More than 40 senior human resource management delegates from airlines around the world attended the 64th Annual Conference of Airline Personnel Directors’ Council (APDC) hosted by Qatar Airways in Doha.
The two-day conference discussed issues and challenges facing HR practices in their respective businesses, as well as those that affect the industry collectively.
The event gave Qatar Airways an opportunity to share the successful business model that has been built during the 16 years it has been in operation with airlines from around the world. The Doha-based carrier shared its experiences and challenges with some of the legacy carriers that have been around for 60 years or more.
Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar al-Baker opened the event, and talked about the airline’s dramatic growth and Qatar’s dynamism in undertaking scores of infrastructure projects.
He said: “We are not retrenching, but recruiting on an unprecedented scale. It is not about being the biggest airline or taking market share, it is about being the best at what we do in all areas to attract customers and
employees alike.”
He added that as part of its recruitment drive, Qatar Airways is hiring Qatari nationals to train and develop them as future leaders.
Al-Baker also highlighted some of the HR challenges faced by the Doha-based airline that comes with growth and recruitment. “Our workforce of over 150 nationalities works in different disciplines within the airline and our subsidiaries. English is a second or third language for the majority of Qatar Airways’ workforce, so undoubtedly proving a challenge as English is the working language across the industry.” He added that the Qatar Airways HR department was working hard to address these challenges. “As a Qatari organisation that proudly preserves its Arabic culture and heritage, Qatar Airways is ultimately a global network airline.”
Al-Baker said that with a total order of over 250 aircraft worth more than $50bn and a route network growing by more than 12 new destinations each year, the job opportunities are enormous. The Qatar Airways Nationalisation Programme has focused on designing development programmes to create distinctive experiences for Qatari students, graduates and professionals to make them proud of
Qatar Airways’ success story.
Qatar Airways CEO Akbar al-Baker along with the delegates at the conference.
