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Jet-Sahara IT Synergy Takes Off: Focus on Customer|
- By Anuradha Ramamirtham, Jun 18, 2007 1152 hrs IST
- Tags : Jet Airways , Sahara Airlines, Jet-Sahara IT Integration Due Focus on Customer
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Following the much talked about Jet Airways' acquisition of Sahara Airlines, the top management is now integrating the IT infrastructure of both the entities; the mission is to deliver greater value to customers.
Speaking to CXOtoday.com, R. N. Moorthy, general manager (IT) of Jet Airways said, "The internal processes are all integrated and we're in a position where anybody in the office can access the information. Improving our MIS reporting is one of the initiatives taken in the last few years. We've focused a lot on the customer side."
The company has recently revamped its website, making it customer friendly. Today, once a passenger walks in to the airport, check-in can be done with the help of a wireless device. Additionally, kiosks have been introduced to help customers conduct service check in.
The IT architecture has gone a step ahead in delivering various schemes for the customers. The frequent flyer customers can get alerts on the phones and mailers. "From the marketing point of view, we're in touch with our valued customers. Also, we can track their complaints and proactively take steps," elaborated Moorthy.
The reservation system, like any airline, plays a very important role for Jet Airways. It consists of a booking engine that allows the end consumer to come to the website and book a ticket. On the back office side, ERP covers most of the system. "We have a sophisticated system for optimized crew that allows us to use our crew optimally in different places," said Moorthy.
Since both the entities follow a similar business model, the aim is to convert the combined enterprise into a value-based airline. The airline is looking at IT to play a major role in this arena. Not all the systems that Sahara or Jet are using will fit into the model.
Jet will continue focusing on the new technology initiatives. For the current year, major focus would be on strengthening the IT infrastructure in Mumbai, and expansion plans in the international sector.
Jet Airways uses a range of hardware - Pentium servers to Unix servers. For its IT base, it has standardized on certain RDBMS and OS. It is a major user of Windows and Oracle, but those are not the only technologies that the company uses. "Wherever it's required to have an application certified under the Unix platform or any other database, we also use that. We have a range of servers, which might come from a desktop to high range servers. We use branded machines within the organization," said Moorthy.
"Most of our data centers are located around Mumbai, and we have links all across the network to access our applications. We have a totally IP-based network," added Moorthy.
Moorthy stressed on the fact that IT is the backbone of the airline industry. Some of the technologies that airlines use were developed way back in the 1960s, and include modules like reservation and ticketing. Those systems were built in the 1960s-1970s.
Automation is a basic requirement from the time of booking a ticket to the check-in time. So, most airlines, when they start off, at least need these systems in place. Therefore, IT is crucial even in a start-up airline. Whether it's reservations area or manpower planning, automation plays a major role everywhere.
According to Moorthy, the level of automation depends on the size of the airline and it's complexity. If you consider an airline like Jet airways, which has domestic and international flights, the complexity is much more. However, in a simple point-to-point operation airlines, complexity of the system will not be much.
Jet airways decided not to build systems on its own. The differentiator between any airline and Jet airways is that it formed a strategy that it would not build its systems with an internal IT team. That gave the airline the leverage to keep its IT team focused on solutions. The strategy is to buy the best of systems available in the market. "As an IT team, we are able to align our services to business empowerment, and look for solutions in the market," concluded Moorthy.
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