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You can learn a lot about a company’s direction by looking at the roles it’s hiring for. As for American Airlines, one of the most notable openings right now is a director for the AAdvantage® program. Whoever steps into this role will play a big part in shaping the program’s future.
The job posting is brand new, but we're already wondering what changes lie ahead. Here’s what might be coming and why this role will be so influential.
American Airlines Is Recruiting a New AAdvantage Program Director
If you’ve ever dreamed of running the American Airlines AAdvantage program and have a bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, strategy, or a related field, along with airline experience and at least seven years of leadership, now’s your chance to apply. You'll have the unique opportunity to manage all things AAdvantage.
The responsibilities outlined in the posting — from shaping the value of the AAdvantage mileage currency and partner network to enhancing member benefits and expanding the program’s reach — clearly show just how influential this position will be.
What changes can we expect?
In short, it's reasonable to expect changes to the AAdvantage program at some point in the wake of hiring a new director. Maybe not right away, but likely in the intermediate future. And those changes could affect the following:
- AAdvantage elite status: The job posting tasks the new director with deepening member engagement and strengthening customer relationships. The airline’s most loyal customers are its elites, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see changes to elite benefits in the future.
- Co-branded credit cards: Late last year, Citi announced it would take over the Barclays co-branded AAdvantage credit card back book. While we don’t yet know exactly what the card landscape will look like once Citi becomes the sole issuer, the new director will almost certainly play a role in shaping that process.
- Value of AAdvantage miles and partner ecosystem: For those who like to earn and redeem AAdvantage miles, the way the new director approaches the program’s value proposition will be worth paying close attention to. The miles and the partner network are some of AAdvantage’s competitive advantages, and time will tell whether the program doubles down on these strengths, reverses course, or stays put.
- Promotions: The job description specifically calls out responsibility for crafting ad hoc promotions. This ties closely to another responsibility — enhancing customer targeting — so it’s possible we’ll see more personalized offers going forward. Hopefully, they’ll be rewarding ones.
All told, a lot could come out of this. As someone who’s participated in AAdvantage and made a concerted effort to earn elite status over the past several years, I’m especially interested in whether the program can rise to the level of Atmos Rewards. Particularly after recent changes, Alaska's program is arguably more rewarding for AA flyers than AAdvantage itself.
But given that one of the new director’s responsibilities is to “define and evolve the strategic direction of the AAdvantage program,” there’s good reason to believe positive changes could be ahead. And it's possible the right changes could even be enough to bring some disgruntled former AAdvantage elites back into the fold.
Our Take
American Airlines is hiring a new director for the AAdvantage program. It’s a significant role, and the person selected will have incredible influence over how the program changes (for better or worse) in the years ahead. That said, it’s unlikely we’ll see immediate changes, as the posting is brand new and it will take time for the new hire to get up to speed.
But with competing programs like Alaska Airlines Atmos Rewards raising the bar recently, we’re hopeful the next director takes AAdvantage in the same direction. It would be far more exciting to report on new benefits and improvements than on cutbacks and dissipating value.
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