The Golden Rules of Effective Advocacy

With three decades in Washington, I have learned a few things along the way — you learn more when you listen and your reputation is the one thing that counts the most in this town. Are you honest? Are you respectful of others’ views? Do you represent your industry’s positions well? Are you tuned to political realities; and do you engage in the political process?

To develop an association into a reputable resource for key policymakers, the ongoing process of relationship building must be among the top of its list of priorities. In many ways, it is similar to what you do in running your business every day. Getting to know those decision makers, providing them with accurate and useful information, outlining the consequences both positive and negative, treating someone like you would want to be treated (especially when you disagree), along with political advocacy are all key elements to affecting the legislative and regulatory processes.

The worst part of being an elected official, or being someone who would like to run for elected office, is the constant and never ending need to finance a political campaign. Ask any of them; they don’t like it. But, it is an unwanted necessity as the cost of running campaigns continues to increase. We all likely have strong personal views on this, but it is the world that all trade associations operate in and to ignore this reality is folly.

Our Nation’s capitol, despite its enormous power and amazing monuments and museums, is, in reality, a very small town. Faces change but the titles remain the same. This reinforces the need to be always engaging and respectful of others. In many cases, people become addicted to the political process and are fortunate to obtain key agency or staff positions on Capitol Hill, or influential industry jobs; and then move from one to the other over time. This might be an apt description of my path. I have seen many times in my career where not treating others as you want to be treated can come back to you in many different ways.

Elections have consequences as we all know — sometimes good and sometimes bad — depending upon your political views. When focusing on issues important to the general aviation community, we don’t look at whether someone is a Republican or a Democrat. We look at whether or not they support general aviation, and whether or not they oppose burdensome, redundant, unneeded, and costly regulations or legislation. We look for opportunities to educate, inform, and develop common sense solutions.

With a united general aviation advocacy effort, we can be one of the strongest industry voices in the United States. We will need this unified voice if we are going to be successful in negotiating the challenges upon us and in front of us. Throughout my career, I have been drawn to aviation and specifically general aviation, mainly because its people are passionate, hard working, and honest.

As our Nation’s financial situation continues to provide challenges for everyone, we must be in a position to help policymakers succeed by identifying reasonable solutions that could help contribute to restoring our federal fiscal house to order — and without imposing additional tax burdens on our families and on our industry. In this effort, it is essential that we remain vigilant and thoroughly engaged.

General aviation is in the crosshairs for some, and we are working to educate those on the contributions our industry provides, including job creation and the economic impact that we have on communities in every state in the Union. I believe most would agree that we are all willing to pay our fair share and take our cuts when absolutely necessary. At the same time, we must work within the political, legislative, and regulatory processes to ensure these decisions are advanced on sound policy considerations and not simply for political expediency.

The inability of the White House and Congress to reach agreement on our Nation’s federal budget has led to the potential shuttering of the contract tower program through a self-imposed sequestration process which required federal agencies to make cuts in key programs. Sequestration, along with renewed efforts by the Obama Administration to place a $100 user fee on general aviation, the determination by the IRS to impose federal excise taxes on operators who provide services for air charters, reductions in the budgets and services of our Customs and Board Patrol agency are just a few of the challenges we face today. These and other similar issues will undoubtedly continue to unfold in the coming months and we again will continue to engage key decision makers on all of these matters.

NATA’s recent Aviation Business and Legislative Conference and Congressional Reception in the beautiful Capitol Building provided the perfect opportunity for our members to hear from and meet with many key lawmakers and their staffs. This event further emphasized that your personal involvement in the political and regulatory processes will help make us even stronger as an organization. Meeting with your Senators and Representatives back home, talking to them about what is on your mind — what concerns you have — becoming a resource, and being aware of the importance of political advocacy are all steps that will go a long way in helping us to hit the ground running in 2013 and beyond.

Article originally appeared in Aviation Business Journal.

A Confession about Community

I moved to the Denver, Colorado area about a year and a half ago, and I have a confession to make. I joined the Colorado Aviation Business Association (CABA) pretty early on in my stint in Colorado and even sit on the legislative committee, but I only just recently attended my first big CABA meeting. Why did I pass on the last two holiday parties and several other events? It snowed – a lot. The roads were bad. I traveled for work that week and my flight was late the night before. I was sick. I broke my foot and spent six months on crutches. Basically, I had one excuse after another (although that crutch thing seemed kind of legit), because the truth was rather embarrassing for a full-grown adult to admit. Joining a new group like that – even a group of like-minded aviation professionals – felt a bit like going to a new junior high school. What if I don’t know anyone in this new community? It might be awkward. I might be bored. It might be a waste of my time.

