Letter to LIAT Chairman - August 19 2013

7/27/2019 Letter to LIAT Chairman - August 19 2013

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SecretBay,Tibay,Portsmouth,Dominica 1

August19,2013

Mr.JeanHolder

ChairmanoftheBoardofDirectorsLIAT(1974)LTD

V.C.BirdInternationalAirport

POBox819

Coolidge

Antigua

DearMr.Holder:

Re:Blameless&Shameless

Iattemptedtoreplytoyourlaste-maildatedAugust12th,butthistimemyreplywasreturnedwiththemessage

Thefollowingorganizationrejectedyourmessage:owa.liat.com. Asyouhaveblockedmyabilityto

communicatewithyouviae-mail,Iwillrespondthroughthisletter.

Asareference,Ihaveattachedoure-mailexchanges,includingmyrejectedreply,whichyounevergot.Thisisnot

toexposeorridiculeyou.Infactmanymayseewisdominyourpointsandargumentsandcometoyourdefense.

Ihoweverdonotseewisdom,Iseeavoidance,apathyandaclingingtothenotionthatLIATsmanagementisnot

incontroloforresponsibleforwhatisprobablyLIATsworstoperationalcrisisinits56yearhistory.Worstisthat

youtakecomfortinanassumptionthatweareallbetteroffwithLIATthanwithoutit,soweshouldeffectivelyput

upandshutup.Thatis,inessence,yourattitudeandyourresponse.Anddespiteyourpromisetoreplytomy

letterinsomedetailintheverynearfuture,todateyouhaveaddressednoneoftheissuesraised.

AddresstheIssues,Please

IrefertomyopenletterdatedAugust11

thtitledHeadsMustRollandaskthequestionsagain:

DidLIATappropriatelyplanforthefactthatpilotshadtobetakenofflineforATRtraining?

DidLIATappropriatelyplanforthefactthatpilotstrainedontheATRscouldnotflyDash8s?

WhydidLIATreduceitsDash8fleetbeforetheATRswerefullyoperational?

Whywassuchahigh-stakesventureundertakenduringthepeaksummerseason?

Wasthereacontingencyplanforthingsnotgoingperfectly?

YourCEO,inwhatamountstoaletterofapologytoLIATcustomers,publishedintheTrinidadGuardianonAugust

16th,speaksofsevereweatherconditionsandairportlimitations.Amazingly,theletterendswithwewillbe

openandhonestincommunicatingwithyouasweaddressyourconcerns.

LetmeaskadirectandopenquestiontoyouandyourCEO:OftheLIATflightsthathavebeendelayedor

cancelledsinceJune1st2013untiltoday,pleasetellmewhat%areduetosevereweatherconditionsorairport

limitations?

Anotheropenquestionandthisoneforthebenefitofyourultimateshareholders,thattaxpayersofthe

Caribbean:Whathasthiscrisis,sinceJune1st,costLIATintermsofhavingtopayforpassengerovernights,food,

groundtransportation,charteredflightsfromseveralotherCaribbeancarrierstomovepassengersaround,

overtimehours,additionalcontractedcrewandsoforth?


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Andthenthereisofcoursetheunimaginableeconomiccosttotheregionasaresultofthisdisaster.Imaginea

classactionlawsuitwhereeveryoneclaimedforlosttime,missedconnectionsandmentalanguish.Imaginethe

tourismindustrystakeholdersofthevariousislandsbeingpartofthesuitandclaiminglostrevenue?

ArecentcouplevisitingDominicaforavacationexperiencewhosufferedgreatlyatthehandsofLIATwroteusthe

following:Wetrulyenjoyedtheislandandwehavebeentomanyoftheneighboringislandsaswell.EachhasbeenadifferentandequallypleasantexperiencebutwewillnotbebackifLIATistheairlinewehavetofly.The

peopleoftheIslandsmaynothaveachoicebutwedoandourchoicewillbetogosomewherewhereweare

treatedbetterbytheairlineandhaveafightingchanceofgettingtoourdestinationsreasonablyontime.

Multiplythisbythousandsandthousands.Doyoubegintounderstandthedamageandwhatisatstake?

YourCEO,thekeydecisionmakeratLIATresponsibleforplanningtheDash8toATRtransition,whohasfinally

apologizedbutwhohastakennodirectresponsibilityfortheplanningandimplementationerrorsthathave

occurred,continuestoholdhisposition.

MyletterofAugust11thalsooutlinedthreeincidents/areaswhereIbelieveLIATspublicrelationshasbeen

disastrous.YouronlyresponsetothishasbeenIagreethatinthecircumstancesourPRhasnotbeenaseffective

asitshouldbe.YourCommercial&CustomerExperienceDirector,thedepthofyourindifferencetowhatyour

customersaresuffering,continuestoholdherposition.

