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4 The airport environment is facing a shortage of individuals who can lead, guide, manage, and carry out airport-centric initiatives to support the aviation industry. In an environment where attracting, inspiring, and developing the airport workforce is becoming increasingly challenging, a vision for talent planning is needed. This is a crucial endeavor as we consider the negative economic impact of potentially diminished airport activities in our communities. Todayâs talent pool is looking for a dynamic career path, and the airport industry is filled with many vibrant career opportunities, but talent cultivation techniques and strategies that align the talent pool with the evolving needs of airports are needed. Previous research in the area of workforce development has created guidebooks and reports that, while helpful to the industry, should be augmented with readily implementable solutions. Different from a best practices guidebook, a playbook uses experiential and inspiring techniques to energize airport employees to embed talent cultivation within their organizational cultures. Purpose of the Playbook This Playbook provides inspiring, tested, and readily implementable techniques, or plays, for airport leaders and managers, to enhance talent cultivation and knowledge transfer within airport organizations, no matter their size or situation. The Playbook is designed for quick and easy application with key talent planning ideas that can be used by airports of different types and sizes, addressing all levels of the organization from entry level through leadership. The Playbook includes approaches that are tactical, strategic, and structural, and attention is given to strategies and techniques that focus on an organizationâs culture and workplace environment. Organization of the Playbook While airport leaders and industry stakeholders would likely benefit from reviewing this Playbook in its entirety, it is structured such that individual plays and topics can be used sepa- rately or in combination with other plays. Chapters 2 through 4 of the Playbook contain the three workforce challenge areas depicted in Exhibit 1. For each challenge area, a description and associated plays to address the challenge area are included. The plays in these chapters are intended to serve as step-by-step guidance for airports inter- ested in implementing the various approaches. A sample play format, including information on relevant airport types and stakeholders, is shown in Exhibit 2, with callout boxes that explain each section. Chapter 1 Introduction
Introduction 5  Exhibit 1. Talent cultivation framework. Needs Assessment The goal of this Needs Assessment is to understand where your airport/organization needs improvement around talent cultivation, which refers not only to teaching needed skills but also to creating a dynamic environment for airport employees and developing a culture that supports knowledge transfer and professional growth. Whether you are a beginner or an expert in promoting talent cultivation in your airport/ organization, the questions in the flow chart will guide you to inspiring, tested, and readily implementable plays that apply to your airport/organization and can help you enhance talent cultivation based on your unique needs. To use the Needs Assessment flow chart (Exhibit 3), start by answering the first question about the talent cultivation goal that is most pressing to your airport/organization. Each step asks a âYesâ or âNoâ question that, based on your response, leads you to the most relevant play for your airport/organization based on your talent cultivation goals.
Potential ways to identify a need for this play Play title Brief description of the play Detailed implementation steps Tools and resources to use when implementing the play Success story of an airport implementing a similar approach Exhibit 2. Sample play format.
Introduction 7  Potential obstacles and considerations when implementing the play Play adjustments to meet differing airport needs Key success factors to consider when implementing the play Metrics to measure the success of play implementation and related case study examples, where available Additional resources related to the play Exhibit 2. (Continued).
8 Playbook for Cultivating Talent in the Airport Environment Exhibit 3. Needs Assessment flow chart.
