Back in May, American announced that Chief Commercial Officer Vasu Raja would be departing the airline in June (Translation: he had butchered the program to the point that his services were no longer needed). This was due, in part, to his failed strategy around the AAdvantage Business program. Now, American is making updates to the program and rolling back many of these changes.
One of the main changes that occurred under Raja’s leadership was the practice of trying to force business travelers to book directly with the airline instead of through third parties. This was done by eliminating access to the lowest fare buckets and removing mileage earnings from tickets sold through agencies that didn’t meet the airline’s stringent criteria.
Now, the airline is back to providing commissions on premium fares booked through agencies and are working to rebuild their staff that was gutted in the process. American also sent an email to customers outlining the changes for the business and business travelers.
The bulk of the changes affect the business side of things. American outlined the following items in their email to customers in the AAdvantage Business program:
- Beginning today, companies can earn AAdvantage miles anywhere that business travel is booked, including through travel agencies. Companies can use their AAdvantage miles for flights, lounge access, seat upgrades, hotels, rental cars and more.
- A dedicated AAdvantage Business customer support team is now available between 7:00a and 7:00p CT Monday through Saturday. The customer support team also has a dedicated phone line, (877) 229-8278, for AAdvantage Business customers.
- As noted by Gary Leff, the last four digits of the number just happen to spell VASU, which I’m sure is just a coincidence.
The new customer service phone number for @AmericanAir AAdvantage Business is 877-229-VASU.
— gary leff (@garyleff) July 16, 2024
Random chance, or someone taking a piss?
Adding actual phone customer service for the small business program is part of reversing the Vasu era. https://t.co/tLCoKvzoLJ
Later in the year, American plans to roll out even more updates including the ability to :
- Redeem and manage miles directly from your business account on aa.com. The ability to transfer miles to any member, which they can redeem for hotels, cars and more.
- Customize payment options for your travelers by storing company cards in your business account for easier checkout on aa.com and the American app.
- Set company travel policies and customize by team or traveler.
- Manage shared Trip Credits for use across the business and redeem for any registered traveler. In addition, non-refundable tickets are now credited back to the business account for use on future travel.
- Name change waivers will be available for all program members on agency bookings, allowing the flexibility to transfer tickets between travelers.
For business travelers, they can also earn American AAdvantage loyalty points regardless of where their business travel is booked.
Overall, these all seem like positive changes to the program and represent a complete 180 from the direction the airline was headed under Vasu Raja. Time will tell if the updates to the AAdvantage Business program will draw disgruntled businesses back to American. At least this seems to be a step in the right direction.
Summary
A month after Chief Operating Officer Vasu Raja’s departure, American has made massive updates to its AAdvantage Business program. The changes appear to be positive overall and American is hoping this will get more business travelers back on their airplanes. The airline appears to have even taken a subtle dig at the formed COO with the program’s new customer service phone number.