IfyouareunabletoforcethenecessaryexecutivechangesatLIATthenyoumuststepuptotakeresponsibilityfor

thecurrentcrisis.

Napoleononcesaidthat"togetpoweryouneedtodisplayabsolutepettiness;toexercisepower,youneedto

showtruegreatness."Iaskyoutoputthepettinessaside,showtruegreatness,andresign.Resignbecauseitis

thehonorablethingtodo,resignbecauseitwillsetanexampleofaccountabilitytothesittingandfutureDirectors

andExecutives,resignbecausethepeopleoftheCaribbeanandthevisitorstotheCaribbeanneedtoseethatafter

themorethantwomonthsofsufferingthatLIAThasputthemthroughthatatleastonepersonstandstall,takes

theblameandfeelstheshame.

InClosing

Letsrollbacktheclock.ItisJune,2013,andLIATslatesteditionofZingMagazinehasjusthitthebackpocketsof

passengerseats.YourCommercial&CustomerExperienceDirectoropenstheissuewith:Wearelookingforward

toafantasticsummerofservice.WehopeyouverealisedbynowthatLIATisaboutonething:YOU!Yes,thisyear

istheYearoftheCustomerandwewanttomakeyoufeelspecialbygivingyoutheserviceyoudeserve.

Howdidwegetfromthere,tohere?Ohyes,right,badweather,airportlimitations.

Itistimetocare.Itistimeforchange.Headsmustroll.

RespectfullyYours,

GregorNassief

Owner/DirectorSecretBay

ExecutiveChairmanFortYoungHotel


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ps: TothestaffofLIAT.

Arecentvisitorwrotetous,IfthegovernmentsoftheIslandwhoowntheairlinerequiredthatsenior

managementspendsometimeatthecountersdealingwithpassengersitwouldatleastgivethese

managersatrueincentivetoimprovebecausetheissuestemsfromthetopandnotthelowerlevel

employees.

ThefewmomentsofcalmIexperiencedinmyowntribulationsoverthelasttwomonthsweregivento

mebyamemberofLIATstaffatthecheck-incounterinDominicaandanairstewardessonaflightfrom

Trinidad.Acaringattitude,acaringsmileandclearcommunication.Ithankthemforthis.

IappealtoLIATsstaffnottofalltemptationtoworkstoppagesandstrikes.Youwillsimplybemovingthe

victimsyourcustomers,LIATsreasonforexistencefromthetorturechambertotheelectricchair.

Youwillbejoiningyourmanagementinnotcaring.Instead,jointhecallforanexecutiveshake-upat

LIAT.

Itistimetocare.Itistimeforchange.Headsmustroll.

cc: LIATBoardofDirectors

PrimeMinistersofAntigua&Barbuda,Dominica,BarbadosandStVincent&theGrenadines


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===EMAILEXCHANGEBETWEENDOMINICAHOTELIER&LIATCHAIRMAN===

===FIRSTE-MAILBELOWISTHEREJECTEDE-MAILTHATNEVERREACHEDTHECHAIRMAN===

===e-mailaddressesandtelephonenumbersremoved===

From:GregorNassiefDate:Tuesday,August13,201310:11PM

To:JeanHolder

Subject:Re:LettertotheLIATBoardofDirectors

DearMr.Holder,

Myfamilyarrivedlastnight,andIwasveryhappythattheirarrivalwasonly26hourslateunderthecircumstances.Reallyno

sarcasmIwasrelieved.Manyhavesufferedmuchworse.Thanksforyournoteofconcern.Itisappreciated.

Ithinkoure-mailexchangesarenotproductive,anditisbetterwespeak.Thereisasignificantdisconnect.Fromyour

perspective,yourexamplebelowoftheATRbeingdownformaintenanceprovesyourpointthatLIATmanagementisnot

responsiblewhileIbelieveitperfectlyprovesmypointthatLIATmanagementisresponsible.Asstatedinmyletter,hadLIAT

plannedallofthisproperly,hadyoucontractedpilotstosupportthetransition,hadyounotreturnedDash8sbeforethenewfleetwasoperational,hadyouputinplacesolidcontingencyplans,thensuchaneventaswhatyououtlinebelowwouldnot

bringtheairlinetoitsknees.Yourexecutivesignoredtheadviceofmany,includingyourpilots,butyourefusetodealwith

theseissues.ProperplanningwouldhavecostLIATmuchlessandwhatthiscrisisisnowcostingyou.Whoisresponsible?

Istillawaitadetailedresponsetomyletter.

IfyouarenotpreparedtoforceexecutivechangesatLIATthenyoushouldgracefullystepdownandtakeresponsibilityforthe

crisis,andletsomeonewhothinkstheycanmakeadifferencestepup.IfIammanagingabusinessincrisis,andIdonotfeelI

canputthingsright,thateverythingthatgoeswrongisbeyondmycontrolandabilitytoimprove,thenIaminthewrongplace,

andIneed,forthebenefitofthebusinessanditscustomers,tostepaside.