When I worked for NATA and lived in the Washington, DC area, my sense of “community” was never in question. From the outside looking in, one might think the aviation community in DC is forced. We were “required” to spend quite a bit of time together at seemingly endless receptions, dinners, meetings, and other functions, but the people who make up that community – my trade association friends and colleagues, our wonderful association members, and even to a varying degree the regulators with whom I worked – are such incredible people that I felt blessed to be part of such a great community. Since I left DC, life has taken me to Kentucky, Kansas, and now Colorado and my incredible Beltway community seemed irreplaceable. I never even tried to be part of the aviation communities of those other states. They were just bases from which I parked my car at the airport and flew to visit a client somewhere else.

I attend most of the “big” national aviation trade conferences with a soft spot in my heart for NATA events. For me, NATA functions are like class reunions, and I am always excited to visit with other attendees and hear what’s new in our industry. In fact, I’m currently getting revved up to attend NATA’s Aviation Business and Legislative Conference next week in DC. But I always assumed the local events were unnecessary – a drain on my already limited time at home with my family.

Let me share with you what I learned at that CABA meeting last week: Our local aviation community is essential to our professional development and even sense of well-being. I cheated a bit at this event and found a client of mine to visit with at the beginning of the evening, but soon found my way to colleagues who overlap with my DC community and yes – met new people. I came away from the event energized for the future of my own business, excited about the opportunities to participate more fully with CABA, and amazed at the power of shared passion.

Are you active with your state or regional aviation business organization? The national trade associations increasingly rely on these state and regional groups as essential pipelines of state and regional issues and concerns. Aside from the obvious networking opportunities these local groups provide, I learned they can bridge the gap between the national events most of us attend and give us that injection of energy only found in large groups of people that have a zealous devotion to the same industry.

NATA’s new Aviation Business and Legislative Conference is being held next week in conjunction with the association’s committee meetings. I am looking forward to seeing my DC community, catching up on important issues, and experiencing the enthusiasm of my colleagues. Are you in need of a little community? It’s not too late to register for the Aviation Business and Legislative Conference and committee meetings!

Submitted by Guest Blogger Lindsey C. McFarren

President of McFarren Aviation Consulting

www.mcfarrenaviation.com

First NATA Safety 1st FBO Audit Completed

Originally appeared in the 2013 1st quarter edition of Aviation Business Journal
By Lindsey C. McFarren

In November 2012, the first audit was conducted in accordance with the NATA Safety 1st Ground Audit Standard. I was lucky enough to observe the audit and will share my experiences with you below. The Aviation Business Journal published an article introducing the audit in the first quarter of 2012, but here’s a quick refresher on the program.

NATA Safety 1^st established the NATA Safety 1^st Ground Audit Standard to promote industry best practices and Safety Management Systems (SMS) development among ground handling providers. This audit standard is the first published audit for FBOs and other ground handling service providers. The NATA Safety and Security Committee, which includes representatives from large and small FBOs, on-demand charter operators, fractional program managers, insurance brokers, fuel companies, and more, assisted in drafting this important new audit standard.

The NATA Safety 1^st Ground Audit Standard’s two primary objectives are: to create a consistent operational safety standard for FBOs, airports, and other facilities, while increasing the overall safety level of these operations, and to provide FBO or other ground handling facilities customers with an alternative to costly proprietary audits of these operations.

How It Works

NATA Safety 1^st manages the audit standard but does not actually conduct audits. This audit allows for two levels of certification: self-certification, whereby the FBO has a qualified employee, trained by NATA Safety 1^st, to conduct internal audits, and third-party certification, in which the FBO contracts with an NATA Safety 1^st-trained auditor to conduct the audit. A self-certification audit must be completed within a specified time period. NATA Safety 1^st must be advised of the start and end dates of the self-certification audit. The audit I observed was a third-party audit.

After either type of audit has been completed, the facility has 120 days to review the findings and implement any corrective actions. If the facility successfully closes all findings, it will be listed on the NATA Safety 1^st registry of audited facilities. This registry will be available online at no charge to aircraft operators and other consumers to verify the successful completion of the audit.  

NATA Safety 1^st maintains oversight of the audit by reviewing each audit report, including corrective actions, upon completion.

What Does the Audit Cover?

The audit covers seven separate operating areas within an FBO, ranging from the company’s management system to environmental policies and procedures.

