Beyond The Transaction

BY AIDEN JEWELLE GONZALES

When I first met Prom Sirisant, the Thailand Country Manager at American Express , I found him an intriguing study in contrasts – Thai-born but educated in four continents; completely self-assured but still humble; assured in his vision for the company and intimately familiar with the premium segment, yet someone whose favourite part-time job memory was making coffee for customers in a café. This, I soon learn, was a reflection of American Express itself: renowned as one of the biggest players in the premium payments space, yet no task is too small to go above and beyond their customer’s expectations; with over 140 million cards around the world, and yet a company that values connecting with each and every customer on a human level.

It was no surprise, therefore, to learn that this “locking in” of fundamentals was what drew Prom to American Express in the first place: “Their values aligned almost perfectly with my family values,” he reminisces fondly. “My father always told us to have three things: a good heart; high integrity; and strong determination, that is, work hard. These were always in the back of my mind. American Express has those values, what we call our Blue Box values. We want people to do what’s right (have a good heart), achieve high excellence (have strong determination), and have good leadership behaviour, which requires authenticity and integrity.”

Having started his education at Bangkok Patana School before going to a boarding school in England, then his undergraduate in Macquarie University, an MBA at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and his Certificate of Management Excellence (CME) in Harvard Business School, Prom talks about how his “hunger for experiences” started young, from learning how to adapt to a different culture, to working a range of jobs while he was studying and during school breaks, including working for the United Nations in New York. He brings this hunger for more to American Express and to Thailand itself, vowing to make a positive impact on both the company and the country. “I love this country,” he says, simply. “While I’ve lived abroad, I am from Thailand, and I want to ensure that I help the country while I help the company.” And this, he posits, starts with an attitude of genuine care.

He spoke to Masala further about how he wants to position American Express as the leader in Thailand’s premium segment by going above and beyond for their customers, and ways that they are implementing these values on the ground, every single day.

American Express has positioned itself as one of the most renowned brands in the world, and one that truly understands affluent customers, not the least through the values you’ve mentioned above. What does this look like in Thailand, and what are the unique and exclusive strategies that have been implemented here?

When you’re in the premium segment, it’s very important to have eyes and ears on your customers, as their behaviour changes all the time. It’s important to have your pulse on what the customer is looking for, because our strategy is not just to meet those expectations, but to exceed them, and go above and beyond what they want.

Some of those strategies include the events that we hold, during which we try to engage all five senses of all our customers who attend these events. For example, when they get out of the car, there’s someone waiting for them – what is the greeting word used? When they enter the space, what do they see, smell, and hear? We believe that when you touch on all five senses, you build memories, and that’s how people recognise American Express. We’ve even designed our own scent! It’s the little touches that count.

In the payments industry, when you’re focused on the premium segment, it’s important to provide that personal touch to differentiate yourself from the others. Part of that is ensuring that every time we pick up the phone, we show our customers on the line that we really care for them. Genuine care matters a lot. While customers prefer certain things to be automated, they still want to talk to an actual person; they want to rest assured that someone is taking care of things for them. That’s the art of looking after the premium segment.

What notable trends in consumer behaviour have you observed in Thailand, and how is American Express adapting its offerings to meet these evolving preferences?

We always have a finger on the pulse to keep tabs on any shifts in customer trends. While we’re in the payment space, many of our product positionings are all about travel. We’ve recently done a survey on how people travel in the premium sector, and we’ve discovered that consumer behaviour has changed drastically when compared to pre-pandemic times and now. One thing we’re seeing more than ever is that people are taking shorter trips, but more frequently; as opposed to when revenge travel was big right after COVID-19 – people were going on longer trips for a further distance, but less frequently.

Shorter trips mean our customers are travelling around Asia more, and they’re optimising their weekends and long weekends. We’ve realised that Thais are all about optimising the opportunity to experience Asia, so we want to emphasise that we have great networks that we can leverage within key Asian cities, from Singapore, to Hong Kong, Tokyo, and more.

Because we focus on global travel, we have a lot of data points on the preferred places to go in these cities, so we make those recommendations, and we have travel consultants who can give guidance and even plan itineraries for our card members. This is all part of our customer experience. 

You’ve mentioned that while the personal touch is paramount, customers these days also expect a certain amount of automation, and digital technology is at the forefront of change in the financial services industry. How is American Express leveraging digital technologies to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency in Thailand?

For American Express, technology is extremely important because we are in the payments space. In Thailand, we have a mobile app called Amex Experiences. There, customers can see exactly what kind of value added experiences they can get in other countries, in a way that’s simplified and easy. We want to make sure things come to our customers seamlessly, and that everything is customised. For example, when you’re driving down the highway here and are bombarded with all the billboards, you may feel overwhelmed. We make sure that the customer is at the centre of everything we do, we screen out all the noise, and deliver offers and services that are relevant to them.

As you’ve mentioned, American Express focuses on exceptional experiences for the premium market. What are the ways that the company goes above and beyond in customer service?

We can proudly say that we’re the best in class in this field within Thailand, across not only financial services industries, but also across many other industries. We have very good teams on the phone, and it’s all about the mindset and the genuine care for our consumers.