Yourstatementbelowisinteresting:"Ihopethatwhenyourturnforjudgementcomesyoufindajudgewithmoremilkof

humankindnessthanyouseemtodemonstrate."Ifyou,yourCEOandyourchiefcommercialofficerhadsuchhumankindness,

youwouldstepasideoutofconsiderationforyourcustomers.Whereisyourkindnesstothem?Asformykindness,Ihadalot

ofit,morethanmost,untilLIATsuckeditoutofmeconsistently,dependablyandruthlessly.

Mytelephonenumberisbelowforfuturecommunicationifyouwishtospeak,ormeet.Iammorethanwilling.Thisisnot

personal.Isimplybelievethatthepeopleoftheregion,andourvisitorstotheregion,deservebettermuchbetter.Itistime

thatLIAT'smanagementisheldaccountable.

Gregor

1767XXXXXXX

From:JeanHolderDate:Tuesday,August13,20132:32PM

To:GregorNassief

Subject:RE:LettertotheLIATBoardofDirectors

DearMrNassief

LetmebeginasispropertoexpressmysincereregretfortheexperiencesofyourwifeandfamilyandIverymuch

hopethattheyhavereachedhome.Iunderstandyourconcernandevenyouranger.


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Wearenotinanydisagreementsaboutthebroadprinciplesofmanagementandholdingstaffatanylevel

accountable.ThereisalotofworktobedoneatLIATandchangestobemade.Moreworkisgoingoninthisarea

thanyouseemtoknow.

Ialsoknowthevalueofencouragingstaffandnotpubliclybashingthem,especiallywhentheyarebeingattached

oneveryside.

Weseem,howeve,tohavesomedifficultyagreeingonwhatsituationsare,andwhatarenot,causedby

incompetenceandatwhatlevel.

Letusexaminearealandexistingcase.AnLIATairlinewithbrandnewenginesand68seatsarrivedinBarbadoson

Sunday.Thatairlinecanmove68personsatatimeandisprogrammedtodo6sectors.Itisquitecapable

thereforeofmakingasignificantcontributiontoreducingthebacklogofpassengersalloverthesystem-northand

south-causedbyotherbreakdowns.

.

Whenitlandsthereisapuffofsmokeinoneengineandoilisleaking.Anexaminationbyexpertsrevealsthata

newengineisneeded.IthastobeflownintoBarbadosandtheplanecannotbereadyforre-enteringthe

operationuntilnextSaturday17thAugust.Incompetence?No.Verybadluck.

LIATdoeseverythinginitspowertodealwiththebacklog,includingwetleasingaircraft.Eventhisprovesdifficult

asallairlinesarestretchedatthistime.

Theimpactofthis,addedtolesstraumaticincidents,isthatseveralpeopleremainedstrandedbothatBarbados

andatotherdestinations.Thestruggletomovethemcontinuesbutthereisprogressbeingmade.

OncepeoplearestrandedyouseemtojudgethecauseasmajorincompetencebyLIATsmanagementandwish

theaxetofall.

Ihopethatwhenyourturnforjudgementcomesyoufindajudgewithmoremilkofhumankindnessthanyou

seemtodemonstrate.

HaveaGoodDay

BestRegards

JeanHolder

From: Gregor Nassief

Sent: Monday, August 12, 2013 1:12 PM

To: Jean Holder

Subject: Re: Letter to the LIAT Board of Directors

DearMr.Holder,

Thanksforyourreply.Atthismoment,mywifeSandra,andourtwoChildrenGaston(8)andManuela(6)arestuckinSt.

Marteenastheflight(LI509)wascancelledlastnight.Justamomentago,LIATinformedherthatshecouldtraveltonightto

Antigua,andthenhopefullytoDominicaonTuesday.Whatshouldhavebeena1hourflightisunfoldingintoa36+hour

journey.Thisishappeningeveryday,dayafterdaytohundreds,possiblythousandsofpassengers.

MylettertoyouandtheboarddealswithexecutiveincompetenceatLIATandtheissueofaccountability.ThisisthematterI

wouldlikeaddressedbyyouandtheboard.Theissuesarespecificallyoutlinedintheletter.Doyouholdyourmanagement

accountableforthecurrentsituationaswellasthePRblunders?Andifsowhatwillbedoneaboutit?


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IamnotquestioningthedecisiontobuynewATRsnoramIdiscussingwhetherDominicaandLIATarebetteroffwithor

withouteachother.

