This year Aircraft Maintenance Technology is celebrating its 25th year of publication and contributors have been asked to focus on some of the industry changes that have occurred over those 25 years. Prior articles addressed changes in aircraft technology, the churn in company and aircraft ownerships, and globalization of customer services. Changes in the “people” side of our industry have been just as remarkable. Today our corporate executives and industry professionals are focusing on industrial engineering, human factors, worker safety, and ensuring that AMTs have the necessary technical, communication, and customer relationship skills.
For a top down perspective on some of the technological, business and HR changes, AMT Magazine interviewed Peg Billson who in January 2013 was promoted to president and CEO of aftermarket services for London-based BBA Aviation, a global company that employs around 12,000 people at 220 locations on five continents. BBA’s Aftermarket Services are delivered by Dallas Airmotive, Premier Turbines, H+S Aviation, International Turbine Service, W.H. Barrett Turbine Engine Company, International Governor Services, and Ontic. They repair and overhaul small thrust turbine engines, and manufacture and service aerospace components and systems from 20 locations worldwide.
Billson began her aviation career 30 years ago “designing, developing, building, supporting, and/or selling aircraft and aircraft components.” She held leadership roles with Eclipse Aviation, Honeywell Aerospace, and McDonnell Douglas, earned a bachelor of science in aeronautical engineering from Embry-Riddle University and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from California State University, and is an instrument rated private pilot.
We asked Billson to discuss her management strategies, how BBA Aftermarket Services differentiates their products and services, changes she has experienced over the past 30 years, and what it takes to go from an entry-level engineer to CEO and president with a seat on BBA’s Executive Management Committee.
AMT: After reviewing the profiles of the Aftermarket Services companies, it would appear challenging to manage businesses that have such diverse cultures, are dispersed around the globe, and deliver a variety of products and services?
Billson: On the surface our organization looks complicated but it is actually really simple. We market our products and services under seven different brands and provide three major services – engine repair and overhaul, aircraft systems & equipment MRO, and new OE and spare part manufacturing. Our major brands – Ontic, Dallas Airmotive and H+S Aviation – are responsible for producing and selling quality products to our customers. Our brands do not compete head-to-head and we have a culture of working together for the greater gain, looking for natural connections where we should be working together. For example, we have separate sales forces for our engine repair and overhaul and Ontic businesses, but they attend each other’s sales conferences to share information and contacts.
AMT: What differentiates BBA’s Aftermarket Services from other companies?
Billson: We are experts in small thrust business aircraft engines and maturing and legacy fleets. We collaborate closely with OEMs and the services we provide are either as a licensed OEM building parts or as an independent authorized repair and overhaul facility. All our PMAs are in collaboration with and under the authorization of the original OEM.
AMT: The press releases about the rate of change and churn in our competitive industry can be concerning. Tell us about some changes that you are seeing in the aftermarket segment.
Billson: Because of the uncertainly in our current market, interesting and fundamental shifts are taking place. For example, as new commercial airliners come into service, third parties are offering to buy and organize the initial provisioning of parts and spare components for a fee, saving each airline a large amount of money, but with an understanding that they get the repair and overhaul contracts for these same parts and components.
Another big change is consumers expect to buy quality products and are increasingly not very tolerant of breakdowns. When something does break we expect it to be fixed or replaced fast. Aircraft owners and operators are no exception. They expect their multimillion dollar aircraft to be as reliable and available as their cars and any maintenance handled fast. Therefore, our company must focus on the entire life cycle of our aviation products, be agile and flexible, and offer a wide range of services for owners and operators.
For new products less than 10 years old there is more on-demand, on-condition repairs and maintenance. Engines like the HTF 7000 and the GE Passport Engine don’t require the traditional overhaul cycle; its maintenance is condition dependent. Concurrently, legacy aircraft still require support and we have a company like Ontic that focuses on traditional repairs and component manufacturing to support these maturing fleets.
These changes in new products and customer expectations will require the support network to become more diverse and be provided locally and regionally. We will have less concentrated centers and more diverse facilities that can handle a breadth of products in more places.
AMT: Are you concerned about the graying of our aviation work force and being able to staff your organizations with enough qualified maintenance personnel to meet your business goals?
Billson: I have seen the demographics and heard the arguments that we are going to lose our talent and fall off the proverbial cliff. I don’t think it is going to be a cliff, but we do have to pay more attention to career paths and offer interesting and meaningful work in order to recruit and retain qualified employees. We can’t have the same hiring practices and offer the same jobs that we did 25-30 years ago and expect to attract new workers to our industry. BBA’s approach is to provide apprenticeship programs in our UK companies and internship programs in our domestic U.S. companies. We also need to support good technical and A&P schools and provide necessary in-house training for our employees.
AMT: From your experience can you tell us about some of the changes that you have seen in our work force?
Billson: The biggest difference in today’s work force is the desire and expectation of being engaged in the decision-making process of daily work. Current workers believe that no matter what role they play in the organization, they bring a certain level of expertise and talent to the job so they expect to be engaged in the decision making. We also find that today’s work force is very willing to collaborate and we see a mutual respect between the maintenance employees, engineers, customer services, and sales staff.
They understand it takes team work and the collective knowledge of the team to know what to do. We need employees that can not only manage aviation technology, but interact and communicate effectively with the customer.
AMT: Tell us about your career path that led from an internship at McDonnell Douglas in California to the board room at BBA.
Billson: When I was 14 years old I became very passionate about aircraft and aviation. That is just as intense today as it was then. I did not deviate nor allow anyone else to diminish my passion. When people suggested that I could not or should not do something because I was female, I ignored the suggestion and stayed on my path. Over my career there were many colleagues and managers that gave me the space to keep focused on my passion. I will always be grateful to the great mentors who let me succeed and fail at various tasks and jobs that provided those experiences which helped me get to this position. For everyone that said that I could not do something, there were 10 more that were supportive. I achieved my personal and career goals by staying focused on what I loved to do.
When interviewing industry standouts it has been the editor’s experience that they are exceedingly humble and defer personal accomplishments to their mentors, coworkers, and managers. Rising from an engineering intern at McDonnell Douglas; to managing and leading several major business units and programs at McDonnell Douglas, Honeywell, and Eclipse Aviation; to her current role as president and CEO of BBA Aftermarket Services, it appears that Billson had few failures along her career path. Focused indeed.
AMT thanks Peg Billson for taking time from her busy schedule to provide insight into the aftermarket services business and to share her success story with us.