1. Management System – Section 1 evaluates the management policies and procedures of the organization.
2. Safety Management System and Quality Assurance – Section 2 evaluates the facility’s safety program, emergency response procedures, and quality assurance procedures.
3. Training – Section 3 evaluates the training programs (i.e. general training, hazardous materials training, vehicle and equipment training, security training, and more) of the facility.
4. Standard Operating Procedures – Section 4 reviews the standard operating procedures of the facility to ensure they are properly document and executed. This includes aircraft marshaling, taxiing, fueling/defueling, deicing, and more.
5. Security – Section 5 reviews the security policies and procedures of the facility.
6. Occupational Safety and Health – Section 6 reviews the facility’s occupational safety and health policies and procedures to ensure the facility is in compliance with state requirements. (Note: This is not a full OSHA audit.)
7. Environmental – Section 7 reviews the facility’s environmental policies and procedures, including storm water pollution prevention, hazardous materials handling, and underground storage tank requirements.

First Audit:  Lessons Learned

The on-site portion of the audit was conducted at one base of an FBO with a few locations. The FBO is not notably different in size, shape, or make up from any other FBO in the country. It is not a part of one of the large chains nor is it a “mom-and-pop” organization. It is a happy medium in terms of fuel sales, daily operations, and so on. Because this audit was the first “real” one of its type, the auditor was conservative in timing and allotted two and a half days to conduct the on-site portion of the audit. The company is currently in their 120-day window to review and correct findings so I will not disclose the company’s name or location at this time.

However, a number of lessons can be gleaned from the initial audit.

Lesson 1: Document everything! The NATA Safety 1^st Ground Audit Standard requires an FBO to say what they do and do what they say; in other words, every standard must be met with written, implemented policies, processes and procedures. In this particular facility, high turnover is an unfortunate, but not uncommon, concern. Written policies and procedures can help ensure that new personnel perform to your standards and existing personnel continue to perform in a consistent manner. Be sure your company’s policies and procedures are well-documented.

Lesson 2: The goal is to exceed requirements. For this audit, line operations and safety training are particularly important. Many of the ground handling training programs – including the NATA Safety 1st program – available to FBOs only require training every 24 months. This facility has fully implemented the NATA Safety 1st program and meets the 24 month requirement. However, the Ground Audit Standard requires training every 12 months in most cases. There is no need to make this requirement too difficult though. Continue to use the training program you currently use. Just write a policy in your manuals that every applicable employee will complete recurrent training every year and set a schedule to be sure that training is in fact completed. This could be the entire PLST program or an overview of selected modules. (Note: The NATA Safety 1^st PLST is not the only formal training acceptable for this audit – it is just one method of meeting the training standards and happened to be the program used at this location.)

Lesson 3: Be prepared. Electing to complete this audit is a commitment. Certain resources are necessary to perform the audit. If you intend to commit employees to the process only for the few days an auditor is onsite, frankly, do not waste your time. You will need to spend some time getting prepared for the audit. It might be in your best interest to review the checklist several weeks or months prior to the audit to gauge how you think your facility will perform and to close some gaps in your operation prior to securing an auditor and setting a date for the audit. Once you have chosen an audit date, complete the pre-audit checklist thoroughly. List the manual in which each standard is addressed along with the appropriate page number or other identifying details. Not only might this lessen the auditor’s time at your facility, but also it provides the auditor with more opportunity to observe your operations instead of being buried in manuals for days.

Lesson 4: Be realistic. This goes back to lesson 3. If you have prepared appropriately, you will not be especially surprised by most of the findings the auditor discovers. Similarly, do not set unrealistic expectations for yourself (or your staff!) in closing audit findings. This audit is a totally new ballgame for many FBOs, and you might be surprised by the overall number of findings. This is not an assessment of you or your team’s abilities or dedication to your work. It is a process intended to make your operations safer and more efficient.

Lesson 5: Address safety issues quickly. If an auditor points out an unmarked cabinet containing flammables or a lineman smoking within 50 feet of an airplane being refueled, do not wait until you receive the audit findings before you address those issues. There is no time like the present to address a safety concern.

Bragging Rights: A.K.A. Why Perform an Audit?

I could say the benefit of doing an audit like this one is to evaluate your facility objectively to become a safer operation ultimately. Certainly that is one great reason to consider doing any audit. But there is also a business case for conducting an audit such as this. An audit that focuses on safety and quality can help identify a safety risk before an accident or incident occurs. It can also help reveal inefficiencies in your operations, allowing you to tighten your procedures and become more efficient and effective. 

Another reason to undergo an audit such as this is to lower insurance premiums or at least slow the rate of increase in premiums. Contact your insurance broker. Would the broker help subsidize the audit or provide resources to help you prepare? Could a third-party safety and operations audit lower your insurance premiums?

