Heather Gordon, Legal Director at Martyn Fiddler told us: “I recently had the opportunity to moderate a panel of amazing people in our business aviation industry on the topic of talent and sustainability. The positive feedback received was overwhelming and I thank Katie Bancroft (Jaffa & Co), Gemma Downs (Jetcraft), Chris Anderson-Jones (Flightworx) and Dave Edwards (Royal Aeronautical Society) for their honesty, and sharing their experiences and insight”.
The key takeaways from the session were:
- No matter which generation people joining your business come from, their views and opinions can provide great insight into how the rest of the world sees you.
- Businesses need to visit schools at primary level to encourage the next generation to think about their future career opportunities and which industries are of interest to them.
- Making a business sustainable for its people and the next generation is the responsibility of its leaders. Understanding the value of team members and being challenged to do better is vital to becoming sustainable.
- The new generation is not new. Generations are circular and generation Z is simply a repeat of the same mood and environment your great grandparents were brought into. Rather than resisting, businesses must be open to embracing new ideas and ways of thinking. The new generation may be able to solve the problems we are too close to get perspective on.
- Education about the role of business aviation in society and the benefits it can bring, should start in local communities and at a grass root level. At its heart business aviation is a relationship driven and innovative industry which brings people together.
- The majority of people working in business aviation today ‘fell’ into it. To ensure more people enter business aviation by design, the industry must get face-to-face with those in education and invest time, money, and effort into promoting the roles and benefits it can bring. We need to do more than just discuss the issues at conferences and on panels!
