Cebu Pacific did it again!

"Every Juan Flies."  - but Cebu Pacific did it again - by refusing to board a 12-year old boy with congenital disease due to a damaged passport. Previous cases need not be discussed here but this recent "Juan" reminds us that Cebu Pacific is not ready to sustain its slogan and needs help to understand what should be done so everyone in the organization will be consistent with its motto.

Below are the advisories published by Cebu Pacific. I used them to communicate my own advise to the company and its men and women. 

CEB Advisory - Mar 17, 2014, 12am:

To those inquiring about JR Pajaro's post, CEB's Guest Services team has already contacted the affected passengers this morning and provided all necessary assistance so they could push through with their flight. We have also contacted Vietnam immigration authorities and arranged for the rebooking of the passengers. We pray for her son's successful operation.

We are looking into what happened and will follow due process. At the same time, we will be in touch with the affected passengers to ensure that their concerns are properly addressed. We sincerely regret the inconvenience this has caused them. [The Cebu Pacific Team]

My Comment: I appreciate this gesture. Accepting your fault and doing something to fix the damage. This is the point where we must be able to learn our lesson.  

And yet, another advisory:
CEB Advisory - Mar 18, 2014, 3:30pm:

Thank you for your concern regarding the Palileo family. 

Rejoinder: You do not have to thank the citizens for the show of concern to the Palileo family. It is the duty of every citizen to show concern. Your opening statement should be: "Thank you for reminding us to show concern to our passengers."

Just to let everyone know, we accommodated the Palileo family on our flight to Ho Chi Minh last Sunday, 16 March, because they were able to present a new (temporary) passport from the Department of Foreign Affairs. 

Rejoinder: Of course, you should accommodate the Palileo family because they have a new passport. but prior to that you refused and failed to assist them. Your refusal earlier could have been translated into a more productive and positive approach by informing the passenger on what they need to do with the passport.

Upon arrival in Ho Chi Minh, the family was met and assisted by our station officer. While clearing with Vietnam Immigration, they initially presented the defective passport and this was not accepted. They were only accepted for entry when they presented the newly issued passport. 

Rejoinder: With this statement Cebu Pacific is telling us "See, even Vietnam did not accept the defective passport therefore we were actually right in refusing the Palileo family." But the defective passport was not the real issue. The issue here was the attitude, reaction and approach you have exhibited when you were confronted with the situation. Remember that you are in the business because of service. You could have done better than refusing to board the Palileo family. 

My Advise: Cebu Pacific must change its attitude, reaction and approach to situations like this. Whenever you are confronted with this kind of situation, the first thing that should come into your mind is "How can I help this sick Juan so he can fly?" or "How can we help this Juan solve his problem?" - Cebu Pacific must throw away its default reaction "Hmmm, there is something wrong and I cannot allow this Juan to fly!" If you are really committed to your slogan then you have to consider these - You could have done better by saying: "Sir/Mam, we have noted that your passport is defective and this will cause delay in your travel. Here is what you can do to solve the problem [provide them information on how they can facilitate solution to the problem]. We are referring you to [somebody in your organization or any organization who can help] to facilitate your transactions so you can proceed with your travel." - this will make the passenger feel better. 

We acknowledge that we could have exerted more patience and compassion in explaining the situation to them last Saturday, and for this we sincerely apologize. 

Rejoinder: This should be your opening statement. It shows your sincerity.

Rest assured we are looking into how this was handled, and we will take the necessary administrative actions.

Rejoinder: "Administrative actions" refer to something internal to Cebu Pacific and though it is significant this is not what the passengers and citizens need. Citizens need assurance. "Rest assured that this will not happen again." - sounds better. 
My Advise: I therefore recommend to the management of Cebu Pacific to focus more on the requirements of their staff. In ports and terminals we normally see the sign "Don't leave your valuables unattended." CEOs, Managers and Leaders normally say that their workers are the most valuable asset of the organization. So I say to them, "Don't leave your valuables unattended!" If you really value your workers, you need to work hard to ensure that they are properly equipped with the right attitude, knowledge and skills that will enable them to behave appropriately if faced with challenging situations in the service. Workers must be able to equate their behavior to the goals and objectives of the organization and ultimately to the service. This way, you can guarantee that you are right in saying that "Every Juan Flies."