Delta Premium Sales and Service Customer Engagement Centers Earn J.D. Power Certification for Third Consecutive Year

Company is first airline to ever achieve J.D. Power Contact Center Certification

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Oct 31, 2016, 01:00 ET

ATLANTA, Oct. 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Delta Air Lines' (NYSE: DAL) Premium Sales and Service Customer Engagement Centers have been recognized for customer satisfaction excellence by the J.D. Power Certified Contact Center Program^SM in the live phone channel for the third year in a row.

Delta is the first airline to ever achieve J.D. Power Contact Center Certification.

Delta Premium Sales and Service Customer Engagement Centers Earn J.D. Power Certification for Third Consecutive Year

"This honor from J.D. Power reflects the spirit of Delta people," said Ed Bastian, Delta's CEO.
"On behalf of more than 80,000 Delta employees, I want to congratulate and thank all of our Reservation Sales and Customer Care colleagues. Because of their dedication, our reputation for unmatched customer service continues to distinguish us from our competitors year after year."

The certification signifies that Delta's Premium Sales and Service team, which provides assistance to customers including SkyMiles Diamond, Platinum and Gold Medallion members, has attained the high benchmark established by J.D. Power for contact center customer service and operational performance.

As part of its evaluation, J.D. Power conducted a random survey of customers who contacted Delta's Customer Engagement Centers in Chisholm, Minn.; Cincinnati; Minneapolis/St. Paul and Salt Lake City, where Customer Experience Specialists assist with Premium Sales and Service calls.

Delta also had to pass an operational audit of several call center industry best practices, including processes related to recruiting, training, performance management and quality assurance.

"We are honored to once again achieve this respected recognition from J.D. Power based on the exceptional service provided by our Customer Experience Specialists," said Charisse Evans, Delta's Vice President – Reservation Sales and Customer Care. "The certification is a demonstration of our commitment to listen, care and connect with customers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. I am extremely proud of our dedicated colleagues who, along with the support of all Delta people worldwide, continue to exceed our customers' expectations."

To earn J.D. Power certification, a contact center must perform within the top 20 percent of customer service scores, which are based on benchmarks established in J.D. Power's
cross-industry customer satisfaction research.

J.D. Power said its research indicated, "The Delta Premium Sales and Service team particularly excelled in six attributes of the customer's experience: ease of understanding the phone menu instructions; courtesy; concern; knowledge of the representative; promptness in speaking to a person; and timeliness of resolution. These results are indicative of the outstanding customer experience delivered by the Delta Premium Service and Sales team."

For additional information on the J.D. Power Certified Contact Center Program, visit www.jdpower.com.

About Delta
Delta Air Lines serves nearly 180 million customers each year. In 2016, Delta was named to Fortune's top 50 Most Admired Companies in addition to being named the most admired airline for the fifth time in six years. Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for an unprecedented five consecutive years. With an industry-leading global network, Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 319 destinations in 57 countries on six continents. Headquartered in Atlanta, Delta employs more than 80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more than 800 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam global alliance and participates in the industry's leading transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia as well as a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than 15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York-JFK and LaGuardia, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products and services, and technology to enhance the customer experience in the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com, Twitter @DeltaNewsHub, Google.com/+Delta, and Facebook.com/delta.