Qantas’ new CEO, Vanessa Hudson – who is crewing the cockpit after former boss Alan Joyce jumped ship two months early – has sought the help of Boston Consulting Group (BCG) with assisting the Group’s fractured reputation.
The airline group confirmed on the weekend that it has attempted to accelerate internal programs that will win back disgruntled flyers who have been angered by the airline’s convoluted COVID credit system, high airfares and lacklustre performance.
At the start of this month, Qantas announced that it would reverse its COVID credits policy, allowing people to get refunds and scrapping the 31 December 2023 expiry date altogether. This followed Joyce’s thorough interrogation by a select senate committee where they revealed that Qantas’ claim of $370m of unused credits was actually about $200m higher.
Alongside calling on BCG, Hudson is expected to make an array of key hires as the group looks to heal its reputation following Joyce’s departure. The Australian Financial Review reported that Hudson is looking to hire PwC’s Catherine Walsh for the newly created chief people officer position, which will combine the human resources and industrial relations functions of the business.
Hudson is also looking to replace QantasLink boss John Gissing, who will retire from his position after holding it since April 2012.
Qantas has seen its reputation trashed after the Australian Competition Consumer Commission (ACCC) alleged Qantas engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct, by advertising tickets for more than 8,000 flights that it had already cancelled but not removed from sale. Alongside this, the company has come under fire for its high airfares, role it played in blocking additional capacity by Qatar Airways, high bonuses for its executives and poor performance.
Chair of the ACCC Gina Cass-Gottlieb said she wants Qantas to face a fine of over $250m, the largest ever faced by a company.
(Featured Image: Vanessa Hudson – ABC)
