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“You
know who matters now?
“Des
Vertannes, because
he is changing the
'cargo-face' of IATA
positively and is
able to get the dialogue
moving forward on
many of the important
challenges that we
face in the cargo
industry,” said
Ram Menen, SVP Cargo,
Emirates.
When
Des Vertannes traded
in a lifetime of working
his way up the management
pole (where he attained
top billing at Etihad
Cargo) for the very
public and at times
thankless role of
fronting for IATA
as Head of Cargo,
there may have been
more than a few people
who wondered why he
took the job.
Des
is a real air cargo
professional and was
certainly a rising
star at Etihad.
We
can all be grateful
for whatever keeps
this grounded and
very likeable guy
pushing the envelope
for air cargo at IATA.
And
to paraphrase author
Maurice Sendak, now
that a genuine airline
cargo guy is in IATA
Cargo, IATA Cargo
is in all of us.
Here,
Des speaks up as FlyingTypers
continues our exclusive
series:
“Where
Do We Go From Here?”
“For
air cargo, 2012 will
go on record as being
a year of low or no
growth.
"A
positive start to
the year brought early
optimism, but that
faded away.
“Excitement
around the new iPhone
and similar new generation
consumer products
will bring a welcome
boost but the general
consensus seems to
be that there was
no significant peak
season this year.
Economies in Asia,
the U.S., and Europe
continue to struggle
with recovery; therefore
businesses will need
to be very agile if
they are to capitalize
on opportunities that
will emerge in 2013.
“Our
recent quarterly forecast
shows that globally,
the world’s
airlines will make
a profit of just $4.1
billion this year.
That’s slightly
up on our forecast
in June, but it still
equates to a margin
of just 0.6 percent.
In particular, profits
for Asian carriers
are being held back
because with 40 percent
of the global cargo
market, the region’s
carriers are the most
exposed to weak cargo
demand. In general,
cargo yields will
fall by 2 percent
this year.
“We’re
going to see further
consolidation across
the supply chain,
greater use of multimodality
to achieve distribution
efficiencies, and
governments increasingly
embracing data transmission
to control and monitor
security and borders.
Thanks to campaigns
being waged by IATA,
individual carriers,
and other organisations
representing shippers
and forwarders (and
hopefully with the
help of the media!),
the Air Cargo Industry
will gain significant
recognition in its
capacity to stimulate
economic activity
and enhance carrier
bottom lines. Finally,
industry coalitions
such as GACAG will
play an increasing
role in driving necessary
change.
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“I
see three key things
for the industry:
First, invest in emerging
and niche markets.
Second, ensure you
offer great customer
service. And third,
develop highly cost-efficient
operational processes.
These elements are
likely to be the common
traits for successful
companies in 2013.
“Having
come over from the
private sector, I
was surprised by how
seemingly fragmented
supply chain is. Also,
the time taken to
achieve consensus
on issues of importance
has been longer than
I thought –
though the end result
has been worth it.
“The
most important thing
has been to unite
the supply chain.
You could say that
there is still work
to be done, but the
emergence of GACAG
has been a very positive
step. Its two specific
achievements so far
have been to address
the enormous security
challenges that emerged
after 10/10, and gain
traction towards realization
of a paperless air
cargo industry.
“Having
worked in both the
private and public
sector, I can say
that it takes teamwork
to succeed, partnerships
and collaborative
entities to commit
to similar timescales,
and that all industry
priorities must have
full ‘Board’
support.
“Airlines—in
fact the entire industry—are
experiencing deeply
challenging times,
so it’s vital
IATA is seen delivering
solutions and initiatives
that bring true benefits.
We need to do it quickly,
too. The e-AWB has
proven to deliver
productivity gains
of up to 19 percent,
so we are fully energized
in encouraging rapid
adoption around the
world and advocate
aggressively where
necessary to remove
regulatory roadblocks."
Air
cargo issues get aired
and discussed at the
World Cargo Symposium,
which has become an
important event. We
ask Des how he sees
WCS shaping the agenda
for 2013.
“For
me it’s important
the industry considers
the WCS its event.
IATA may organize
the event, but it
belongs to the whole
industry. So we absolutely
need to continue to
push for a more balanced
attendance from all
sectors of the supply
chain. They need to
be heard, to establish
priorities, review
progress, and agree
about plans on how
to achieve quicker
results and help the
sustainability of
the industry.
“If
I could change one
thing, it would be
for governments and
airport authorities
to appreciate the
value of the industry,
and reverse their
detrimental policies
that have impacted
our competitiveness.
These actions would
help strengthen profitability
as well as help attract
the talent the industry
desperately needs.
“IATA has and
continues to play
an incredibly important
role for the aviation
industry. It has ensured
we have safe and secure
skies, and standards
that enable global
trade and travel to
be facilitated through
multi and diverse
channels. It has brought
discipline in protecting
the industry’s
money despite unprecedented
global financial and
economic strains,
and alongside industry
partners, has engineered
initiatives and projects
that have delivered
huge efficiencies.
Our partners should
understand that IATA
is there to cooperate
and collaborate and
certainly to serve
our industry. Part
of that is of course
advocacy, both with
governments and to
the general public,
such as with the ‘Air
Cargo Makes It Happen’
campaign.
As
we leave Des, we ask
him about the people
who have shaped this
path that he has taken
in air cargo. He says,
“there are people
I admire enormously
but one stood out
for me, and that was
Geoff Bridges, for
very personal reasons.
The others know who
they are!
Geoffrey
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