at American Airlines proved technology was related to profitability when he introduced the Sabre yield/reservations system.Among the legends of aviation, Jan Carlzon, Robert Crandall and Herb Kelleher propelled the airline industry into a future that remains obscure. However, with the right dose of courage, discipline (wisdom) and imagination, the search for corporate excellence is not restricted to the little 'blue'-suited (I really mean green) men sitting in the Ivory Towers.One final point. I truly appreciate the fact that Jan Carlzon wrote this book for us. He represents the best of Denmark, the culture of the Scandinavian countries and the 'individual' way they do business.Consider reading "Unique, Now or Never," by Jesper Kunde and then read "Moments of Truth." Carlzon's leadership was before his time and he is still absolutely SPECTACULAR!

I see this book referenced in the literature of customer service, complexity science, and employee-oriented studies. Having now read the book, I can see why so many people refer to it. First, the book is extremely clear and easy to understand. It operates at a common sense level that is missing from many management books. Second, the author is describing case examples from his own first-hand experience. And he is certainly not Al Dunlap. Almost anyone would identify with the principles espoused here, which is to focus your resources and attention on where it will do the most good. Although people who refer to this book are clear about seeing the customer service aspects of Carlzon's thinking, I found that his strategic thinking about where trends force improved performance was even more impressive. Put the two together, and you have a remarkable opportunity to improve. Three, he explains very well the context of why he did things and how Scandinavia is different from the United States. That added a lot of meaning for me of case examples that I am not familiar with. If you want to see three examples of how unstalled thinking can make a big difference in your company, I urge you to read this book. Carlzon is a true stallbuster in areas like overcoming communications, bureaucracy, disbelief, unattractiveness, and misconception stalls. If we ever do another edition of The 2,000 Percent Solution, I would certainly like to use some of these examples in it. I particularly recommend chapters 5 (setting the strategy), 6 (flattening the pyramid), 7 (taking risks), 8 (communicating), 10 (measuring results), and 12 (the second wave). You will not find better advice anywhere else on these subjects. Unlike most management and leadership books, this one is a quick and easy read. Yet it contains a lot of meat. Carlzon seems to be able to get his point across in about one-third the space of most business authors. You'll like the difference.