Pursuing this type of audit could keep your customers (and airport) happy. Part 135 air carriers eventually will be required by the FAA to implement a Safety Management System (SMS) within their operation. Some airports will be required to implement an SMS soon. There will be a trickle-down effect when SMS is required of air charter operators and these airports. Part of a complete SMS is the oversight of service providers, and FBOs should expect oversight from air charter operators to increase as SMS implementation progresses. FBOs, based at designated airports, will be required to comply with SMS regulations because they operate on the airport’s ramp.

However, FBOs are not in business for the express reasons of being safe, efficient, or making customers happy. Cleary if you accomplish none of these goals, you probably will not be in a business long. But one other, more important thing keeps your doors open and your staff employed: revenue. With any luck, PROFIT! You could be the safest, most efficient, most customer-centric company on the planet but if you do it without making money you will not be around long. Completing an audit like the NATA Safety 1st Ground Audit Standard, especially while it is in its infancy, can set you apart from your competitors. If you have only one other competitor on the field and you have completed this audit but they are known for both cheap fuel and hangar rash, where do you think most customers will go? There will always be aircraft operators who would sell their first born to save two cents a gallon, but as SMS and risk management concepts become more prolific with corporate and charter operators, expect more customers to choose the lower risk – if slightly higher cost – FBO.

Stay tuned for more information on the NATA Safety 1^st Ground Audit Standard. Several auditors have been trained and are available to conduct the audit. Visit http://www.nata.aero/Safety-1st/Ground-Audit.aspx for more information.

Walk a Mile in His Shoes – Aviation Business Journal Article Series

We have all heard the saying: Walk a mile in his shoes. Many of us have used it to help our children understand that different people view things differently. How does that apply to aviation businesses though? A new three-part article series appearing in the first quarter’s Aviation Business Journal (ABJ) explores this issue.

Paul Meyers, the Principle in Charge at Aviation Management Consulting Group, Inc. an NATA member company, wrote Walk a Mile in my Shoes – the Art and Science of Doing Business with Airport Sponsors. In this three-part series, Paul explores the airport management/airport tenant relationship from the perspective of each of the parties with the aim of creating a better understanding of the concerns and values faced by all involved.

The first article in the series, now available in NATA’s Aviation Business Journal, takes a look at the airport sponsor perspective, exploring the many rules and regulations that an airport sponsor must adhere to when negotiating lease agreement.

In the second and third quarter edition of Aviation Business Journal, the series will continue with a look at the airport tenant business perspective and a review of best practices for negotiations between airport sponsors and airport businesses.

A special thanks to Paul and the entire team at Aviation Management Consulting Group for their work on this project.

The first quarter ABJ is available online right now and print copies should arrive at your location in the next few days. Be sure to take a few minutes and read Walk a Mile in my Shoes.

Click here for the digital version of NATA’s Aviation Business Journal.

What does snow have to do with spring?

As I sit and write this morning, snow is falling over the Washington, DC metropolitan area, snarling traffic and generally making everyone’s Friday morning difficult (except for the kids who don’t have to go to school!). Of course, sitting here in my warm office as a member of the staff here at NATA I find it hard to complain. It was just a few years ago that on a morning like this I was out on the ramp at the airport pulling aircraft out of their hangar or clearing snow off a fuel truck. It was back during those times that I got my first introduction to NATA and the Safety 1st training seminars. My employer sent me to the NATA Line Service Supervisor Training (LSST) in Chicago. The first seminar marked the moment my job became a career; the opportunity to talk with other attendees and meet with industry experts broadened my horizon beyond just the FBO and airport where I worked.

Now, we are coming up on one of my favorite events of the year, our NATA Safety 1st Spring Training Week in Las Vegas, NV. NATA Safety 1st Spring Training Week is Safety 1st’s premier training event, combining the LSST Seminar with the Safety 1st Trainer Seminar, Environmental Compliance Seminar and FBO Success Seminar. I love this event because of the opportunity it provides to interact with line service supervisors, general managers, training coordinators and compliance specialists from aviation facilities around the country. The discussions that occur during the seminars and even between sessions never fail to teach me something I did not know about our industry. Of particular interest to me this year are our Environmental Compliance Seminar and the FBO Success Seminar.

The Environmental Compliance Seminar, led by industry environmental compliance expert George Gamble of 2G Environmental, will give supervisors, managers and owners of aviation facilities the basics they need to know to comply with existing environmental regulations. George provides a solid understanding of what your company needs to do to comply with regulations such as Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasures (SPCC), Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans, underground storage tank and universal waste. Most aviation facility managers spend a lot of time working to make their businesses successful. George and the Environmental Compliance Seminar will help you make sure that environmental compliance does not become an obstacle to that success.

