A Policy Because It's Policy- My Recent Adventure with American Airlines

Recently I was aboard an American Airlines flight from Charlotte, NC to Dayton, OH with my 4 month old baby in tow. We had quite the day already with one flight and layover behind us so you can imagine my excitement when we arrived at our gate and he was sound asleep, tummy full and diaper dry, snugly situated in his car seat.

Because this wasn’t my first rodeo with a tyke in an airport, I proceeded to the flight desk to ask if there were open seats on our plane. I booked a late flight with an open seat next to me in the offset chance we could secure an empty row allowing me to carry on his car seat. To my thrill, the attendant informed me the seat next to me along with 7 others were indeed passenger free. Score! I sat back with my latte in hand and did a little happy dance.

When it came time to board, my little travel champ and I loaded up and settled into seats 21D and 21F. We were buckled in and ready for our last stretch when the flight attendant asked if my son was a paying passenger or a lap child. I kindly informed her he was a lap child and relayed the message of the attendant that the accompanied seat was unoccupied. She said ok and confirmed there were several open seats including the one behind us only to return moments later to inform me she needed to take the car seat and valet it.

“I see,” I stated, “will someone be joining me?” “No,” she replied. “Because the baby doesn't have a ticket he can't take up a spot with his car seat. You can still have the row to yourself though. Sorry, company policy.”

I understood and took my sweet sleeping baby out of his car seat. Let’s face it, a lot worse can happen with a baby and a plane than this and a disgruntled passenger was the last thing this flight attendant needed to be dealing with moments before takeoff, so I let it go.

But I got to thinking about this policy. A policy that while valid and understood goes against every common sense principle of customer satisfaction. As a marketer and customer service advocate in the legal industry, I understand the fine line between customer satisfaction and policy. Yet in many cases I find the need for exceptions, loop holes and just no-brainier opportunities to avoid confrontation and make someone's day a little easier.

Of the 20 something flights I've flown under these exact same circumstances I have always been afforded the courtesy of flying with the car seat when the seat next to me was free. I've even had attendants move people around in order to allow for such an occurrence. As a matter a fact the first American Airlines flight I took that day I had the car seat in stow for my adorable little lap child.

You see, it’s so easy to get caught up in policy. We see organizations and their employees do it every day. But it's those companies that train each and every staff member to value the satisfaction of the customer and take the time to look a little outside of the box long enough to make informed, meaningful decisions that turn customers into lifetime advocates. I get that not every employee - or even organization for that matter - is customer focused, but it begs the question... In today's ever-changing society, can you really afford not to be?