This is not the title created by myself but quoted from the letter of customer Tran Son Minh to staff member Pham Minh Hang, of the ticket sales and reservation department of VNA’s Northern Branch. Upon reading this letter, I was deeply touched and filled with sympathy for Ms. Ly, who suffers from Crohn – Autoimmune disease. Harboring the natural weight from worrying about her journey, as well as the happiness from the news of her safe arrival in France, Ly’s family was so appreciative of all the things my co-workers had done to assist her.  Frankly, I couldn’t help but cry as I read the letter sent from Tran Son Minh.  What occurrences had inspired one of our customers to write such a touching letter?

Ly enjoyed a Lotusmiles reward ticket with miles deducted from the account of member Tran Minh Son (Ly’s uncle). Due to serious illness, Ly could not be on her flight HAN-CDG on August 22nd, 2019, as reserved. On August 28th, Mr. Minh was extremely worried as he came to the ticket office on Quang Trung Street to meet Ms. Trinh Thanh Hien to change the flight schedule to September 5th. At the time, there were no seats available for Lotusmiles reward tickets on the Sep 5th flight. Although Mr. Minh was not sure that Ly could be on the September 5th flight, Ms. Thanh Hien sent a letter to request SCC to confirm the seat reservation. At the same time, knowing that Ly was suffering from a serious illness and that she would have to carry medicine and medical equipment with her on the flight, Ms. Thanh Hien proactively booked the wheelchair service (WCHS), simultaneously contacting Ms Pham Minh Hang—a staff member with experience serving passengers with special needs—to update the booking details and ensure that the receiving airport would be adequately prepared to provide the necessary services for Ly.

Ms. Thanh Hien and Ms. Minh Hang worked closely with each other. One of them contacted Mr. Minh to ask for medical information; one called the Customer Service Center (responsible for confirming Special Services) to discuss the situation in advance. With the hope of minimizing the time spent going to the ticket office while his family was worried about Ly’s conditions, Ms. Minh Hang and Ms. Thanh Hien provided instructions to their customer on how to fill in the medical information form for hospital confirmation via email and phone call. In the afternoon on September 4th, after having obtained the official go-ahead from doctors, Ly received the confirmation for special services on the Sep the 5th flight and proceeded to have a safe and smooth trip to France.

By listening carefully as well as having a sincere sympathy for the passenger’s family, the support process was handled quickly and effectively. In just a few hours, a solution came to satisfy a perplexed and anxious customer. In this story, the staff’s dedication to their jobs and their creativity in handling the situation truly shinned, directly in-line with the motto “Dedication – Flexibility – Innovation” set by the Northern Region Branch at the beginning of 2019.

Ms. Pham Minh Hang is always full of sympathy and understanding for her customers’ circumstances, providing them with timely and effective support. (Photo: VNA Northern Region Branch)

When I was just about to praise Minh Hang and Thanh Hien, they rebutted modestly by saying that “The customer was moved, so they wrote emotionally as such, but in fact, we didn’t do anything out of the ordinary. We just tried to do our best. When customers deal with these kinds of situations, they are very preplexed and worried, and it is our job to take care of them, calmly instruct them, and enthusiastically support them, then their minds will be at ease.” Yes, how admirable their approach is of “do our best,” “take care of the customer,” and “enthusiastically support them!” This fairy tale has been made from such simple things.

Ms. Trinh Thanh Hien, who is always dedicated to her work, exemplifies the slogan “Dedication – Flexibility – Innovation” set by the Norther Region Branch. (Photo: VNA Northern Region Branch).

I’m also aware that this fairy tale couldn’t have been made without the silent support of Ms. Quynh Giao, and Ms. Thanh Hieu in SCC, who confirmed the seat reservation for the flight. It would be amiss not to mention Ms. Phuong Thao, a staff member at Customer Service Center who confirmed the Special Service, as well as all of the flight attendants and ground services staff at Noi Bai Airport and Charles De Gaule airport.

Nguyen Xuan Nghia – COMM