Specific workplace context
Singapore Airlines has been chosen as the company for our training video. This training video will revolve around pre-flight briefing, ground preparation, cruising, and disembarking stages with Singapore Airlines. The video will be played to all flight attendants who will be on duty before boarding each flight, at the Singapore Airlines training center situated in Changi Airport. The scenes will take place during the ground preparation, cruising, and disembarking stage, the location would be on the plane. This workplace was chosen with the intention to bring awareness of the interpersonal communication issues that happens commonly during a typical flight to most people. Furthermore with Glenda’s past experience as a flight attendant, it makes the issue more credible. Thus, it is a good workplace context to explore and feature into.
Project’s thematic focus
The project’s thematic focus will be on the aviation industry. It will feature the whole flight process from pre-flight to disembarking stages. The characters would include flight attendants and passengers which are of different nationalities and characteristics. There will be different situations identified in the case of the interpersonal communication issue and the most ideal resolutions would be suggested for each scenario so that audience would be educated of how to resolve such matter if it occurs.
Interpersonal communication problem being explored
The interpersonal communication problem being explored is workplace bullying and abuse. This project will highlight the possible bully and abuse cases which commonly occurs in most flights and most flight attendants would have faced such incidents by most flight attendants. These incidents are real life scenarios which Glenda experienced while she was working as an air stewardess for three years. Respective resolutions will be suggested and included in the training video for each interpersonal communication issue. This video would better train and educate flight attendants of the scenarios so they can understand how to deal with such situations in real life.
The nature of your project’s professional importance
Singapore Airlines is known for being a benchmark in the service industry, especially within the aviation sector. The cabin crew are known to exude service from the heart, a standard that is a representation of Singapore.
The professional importance of the project is towards maintaining and improve service standards through educational entertainment with the aid of a training video. The video seeks to communicate potential scenarios where abuse and bully may happen and a structured framework towards approaching, addressing and remedying the situation.
This enables both newly hired and experienced cabin crew members to be educated and refreshed on the preferred approach on remedying these situations. Done through a video, it greatly assists organisations such as Singapore Airlines in maintaining standards while maintaining consistency and training costs. The cost of producing a training video versus recurring training sessions.
The objective and scope of your study
The study seeks to understand the existing issues pertaining to bullying and abuse between airline guests and the cabin crew, specifically towards the commercial operating environment of Singapore Airlines. To better understand the situation at Singapore Airlines, a combination of primary and secondary sources have been consulted, including research online through news articles and videos, as well as interviews with previous Singapore Airlines Cabin Crew members.
The scope of the study has been designed within the parameters of workplace bullying and abuse of cabin crew by international guests during inflight exchanges. The interaction seeks to portray the more common as well as unknown exchanges as well as how to deal with them.
Proposed data collection/research method
To better understand the situation at Singapore Airlines, a combination of primary and secondary sources have been consulted, including research online through news articles and videos, as well as interviews with previous Singapore Airlines Cabin Crew members. Stuff.co.nz provided great visual and descriptive insights on the unknown skills and talents of the cabin crew. Singapore Airlines also released footage of the cabin crew’s training through role-playing assignments. Furthermore, a fellow team member’s recount on her work experience provides further insights on the training needs.
Potential solutions/implementation for problem resolution
To address the problem of handling workplace bullying, the team will look to produce a short four-minute video on how to respond effectively. In the video, various scenarios that can happen in the cabin will be address and methods to resolve the situation or avenues to seek help from, will be highlighted and mentioned accordingly.
For example, the team believes that in any situation the employee is caught in, he/she should remain calm when responding to passenger and follow the standard operating procedures implemented by the company.
To an angry/verbally abusive passenger: Employee should apologise sincerely for causing inconvenience and replied firmly that he/she should not be verbally abused. Employee should notify his/her supervisor of the incident and also explain to the passenger that the supervisor/in-charge has been informed and will be tending to her shortly. Employee should excuse herself nicely that she has to be of service to other passengers at that moment.
To an uncivilized passenger who keeps tugging the employee’s uniform: Crew should be firm but politely respond by asking the passenger to refrain from tugging his/her uniform. Employee can educate passenger on how to utilise the call button which is next to their seat.
To a drunk passenger: Employee must request for them nicely and firmly to turn down their voices politely. Employee can also consider diluting drinks and taking a longer time to get back to the drunk passenger.
To a difficult passenger who is making a fuss over the temperature of her champagne: Employee should apologise sincerely and offer another glass of champagne or check with the passenger if he/she would prefer an alternative drink. Employee may also check with supervisor/in-charge if they are able to offer another brand from an upper tier class.
Benefits to the workplace
When employees can practice more patience and tolerance towards the passengers, service quality in the cabin would improve. According to Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument, accommodating mode is important in this line of service as employee can use it to create good will or keep peace which will usually result in increasing passengers’ satisfaction with the company.
The team believes that the video produced will be able raise awareness about the extent of this industry workplace abuse. This video may further serve as an educational tool for both management and the employees, in identifying the various situations that can take place, and knowing how to handle such situations within the workplace environment.
Concluding thoughts
Workplace bullying (by passengers) in this industry is not a new issue. However, this has dire consequences as it affects an employee’s efficiency and satisfaction while working. These often lead to higher turnover rate. Even though the company continuously recruit new employees to replace the ones who left, training costs is considerably more than that of retaining current employees.
The team is keen to provide our solutions to address this issue in order to improve workplace satisfaction and is confident that the proposed solution is effective in resolving the problem of workplace bullying.
References
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3avS9lOpRM
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