AslongastheboardandtheexecutivebelievesthatLIAT'sproblemsarebeyondtheircontrol,andthattheregiononbalanceis

betteroffwithLIAT,thenwewillgetnowhere.Weneedaboardandanexecutiveteamthatfeelthattheycanmakea

differenceandtheycanoperateanefficientairlinethatprovidesgreatcustomerservice.Weallunderstandweatherdelays,andthefactthatsafetytrumpsallelse.Wedonotunderstandexecutiveincompetencelikewhathasbeendemonstratedover

thepast8weeks.ThisiswhatIwouldlikeaddressed.

MychoiceshouldnotwewhetherIwanttolivewithLIATorwithoutit,itshouldbewhetherIwanttolivewithanairlinethat

providesdisastrousserviceoronewhatprovidesgreatservice.IalongwiththeentireCaribbeanofcoursechoosethelatter.

Asyouknow,anyturnaroundatanyorganization,privateorpublic,beginsatthetop.

Iwouldbehappytospeakwithyouaswelltodiscusstheissues.

Regards,

Gregor

From:JeanHolder

Date:Monday,August12,20139:19AM

To:GregorNassief

Subject:RE:LettertotheLIATBoardofDirectors

DearMrNassief

Iwishatthistimetoacknowledgereceiptofyouremailof11August2013andtheletterattached.

Iintendtoreplytoitinsomedetailintheverynearfuture.

First,however,Iwantedtoapologizewithoutdelayfortheproblemsfacedbyyouandyourcustomersandtoany

onewhohasbeeninconveniencedbyLIATspresentdifficulties.

Havingbeeninthisbusinessfirstfor15yearsasHeadoftheCaribbeanTourismResearchanddevelopment

Centre,thenanother15asHeadoftheCaribbeanTourismOrganizationandalmost10asChairmanofLIAT,I

appreciatethatthecustomerisalwaysrightandIapologizeifforanyreasonwhateverLIAThasnotbeenableto

deliverwhatitpromised.WEarehardatworktodealwiththepresentdifficultiesandtodeliverabetterservice.

ImentionmyexperiencebecauseIamnostrangertoDominicaschallengesoversome40yearswithtourismand

airtransportationandamwillingtohaveeitheraprivateorapublicdiscussionaboutitwithyou.Inexperiencing

thedifficultiesyoumentionitiseasytoforgetthatLIAThasstuckwithDominicawhenceallothershavefledformanydecadesandthatinmorerecenttimesasAmericanEaglehasleftLIAThassuppliedtheconnectiontoSan

Juanthushelpingtomaintaintheconnectionwiththestudents-alifelinetoDominica.

TheargumentsyoupresentedabouttheATRandthetimingofitsintroductionsoundveryfamiliartomeandthis

isnotthefirsttimenoryouthefirstsourcefromwhichIhaveheardthem,almostwordforword.Thereareother

technicalargumentsforacontraryposition.

Moreover,unlessyouaredealingwiththesematterseveryday,itisimpossibletofullyunderstandthechaos


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whichiscausedinacomplicatednetworklikeLIAT,ifatthebeginningofeveryday3or4planesofyourrelatively

smallfleetbreakdownandthrowsouttheschedule.Recoveryisdifficult.ThishashappenedconsistentlyatLIAT.I

noticedthatinyourletterthereisnomentionofthetimesthatourpilotswhomaketheverychallenginglandings

atDominicahavetocontendwithweatherandsometimeshavetodiverttoanotherairportforthesafetyofthe

passengers.IagreethatinthecircumstancesourPRhasnotbeenaseffectiveasitshouldbe.

Thequestiontoyouis,wouldyoutaketheresponsibilityofwaitinguntilthereisamajordisasterandpeopledie,

toreplacetheoldplanes?Youfortunatelydonothavetomakethechoice.

Finally,IfLIATdidnotflytoDominicaatallwouldyoubebetteroff?

Letuscontinuetospeak,privatelyifyouwish,orinpublic.IbelieveyouwillfindthatonbalanceLIAThasdone

Dominicamoregoodthanharm.

BestRegards

JeanHolder

From: Gregor Nassief

Sent: Sunday, August 11, 2013 9:30 PM

To: Jean Holder

Subject: Letter to the LIAT Board of Directors

Mr.Holder,

PleasefindattachedalettertotheLIATBoardofDirectors.

Itisbeingforwardedtothemedia.

ThedamagethathasbeendonetotheregionandespeciallytoDominicaoverthelast2monthsisextensive.

ItisacalltoactionforyouandyourBoardtoholdyourexecutivesaccountablefortheiractionsandIhopeitistakenseriously

andactedupon.

BestRegards,

GregorNassief

Owner/DirectorSecretBay

ExecutiveChairmanFortYoungHotel

Letter to LIAT Chairman - August 19 2013

Documents

Transcript of Letter to LIAT Chairman - August 19 2013