IDSPIRATION STUDIO · WORK · EMIRATES
Recapture the magic of flight.
How a passenger experience program found its answer by looking at the people serving passengers, not just the passengers themselves.
Results for the overall program, measured about a year after rollout; other factors also played a part. Results as reported; some project details withheld for confidentiality.
01 · THE PROBLEM
Flying had become a necessary evil.
After three decades of rapid growth, Emirates saw revenue growth stall. Research showed why: passengers had come to see flying as a chore, and the brand’s premium reputation was weakening.
02 · THE REFRAME
A poor staff experience is a poor passenger experience.
Alongside passenger interviews at airports, the research team spent time with frontline staff across call centers, check-in, lounges and chauffeur services. They were held back by unreliable technology, too few resources and rigid policies. Fixing the passenger experience meant fixing theirs too.
03 · WHAT CHANGED
A journey designed around how people feel.
- Five guiding themes: empowerment, experience, health, connectivity and humanity.
- An experience score from 0 to 10, with 5 as the line of indifference, to measure how passengers felt at each stage of the journey, not just what they bought.
- A 13-stage target journey, from inspiration to staying connected after the trip.
- A digital engagement program for the anticipation stage, the weeks between booking and flying, including a new onboarding email program tested across 30 markets.
04 · WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOU
Three lessons for any business.
- Fix the staff experience first. Customers feel what your team feels. If the people serving them are frustrated, no campaign will cover it.
- Measure feelings, not just transactions. A simple experience score shows where the journey goes flat before revenue does.
- The moments between purchase and use count too. The weeks between booking and flying turned out to be worth designing for.
Results describe a specific past project in a prior role, not a guarantee of future outcomes. Emirates is named to identify prior experience and does not endorse this studio.