Structure as a basis for success.
A basis for effective and efficient procedures is appropriate work organization. Work organization in crucial areas has far-reaching effects, from company-threatening to being a success factor. A department within an airline where work organization can have a direct impact on success is the Operations Control Center (OCC). We were able to see at a major airline that the work within the OCC was divided into teams, which in turn took care of certain aircraft: The work was divided according to aircraft registrations. Out of this organization, there were some problems. Factors, such as base maintenance events of individual aircraft, reduced the workload within one team while other teams were fighting with daily business. Furthermore, workload was regularly shifted from one team to another in critical situations, with the risk of loss of time and information, such as due to AOG-related aircraft changes. In addition to other negative effects, a problem was particularly evident. Disruptions in the aviation are mostly local and limited to specific airports, air traffic control sectors or countries. If the aircraft of several teams flew into the same problem zone, several teams had to find solutions for one and the same problem on their own.
The concept of dedicated fleets (meaning: certain airplanes only fly specific routes) was advanced as an argument for an organization by aircraft registration. However, the practice in the OCC concerned showed that this concept was not feasible at all. On the contrary. Restricting certain aircraft, for example by lowering the Maximum Takeoff Weight, to save costs, has led to increasing complexity and thus to even more problems and irregularities.
Learning from others.
The tasks of Flight Following in the OCC and those of air traffic control have the same intention: An aircraft should come safely, economically and punctually from one place to another. Contrary to the work organization described above, the work of air traffic controllers is structured according to regions. This brings with it a whole range of advantages. Air traffic controllers are specialists for their sectors. They know the geographical conditions, weather phenomena and all contact persons for coordination in case of irregularities. They gain experience in their region and are constantly improving their solutions to local problems. Organizational structure derived from regions rather than aircraft registrations gives some benefits to our OCC. Now only one team has to find the solution to a local problem. It knows the region well and has already solved similar problems. It draws on a profound experience and knows the local people from liaison meetings. Personal contact accelerates processes and reduces bureaucracy in critical situations. However, this structure has some challenges. It requires a framework of processes that are well documented, thoroughly trained and rigorously applied.
Improve together.
GMP analyzes the work organization in individual parts or your entire company. This is followed by an extensive evaluation of the existing organizational structure and processes. As a result, suggestions are made for structural and process optimization. For implementation, we accompany you with a clear and well-defined change process.
