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for once all departments have customer experience in their scope

Spain's first private highspeed rail operator, Iryo, launches in 2022. Pep Manich Grau explains how he is building the customer experience from scratch

We started designing this new customer experience in January 2021 with a completely blank sheet of paper. We looked at what is currently on offer and at what today's customer really wants, and we knew we had to focus on a smooth digital experience, personalisation and creating a real 'wow' factor onboard.

My role as Customer Experience Director is at the heart of the launch and I had the opportunity to work with all departments from the start. The goal was to ensure the technology behind the scenes works for everyone from reservations and operations to the ordering of food and marketing personalised offers. This is a rare opportunity and for once puts the customer experience within every department's scope from the start which is so much easier than trying to adapt legacy systems and join up departmental silos, as often has to happen in airlines.

Personalisation made easy

Our system allows us to build a customer experience file for every customer, accessible to every department, and that means it will be easy to tailor to their needs. It means we will be able to monitor demand and reaction to our offers, and instantly change them if they are not well received. It means we can be very proactive in what we offer and how we present product.

Having worked previously in onboard retail, supplier, airline and cabin crew, I am clear that service delivery is absolutely critical to success. The crew members are all part of our customer experience team and drive our vision. We are training 390 onboard assistants who will be trained to work across both onboard and in-station roles so they fully understand and, therefore, can actively support all parts of their passengers' journey.

Full details of the onboard service will be released later in the year. It will include at-seat trolley service and a cafe/bar carriage and it is safe to say it will be a new model of service.

Iryo will initially offer regional services within Spain beginning in the third quarter of 2022. It is 55% owned by regional airline, Air Nostrum, and 45% by Trenitalia. •