As an example, a businessman once told me about an experience with American Express that really impressed him. He’d gone for a meeting at a corporate office in Singapore, and he’d gone to the bathroom in a slightly remote area of the building. The lock had jammed somehow, and no one could hear him and get him out. He didn’t know who to call, so he called the Thai phone number on the back of his American Express card. Our team here swiftly managed to find out
where he was, get in touch with someone who could open the door for him and get him out. At the end of the day, we want to ensure that we take care of our customers end to end.

I hear stories like these from customers all the time, and it shows how we truly back our customers beyond just facilitating transactions. It’s not just about payments, it’s about going above and beyond for our customers. Because we’ve designed the customer journey purposefully where our card members will almost immediately get to a human when they call, it’s important that our colleagues know this mindset from day one. It’s not just about being as quick as possible on the phone and hitting the numbers, but it’s about customer satisfaction. It’s about being proud of making this micro-difference to people’s lives one by one.

Can you share some recent or upcoming partnerships that American Express Thailand has entered, and how these collaborations are expected to benefit your customers?

This is very important for our business. The most recent partnership that we’ve done is with Rolls Royce MOTOR CARS,
which needs no introduction. In partnerships like this, we try to merge the interests of both brands so we can give the best experience to our customers. For example, what do our customers want with a Rolls Royce partnership? They want to see exclusive models before anyone else, to make reservations before others, and have something special and exclusively theirs. We’re also holding more experiential- based events that capture all five senses. The last one was at Riverdale Marina, a 45-minute drive from Bangkok, which has a golf course attached to it. We took our clients on a sunset cruise on an Azimut Yacht from Chris-Craft, followed by a Michelin-starred dinner from IGNIV; we gave them the full luxury experience to show them what American Express is about. 

One thing our customers really enjoy is meeting each other. These are just some of the reasons our events and partnerships with some of the top names across different industries are so important – for example, we have partnerships with Ferrari,BVLGARI, and many more across high fashion, the automotive industry, hospitality, restaurants, and more. Another tailored event that we hold each year is “Sincerely Yours”, our signature event for our absolute top customers, to say thank
you for their membership, and have them experience the brand first-hand. It’s also achance for our team to meet with customers face-to-face. As I’ve said earlier, it’s always important to have your ears on the ground and constantly listen to customers so we can continuously improve, and there’s no better way than for us to sit down and have dinner with them. 

Another partnership programme that may be very exciting for many in the Thai-Indian community is your partnerships with some of the biggest international school names in Thailand’s educational space. Can you share a little more about that?

This partnership is very strategic as well. We have an instalment plan product called ‘Wise Pay’ where our card members have the flexibility to repay in instalments over a period of time. This is something that we’ve found a lot of parents who send their kids to international schools love, and we’ve had many requests to expand our base to more and more international schools. Education is an expense that parents will generally want to pay, so options for how they can make those payments are always welcomed.

You’ve mentioned that the COVID-19 pandemic changed consumer consumption in many ways, as well as the ways that companies do business. What are some learnings that you’ve made during this period of change, and consequently, the areas that you hope to evolve in the future?

Speaking from the point of view of someone who manages the business here, we never thought that people could work from home and still deliver on all their work objectives. During the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting our colleagues’ safety was priority number one, so we asked everyone to work from home. But we also wondered if we could still operate a business that way. We learned very quickly how to ensure that we maintain productivity even when we don’t come to the office. Fast forward to today, we have adopted the hybrid way of working. Believe it or not, our productivity has not dropped, and we have built an even better work culture. 

Younger generations come into the workforce and have certain expectations of flexibility and freedom. It goes back to what I said before – it’s important who you bring into the company because you want to ensure that they take accountability and have commitment. We don’t want to constantly watch colleagues as they work, we want to give them the flexibility to do the work in the way that they think is most effective, but to make sure that they deliver. It’s about setting high expectations, and all of us must commit to excellence – but how you get there is up to you. You need to build trust with your team, set expectations, and be extremely clear, because you’re about to give them a lot of freedom. I’m very pleased to say that American Express has built this into our culture. In my opinion, if you really focus on business results and the happiness of your people, there’s no need to have them come into the office five days a week. 

Having said that, you need to make sure that there’s a strong culture within the company, and sometimes that requires colleagues to come together. When people come to the office, it’s about collaboration and sharing
ideas.

On a more personal note, what are your goals and convictions as Country Manager? Are there any country-specific changes that you hope to bring about within your tenure?

I have huge dreams for American Express Thailand! [Laughs] Firstly, I want to reiterate that I love this country. I want to make sure that my impact works both ways – it helps the company, but it also helps the country. The way I look at it, American Express has a global reach, with over 140 million cards around the world. Thailand being a country where we rely on tourism, I want to make sure that American Express has a great network to bring our card members into Thailand and
that they enjoy the country, and that will help our economy. And I also want to ensure that American Express becomes known as the most reputable premium brand within Thailand. 

What are the key priorities and goals for American Express Thailand in the next five years, and how do you plan to achieve them amidst the dynamic business environment?

We’re doubling down on the premium segment. We’ve had great traction in the last few years, but we want to keep on going.
We aspire to be the leader in the premium segment by making sure we are relevant to the customers in that segment and making sure our product resonates with them. Once we can do that, I think we can fulfil all our goals.

Finally, it goes back to our company vision. A fundamental part of how we operate is to provide the world’s best customer experience every day. I want to make sure that everyone in our company continues to deliver that to our customers, and that we do it every single day.