One of the great things about NATA Safety 1st Spring Training Week is the wide variety of learning opportunities it provides. Take the FBO Success Seminar for example. Taught by John Enticknap of Aviation Business Strategies and Ron Jackson of the Jackson Group, this seminar provides tips and techniques for maximizing profits and reducing expenses, building productivity and improving your company’s bottom line. John and Ron’s coaching technique creates lively discussions that lead to a better understanding of the management practices that will help your business be successful.

While I mention those two seminars in particular, our LSST and Safety 1st Trainer seminars, as always, provide the foundation for productive and safe line service operations. I firmly believe in the value that NATA Safety 1st Spring Training Week can provide to your company and employees because I have experienced it firsthand.

I look forward to seeing you March 11-14 in Las Vegas for NATA Safety 1st Spring Training Week and I promise, no snow!

For more information, or to register, please visit NATA 2013 Safety 1st Spring Training Week webpage.

It Does Matter!

I suspect my career in aviation started the same way thousands of other FBO employees began theirs, by watching the NATA Safety 1st PLST VHS videos. As I worked my way through the units on safety, refueling and towing, I was excited to get to work and spend some time on the ramp; I recognized the value of knowledge I was receiving. This week, the FAA recognized the value of the time and effort aviation businesses such as yours put toward training your employees.

In a final rule published on Wednesday, the FAA Office of Airports withdrew a proposed regulation that would have required all Part 139 certificated airports to provide safety training to anyone accessing non-movement areas of the airport. Under this proposed regulation, airports would be responsible for providing safety training to all FBO, airline and maintenance employees prior to allowing those employees to access ramp areas. The FAA cited its reason for withdrawing this proposal as the fact that airlines and ground service support facilities already provide this training! When the FAA first proposed this regulation in 2011, NATA asked that the agency accept programs such as Safety 1st as equivalent to airport-provided safety training. This final rule goes a step further as the agency recognized that the efforts of business in providing safety training to their employees negated the need for regulation.

Training does matter! It matters to your bottom line, to your employees’ and customers’ safety and it matters to the FAA. NATA is very proud of our Safety 1st program. We have provided safety training to over 16,000 students since the PLST went online in 2008 and just this month the FAA has approved our Supervisory Online Training to meet the requirements of 14 CFR 139.321 (supervisory fire safety training).

The FAA has recognized the value of safety training, and we are proud to provide that training to our members and the industry because quality safety training does matter!

Submitted by: Michael France, NATA

To visit or return to the NATA website: www.nata.aero.

Line Service Supervisor Training Also Online

This week, we proudly announced the release of the NATA Safety 1st Line Service Supervision & Training Management Online (Supervisor Online) program. NATA members asked for online supervisor training, and we are pleased to be able to respond quickly to this need by combining our extensive line service training expertise with our industry-recognized online training platform.

The Supervisor Online program provides the training fixed base operators’ (FBO) line supervisors and managers need to become more proficient in lesson planning, supervising staff, motivating others, communicating and coaching a team. Additional modules will cover many other topics, including fuel servicing, personal protective equipment, hazard communication, and fire safety.

Once the online course is completed, it will fulfill the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) 139.321 supervisory requirements. The employee’s certificates will meet both the 14 CFR Part 139 Section 321 (e)1 supervisor fire safety training requirements and the Line Service Supervisor Training requirements. In addition to the online course curriculum, participants are provided with line service supervisor training guides containing training resources, lesson plans and trainer guidance to help support internal training programs after certification.

NATA recognizes that traveling budgets are limited and employee scheduling is tight for many of our members. Our Supervisor Online program opens our comprehensive training to an even broader audience than we have been able to reach in the past. At the same time, NATA is remaining supportive of the immense value of face-to-face interactions in networking, idea exchange and sharing of best practices by continuing to offer its popular seminar series.

NATA Safety 1st will hold its Line Service Supervisor Training (LSST) March 11-12, 2013, at the Las Vegas Hotel during the NATA Spring Training seminar series. The LSST is an informative in-person seminar that also fulfills the FAA 139.321 supervisor requirements. This high-impact, high-energy seminar includes guided group debates, interactive discussions and various case studies designed to take FBO supervisors and managers to a new level of leadership. For more information about NATA Spring Training, please click here.

For more information, including pricing, on the NATA Safety 1st Line Service Supervision & Training Management Online, please click here.

The training of our members in safety and efficiency is always a priority for NATA and will continue to take precedence with this and other new initiatives to be announced in the coming weeks.

Submitted by: Shannon Chambers, NATA

To visit or return to the NATA website: www.nata.aero.