Innovation Starts At Home
We’ve
been thinking about the International Air Transport Association (IATA)
Air Cargo Innovation Award contest, which will choose the best innovative
idea on November 30 and award one winner USD $20,000.
IATA has also promised up to two
runners-up will be awarded USD $10,000 each if, in the opinion of the
judges, there are actually that many good ideas out there.
It strikes us as a surrender to
reality if IATA—which doesn’t seem to come up with many
good ideas—is now willing to throw a few grand around to possibly
net some.
A jury-panel includes the usual
suspects—industry analysts, PR people, and teacher consultants
will screen all submissions.
The template for submission is here.
Winners will be announced at IATA
World Cargo Symposium in Shanghai next March.
Here is an innovative idea, or maybe
just a fleeting thought.
What if IATA, which seems to suffer
from paralysis by analysis in some cases, and also (we are told) functions
in an office climate that is inexplicably counterproductive to innovation,
suddenly turns the tables on itself and tries to become useful to air
cargo?
In fairness to IATA, the process
is what needs to change radically, and that isn't unique to cargo.
One conclusion is that IATA isn’t
really essential for the airlines, but not so the other way around.
The first step towards an era of
change would involve weeding out the BA
“old boys” network—which seems to run things at
IATA—and start recruiting some on-the-ball executives and staffing
people that might fit the Tony Fernandez template.
The odds for future air cargo success
could improve and everybody might be a winner.
Your move . . .
Geoffrey/Jens /Ted/Flossie
