22 JUNE 2008 GHI interview industry Eight months down the line, Per Utnegaard is satisfi ed with the way the Swiss handling company has been progressing – but he’s aiming higher still. Per: ardua ad astra Leading the questions for Swissport’s latest CEO is the obvious one: what tempted Per to take up this particular post? “To my mind, Swissport is a good company, working in a global industry that is growing. By that I mean Swissport is seeing single and even double digit growth. I’m sure that there is much more outsourcing to come within this industry, especially if a recession bites. This will see carriers concentrating more on their core business, in other words fl eet optimisation, yield management and marketing. “Another attraction was the multicultural aspect of the company: there are four nationalities on the board of directors and six on the management board, for example. Let’s be honest here: we’re talking about a service industry. Rather like TNT, where I was employed for several years, you’re only as good as your last package delivered: it’s the same with ground handlers - they’re only as good as their last turnaround. Since the business is high volume and low value, it’s important that you have a good consistency in your service.” To what did he attribute the handler’s continued success in the global market? And perhaps more importantly, how did he seek to maintain this position? “A lot of Swissport’s reputation is down to Joseph (In Albon); after all, he made it into a separate company and much is owed to him. Don’t forget that 11 years ago it didn’t exist. A strong vision and a need to look ahead are vital to the company’s welfare. We have been able to leverage Swissport’s reputation for quality in the domestic market and export this elsewhere. It’s the same idea or philosophy but applied globally; we’re not re-inventing the wheel, here, but rather continuing with a successful package. As I see it, the industry is very undeveloped and lots can be done. It

GHI JUNE 2008 23 might not be capital intensive but it certainly is labour intensive - we employ 30,000 persons in 43 countries – so we’re aware of that. We believe firmly in strong leadership and in strong local management. And when I say that we adopt similar strategies outside Switzerland, I mean with a tailored product. Really, where new markets are concerned, we’re only interested in being the number one or the number two player; with that kind of philosophy, we feel we can stay ahead.” And the next steps for the company, in the shorter and longer term? “To sell more of our existing services and be the very best at what we do. We’ve grown fast and we now require a degree of depth in our current offerings. We split our business up broadly into handling, cargo and aviation specialist services – this latter includes fuelling, maintenance and security. Our workforce is in place so we need to maximise our use of it. “In the shorter term, we’re looking for new markets that can take all these packages. We have to make our service portfolio known to existing customers. This ideally will be done in parallel with new market openings, so it’s back to the depth question. “Further ahead, there are the bigger markets that hold much appeal – such as India, China and the Russian States. We’re a relationship and people business, so local effective management is the key to everything, along with Swissport’s operating procedures. We have to be very sensitive about our personnel, taking into account different races and cultures. As the leading handler we must ensure that there is consistency of quality. The captain flying into an airport should know in advance the service level that he can expect when he or she sees Swissport: we should be selling a known product, a peace of mind. “But that’s not to say our product is like a McDonalds hamburger or a bottle of Coca Cola, the same the world over. Individuality and tailor-made solutions are preferred. We provide the same services but airport infrastructures vary. So it’s important that what the Swissport brand stands for is universally known.” Per labours the point that the staff are incentivised to look after their GSE; it is seen as a group effort and not an individual thing. Recognition of an individual’s effort is vital to success, he maintains, as the wrong staff can lead to concomitant problems, such as greater capital expenditure, less loyalty and the like. In short, it’s a domino effect. What did he have to say to those who complain that the sector is characterised by low returns and marginal profitability? “This is the end result of a high volume, low value business. The service provided to a carrier is low price in one sense – it’s a tiny part of an airline’s running costs – but nonetheless, it’s indispensable. If, for any reason, we don’t deliver then it impacts the public perception of the carrier. So, if bags are late, it’s the airline’s fault. If the lost and found isn’t working well, it’s the airline’s fault. If there’s no wheelchair available, again it’s the airline at fault. This is the perception, as we all know, but not the reality: so we have to get it right. “I feel we have to grow with the carrier, know where it’s going and hence grow with its passenger requirements. From check-in to luggage drop-off, all these steps need to be studied. Dr Andreas Jahnke has been appointed the new head of the Lufthansa Cargo Center in Frankfurt. The Supervisory Board of Flughafen München (FMG), the Munich Airport operating company, has appointed Thomas Weyer to succeed Peter Trautmann as one of FMG’s managing directors. Trautmann, who has been in charge of the Traffic and Engineering divisions since 2002, will retire from the management team when his contract expires on August 31 of this year. Air Group has announced the election of Joe Sprague as Vice President of Alaska Air Cargo and Ann Ardizzone as Vice President of in-flight services at Alaska Airlines. British Airways World Cargo has confirmed the appointments of David Shepherd as Senior Vice President Europe and the Americas and Tony Nothman as Senior Vice President Middle East, Africa, Asia and Pacific. Cargolux has named Marc Hoffmann as its new President. JetBlue Airways has named former British Airways Executive VP-The Americas Robin Hayes as Executive VP People Ian Craft and Chief Commercial Officer. He will be responsible for revenue, network, sales and marketing strategy. Aer Lingus appointed Finance Director Greg O’Sullivan to group Company Secretary replacing Laurence Gourley, who becomes Head of Legal Affairs. Holger van den Heuvel, already a member of the previous board, has been appointed Chairman and Managing Director of Cargoitalia. United Airlines has named John Tague as Chief Operating Officer. Continental Airlines Executive VP and CFO Jeff Misner is due to retire in August. He will be replaced by Senior VP-Network Strategy, Zane Rowe. Ian Craft, who was with Virgin North America for 13 years, has moved to ASIG to take up the post of Director Sales Contract Management. Southwest Airlines has elected Chief Executive Gary Kelly to the post of Chairman. Cargo 2000 has appointed Tom Presnail as Regional Director for Asia Pacific to spearhead the development of its quality management system in the region. David Shepherd Tony Nothman Thomas Presnail