Yes, customer service is or is not built in and I also agree that the 'Putting People First' programme was excellent. I suspect that the turn-over of staff since then (17 years) means that the core is lost. I expect that the HR folks doing the recruitment have been told to keep costs down too of course, additionally, they may not know what they are doing!
Above all, I trust the flight and cabin crews of BA and am always pleased to be on their a/c. My argument has only ever been with their mgmt which is why they have been my second LH choice for the past 20 years. However, I travelling with them in three weeks (JNB) and will sample their WT+ for the first time and I shall let you know.