During the critical phases of a flight – the take-off and landing, the time when the aircraft is below an altitude of 3,000 metres – nothing and no one should distract the cockpit crew. This means that private conversations, as well as eating and reading, are prohibited. So if you are a pilot or managing a project in a critical situation, it is better to keep all communication concise and to the point.
However, the opposite is true if you are part of a team working on an important project:
The more critical the situation, the more you need to communicate with each other.
And if there is no one internally who knows what to do, i.e. the pilot is temporarily absent, then it is best to talk to someone who knows what is going on, such as our colleagues in the Project Management & Consulting (PM&C) department.
They always have a plan for what to do next – even if the project has been hit by severe turbulence. Our experienced project managers can take over the controls at any time and hand them back when the plane – i.e. the project – is back at a safe altitude. In other words, managing projects. For a time.
Staying calm. Even when others around you are not thinking straight.
For example, we are often asked to step in for a key person who has previously had control of the situation. Or when a company would like to accept an order for a special or prototype project, but does not have the permanent internal structures or proper expertise in the company to do so. Then they bring our PM team on board. Regardless of whether the project is still waiting at the gate, has been cleared for takeoff, is taxiing to the runway, or has landed safely. The tasks we cover and the expertise provided then depend on the briefing and the framework conditions.
We offer a wide range of expertise: Organising, supporting and managing suppliers, creating schedules and production plans, monitoring and adapting as required, coordinating different production sites and taking over production start planning, working with purchasing, organising, controlling and tracking logistics (worldwide) – even when it comes to transporting consumables and/or hazardous goods from the EU to a non-EU country, among other things. Or keeping an eye on production and managing personnel planning or the deployment of employees. In short, we slip into whatever roles we are required to, whether a pilot, co-pilot, cabin crew or air traffic controller. We coordinate the situation and get to grips with things with our proven "hands-on" mentality.
But enough of theoretical metaphors. In recent years, we have been able to support several projects with interim project management, two of which directly relate to aviation. One contract involved the construction or the redesign of a flying drone. We set up the structures in the project for over a year, managed them operationally and continued right through to personnel planning. The other project involved the development of a composite rotor. In this case, we got the project off the ground to the right altitude despite all the organisational challenges (and aforementioned tasks). But in reality, we can manage any project, regardless of the industry.
So, if you also have a project that – for whatever reason – is in a precarious state, or if you are considering whether and, above all, how you should approach a special or prototype project, then do not hesitate: pick up the phone and who knows, maybe we will see you soon in the cockpit.
