TIACA to create new director general role

Air cargo association TIACA will create a new director general role as part of its transformation programme.

The association said that the role of secretary general will expand to take on extra responsibility and will therefore become director general.

“TIACA needs a director general accountable for the organization’s strategy, delivery model, team and financials,” the association said.

“Today, this role is more limited and vaguely split between the chairman of the board and the secretary general and it leads to inefficiencies. The new TIACA needs to be more agile and responsive to the market’s needs.”

Current secretary general Vladimir Zubkov will continue supporting the association, pursuing work with ICAO and supporting industry affairs and advocacy efforts.

During the transition phase, Celine Hourcade from consultant Change Horizon and who is a project manager at TIACA, will act as the transition director to “ensure business continuity” until the future director general is appointed.

The association launched its transformation programme in 2018 to make TIACA “financially sustainable and strong enough to take up the challenges requested and needed by its members in the long term”.

The association has mandated Change Horizon to deliver its transformation programme by the end of August 2020 with a “revised governance structure and a fitter organisational set-up established”.

Last month, upon recommendations from a special Transformation Task Force composed of seven board members, TIACA’s board of directors has unanimously voted in favour of the plan to accelerate the programme.

TIACA chairman Steven Polmans said: “Our last executive summit in Budapest in November 2019 received incredibly positive feedback, which encouraged us to redouble our efforts.

“While the Covid-19 crisis forced us to slow down on our new initiatives, it has highlighted the crucial nature of air cargo for economies and society, the need for greater and more efficient industry collaboration and the relevance of TIACA’s mission to unite the air cargo community.

“It has also been seen by the board as an opportunity to speed up TIACA’s transformation journey to better support our members and the air cargo community moving forward.

“The new TIACA will emerge with a revised mission, strong values and clear strategic priorities, in keeping with the industry’s expectations. Our new TIACA will be fit for its new purpose, able to deliver its ambitions while maximizing the value of its membership for the air cargo community.”