Within the airport industry, reactive workforce planning has become the norm but it comes at a steep price for airports with staff issues, service disruptions, and unsatisfactory passenger experiences being the most common symptoms of inadequate planning. In the fast-paced and complex airport environment, reacting to problems as they arise may seem like the only option, however, the long-term consequences are far more damaging than many airports realise.
In an industry where safety, reliability, and efficiency are paramount, airports simply cannot afford poor service delivery.
The Hidden Costs of a Reactive Approach
Staff Issues
A key part of workforce planning is ensuring you hire the right people for the right roles. When inadequate hiring takes place, the entire workforce suffers. Staff become overworked leading to potential burn out, overtime staffing budgets skyrocket, and morale suffers leading to high turnover. Inevitably, an incredibly expensive and disruptive continual cycle of recruitment and training occurs.
Service Disruptions and Passenger Experience
In today's competitive environment, airports need to protect their reputation more than ever. With a fatigued and frustrated workforce, airports begin to experience inefficient service delivery. Passengers wait in long queues, processing is delayed, and their trust and loyalty for the airport plummet.
Missed Opportunities for Optimisation
When an airport is stuck in reactive planning, Managers are left with no choice but to make blind, rushed workforce decisions. They're so focused on getting through each day that they miss opportunities for optimisation, like training staff, using talent more effectively, or planning for staffing changes.
Why It Keeps Happening in Airports
Airports are busy hives of activity. The day-to-day functions are complex and operations run 24/7. Combined with legacy administrative systems that bury critical workforce data, airports are prone to making last-minute decisions based on outdated information or assumptions.
A New Approach: Strategic Workforce Planning
The good news is a better way is available. Klayo is a purpose-built Talent Management and Strategic Workforce Planning platform that helps airports understand their workforce and put the right people in the right roles, every time.
Klayo's job benchmarking and talent management tools mean airports can recruit and retain top performers with precision and confidence. This leads to a workforce that feels valued and are equipped to perform at their best.
With Klayo, airports gain a clear, real-time view of their workforce, making it easy to align strategy with passenger forecasts and future demand. The platforms visibility into skills across departments fosters cross-team collaboration and enables flexible resourcing, so the right skills are always where they’re needed most.
In a nutshell, Klayo helps airports move beyond reactive workforce planning and into proactive leadership.
Stop reacting, start leading. Discover how Klayo makes workforce planning a strategic advantage.
