Data and gen AI: Keys to Air Europa’s digital strategy

Gen AI has become a priority tool across all industries for all types of companies, where up to 40% have a budget or related gen AI initiatives, and 30% believe this technology is disruptive to the business, according to recent data from IDC. But it’s still early days since ChatGPT burst on the scene in 2022. So large corporations are still being put to the test with their implementing processes.

Case in point is Spanish airline Air Europa, even though their longstanding approach to data has given them a jump on applying the technology. Its director of data and analytics, José Carlos Bermejo, explains that a large part of gen AI’s initial benefits is due to the company’s strategic approach, and successful track record, surrounding data. Its implementation of a decentralized model, for instance, stands out. “It gives business areas the agility and autonomy to extract value from information without waiting, without dependencies, and without bottlenecks,” he says. “At the same time, it allows exercising appropriate control and supervision that permits maintaining standards of quality and robustness.”

But it wasn’t just a matter of flipping a switch to make it all happen. To reach desired outcomes, the airline had to work on many fronts, such as the initial sponsorship of the decentralizing program, the definition of the strategy, the involvement of key areas, a tactical selection of technology, and creation of hybrid teams between business and IT.

Once a cohesive plan was implemented, it’s been possible to see the benefits and establish use cases, such as a real-time sales monitoring platform, punctuality analysis or user experience improvements, as well as a long list of new features. “Today we manage more than 300 business intelligence applications and almost 200 datasets in our corporate data catalogue, which are accessed by more than 750 unique users at an average of more than 1,200 sessions per day,” he says. “This reinforces our firm commitment to self-service and decentralized models.”

In the era of gen AI

Bermejo joined Air Europa in 2003, and since then, he’s held various positions of responsibility in the IT department until arriving at his current role in 2016. His main task then was to initiate and consolidate an organizational and cultural change in terms of data management and use so it would become an essential asset for the multinational.

But as innovation accelerated, Bermejo saw that AI was fast becoming a technology the airline had to capitalize on, considering its strategy around data, so he and his team launched a corporate program to implement gen AI solutions adapted to the workplace. With this, he says, they intend for a large part of the staff to have advanced tools to optimize their daily tasks.

“We’ll do this in a progressive way, involving key people within the organization to be in charge of evangelizing and tutoring other users in their departments on these technologies, always relying on use cases and with a very practical approach,” he says. They’re also developing other important initiatives, such as a new virtual assistant that’ll be integrated into the call center and online channels, and others focusing on content creation, interpretation of aeronautical codes and nomenclature, and personalizing trips and experiences.

All of this is being implemented, Bermejo points out, in a safe, ethical, transparent, and efficient manner. “So we must, in turn, monitor its use through different KPIs,” he says.

Maturity and cultural change

In order to explore different use cases around new technologies, it’s necessary to undertake a change in corporate mentality. “Nowadays, no one disputes that data has become a key resource for competitiveness, innovation, and value generation,” says Bermejo. “However, not all companies and public administrations have been able to adapt to this new reality. There’s a big difference between sectors and organizations in terms of the level of maturity of their strategies. Some have opted for digital transformation and data as an essential asset, integrating it into their culture, processes and services. Others, however, are still in the initial stages or haven’t yet defined a clear vision.”

But beyond the technological changes, the biggest challenge of this whole journey is the cultural change itself. At Air Europa, the plan for this was based on several pillars, ranging from establishing a vision and an organizational model, to the creation of training and talent management programs, which involves attracting, training, and retaining the right professionals to manage and analyze data.