FULL CREDIT TO IATA

Tucked away in exclusive Geneva in neutral Switzerland, IATA used to operate exactly like a Swiss bank. It appeared to wield huge power over the airline industry by being a faceless almost clandestine organization. All its executives were chauffeured around in limousines and they flew first class around the world staying in the “poshest” of hotels. The fat cat boys from IATA, working in almost obscurity, were the envy of the industry for their lifestyle. However, in spite of, this exclusive club did a magnificent job for years creating an image for its member airlines that actually served it well, in fact very well. Unfortunately because of the financial turmoil the industry has suffered over the last twenty years, IATA has been forced in a way to reinvent itself and reinvent itself, it has.

What a great job the new regime has accomplished. From being virtually exclusive, it has become totally inclusive. Today IATA executives are a smart and much focused lot who work with their sleeves rolled up, not like their predecessors, who in the main appeared to be products of Oxford and Cambridge Universities with that old fashioned “civil service” appearance and mentality. Here is CII, a very small forwarder by world standards and at least three times a week I receive communications, not only from the local CNS, but guess what? From Geneva also! IATA has access to mountains of information which is most helpful to our business and it is to their credit they wish to share their knowledge in a very useful way.

Every week I receive a précis of what is going within the airline industry from their Chief Economist. Monthly I am fed a more detailed version including graphs and charts which are presented in such a manner I don’t need to be a Ph.D. to understand the contents. I am still in awe from a cargo agent perspective how they have grabbed hold of Cargo 2000 and reinvented the program. I am hooked on the value of this initiative and believe all forwarders should be participants. I admire IATA’s passion attached to making airfreight a paperless society through E-Freight. Once this becomes the norm, it creates huge benefits for airlines and forwarders and draws the industry closer together.

Thank goodness in these dark times, we have an industry body that projects rays of sunshine that tell us we truly do have a great future.

Tags: Cambridge, Cargo2000, Geneva, IATA, Oxford, Switzerland