WELL, I must come clean: I am a dyed-in-the wool aviation enthusiast with a roving eye for anything flying.
By Gerald Maguranyanga
My unerring eye has consequently discerned that the presently near-comatose national flag carrier, Air Zmbabwe, is back in the news for what seems positive and serious business for once.
The long-struggling parastatal has advertised in the media encapsulating what it wants in the detail-bare ad, for a brave soul; to be substantive managing director of the cash-deficient organisation.
The unmissable Air Zimbabwe (Pvt) Ltd ad, without much detail, forthrightly states the airline’s ambition to hire a character with attributes, inter alia, “dynamic and professional” to the position of managing director.
The ad though, of course, doesn’t bring to light the obligatory thick-skin specification and the talent to dexteriously duck incessant, poisoned arrows, mischievously aimed from all directions, but particularly from behind your back!
I am sorry, but it seems the position of managing director (MD) at Air Zimbabwe is a poisoned chalice. Every brave taker eventually succumbs to the darts and barbs and departs, unceremoniously, under a cloud; ravished, disappointed, disillusioned and energy-sapped! And, can a foreigner apply for the top aviation job in Zimbabwe?
Indeed, as well-said by NewsDay Business on March 15, the substantive MD will, among other things, critically oversee the decisive turnaround of the national airline through the provision of strategic direction, co-ordinating the company’s business activities by ensuring it is run profitably and professionally and developing a truly customer-focused culture.
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In my book, the two life-and-death words being profit and customer, probably in reverse order of importance not cronyism, tribalism, racism etc.
Of all the airline’s desires though, it will be an uphill task for the wanted MD to “develop a customer-centric culture that restores confidence to customers and all stakeholders”, as it is no secret that years of free-fall decline, fuelled by the near-free pricing of the hyper-inflation years, alleged poor management and persistent gross disappointment of thousands of clientele, has seen most previously loyal-to-a-fault customers curse and forsake the airline; swearing to never have anything to do with Air Zimbabwe, ever. Deliberately keeping the market informed with truth; not propaganda on progress and tackling any and all challenges timeously and head-on, may win back many previously aggrieved customers, as well as attract new loyal ones.
Attractive fares, as well as customer-loyalty reward programmes and an absolute, paying-attention-to-detail in all the resurgent airline’s interface with clientele, must play a part in the strategic turnaround.
The airline’s vision, mission and other key objectives are clearly spelled out; acting out each one to the letter is the litmus test for the incoming boss and every member of a presently demotivated staff. The days of sullen-faced, clearly old-and-angry cabin attendantor surly guy at the check–in counter are extinct.
Air Zimbabwe just has to look to the truly modern airlines for inspiration and best-industry-practice when it comes to recruiting and training vital cabin staff, the longest and most critical interface between any airline and customers.
I pray for the rising like a Phoenix of Air Zimbabwe. Maybe not for Air Zimbabwe to be an Emirates, Turkish, American, Virgin or Ethiopian; but just so that they can efficiently service local routes; your Victoria Falls, Bulawayo, Kariba and essential regional routes such as the cash-cow Harare-Johannesburg-Harare, Lusaka, Maputo, Gaborone etc and possibly open up Luanda where the economy, driven by inexpendable petro-dollars, is booming hastily.
It’s a no-brainer that your short regional and local routes are best-serviced by non-jet aircraft. In 2013, excessive fuel costs are an aviation business killer, where fuel can be an exasperating 50% plus of costs!
Modern fuel-saving aircrafts are not optional, but a must if our airline will stay afloat. Fuel costs have shot up exponentially over the years, and their upward trend is un-mitigated.
And then if there should be only one intercontinental route the national flag carrier should feverishly work to restart and service efficiently, on a daily basis, then it has to be Harare-London/Gatwick-Harare. London has always been a profitable route, not to mention a romantic destination, what with the thousands upon thousands of Diasporans now calling the UK home.
London is also such a historic route that Air Zimbabwe has to acquire truly-modern aircraft to ensure customer loyalty and profitable service. The current, faithful, long-haul servante Boeing 767-200 ER has outlived its attractiveness.
It over-skimps on in-flight entertainment, where the modern airliner has an elegant personal monitor that can dish an appetising hundreds of audio/video channels.
In addition, the modern airplane entertainment console is loaded with exciting games, crossword puzzles and so on. In-flight internet access is the in-thing, not to mention the ability to make/receive clear voice calls at 40 000ft above mean sea level. Welcome to the future! The customer is king! The time-worn cliché, in my opinion sums up age-old bonafide wise business practice! Business has always been, is, and will always be about the customer that parts with their, in most cases, hard-earned dollar.
Most dissatisfied customers don’t bother complaining about unsatisfactory service, arrogant and rude interface with a company. Why waste your breath when you have colossal power to help inflict the mortal blow by simply moving your priceless dollar elsewhere? It is comforting for the incoming MD that the airline’s sole shareholder, government, has “ring-fenced” the burgeoning $180 million-plus debt.
So he or she will have a somewhat clean slate to start from. And the news that Air Zimbabwe has acquired/bought/leased more modern Airbus aircrafts is extra good news. Let’s see these aircrafts cruising in the air where they belong, and start presenting stiff competition to all the airlines flying into Zimbabwe.
The new board, led by youthful business executive Ozias Bvute, more famous for leading cricket in its transformative years, has its work clearly cut out.
I feel its first strategy must be to find a way, somehow, of keeping its shareholder in check; the government is alleged to grossly interfere, impeding the day-to-day management issues. If there truly be “power in incumbency”, then maybe, just maybe, the man presently holding fort; long-acting, acting CEO, Innocent Mavhunga, may already have a foot in the door to the apex job.
He has, in my book, patiently, ably kept the wolves at bay;ensuring vital life-and-death mandatory airline audits were carried out and pacifying a restive staff, incoming new boss has his/her unappealing work cut out. It’s now or never for the airline. It’s time to walk-the-talk, and may the best man/woman get the Air Zimbabwe job!
lGerald Maguranyanga is an aviation enthusiast and trained pilot
