1. Simplifying the Business Technology that drives industry change
Hou Kan
Assistant Director, IATA
Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon and welcome. It’s a privilege to be here and to share with you the perspective of IATA’s Simplifying the Business programme on technology transformation. Launched in 2004, the vision of StB is to change the way the industry operates by cutting costs and improving service.
This session is about technology that transforms our industry. But sometimes, that technology or ideas aren’t new; they have been around for a long time, and are quite simple to articulate, but notoriously difficult to implement.
September 14, 2009
Beijing

2. This crisis is an opportunity…
We have the opportunity to rethink the way we work
“Never waste a good crisis.”
In times of crisis, it is a reflex to retreat, scale back, look inwards, keep your head down and move purely into survival mode.
But I challenge you to reject that reflex. Because out of every crisis comes opportunity. Right now we have an opportunity to rethink the way we do business . That means you have an opportunity to lead change at your organisations.
As the Malaysia Airlines CEO, Idriss Jala, said at the IATA AGM, “never waste a good crisis.” Now is the time for innovation, for rethinking the way we work, for achieving a step-change in our cost structure and in the service we provide to the travelling public.
In times of crisis, it is a reflex to retreat, scale back, look inwards, keep your head down and move purely into survival mode.
But I challenge you to reject that reflex. Because out of every crisis comes opportunity. Right now we have an opportunity to rethink the way we do business. To rethink the role of technology in our organisations. That means we all have an opportunity to lead change at our respective organisations.
And instead of looking inwards, we need to look to each other. Let’s ask ourselves these questions: How can we as an industry change the way we operate? Where does it make sense for the industry to work together to deliver cost savings and better service to our customers? What common industry standards exist that we can make use of?
At the IATA AGM in June, the then CEO of Malaysia Airlines, Datok Seri Idris Jala, said it best - “never waste a good crisis.”
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3. … to give passengers what they want
Would you favour airlines to provide the passenger with more self-service options? 70
Yes No 60
Don’t know 50 40
percentage 65 30 55 57 54
That was the industry side of the equation. Now let’s look at the customer side. Passengers want more self-service options. According to the 2009 IATA CATS (Corporate Air Travel Survey), more than half of all passengers - regardless of region - want to experience more choice, convenience and control when they travel.
How we can use technology to rethink the way we do business and at the same time give the customer what they want - creating a win-win situation for everyone? 20 30 31 31 24 10 14 15 12 11
Americas
Europe
Africa/Middle East
Asia Pacific
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4. How do we do that using technology?
Collaboration between industry parties is more relevant than ever
At StB, our projects aren’t IT projects - they are business transformation projects where technology plays a key role
What role does technology play in StB?
Technology plays a critical role in the StB programme. Automating processes and providing more self-service options to customers is dependent upon clear, defined technical standards and recommended practices. But let me be clear: our projects are not IT projects. They are business transformation projects where IT plays a key role. For example, our ET project wasn’t about the technology. The ET project was about addressing a business problem – namely high distribution costs and inconvenient customer service – using a technology that was 10 years old.
Standards, in our view, make the world go round. They are central to what we do and central to the ability of the industry to operate globally. And it’s the flexibility our standards provide - and the room for customisation they allow the industry - that creates the adoption necessary for global change.
Simplifying the Business provides opportunities for us to work together, as an industry, to deliver the change we need. The programme’s four current initiatives have the potential to save the air transport industry US$10 billion every year:
BCBP eliminates costly magnetic-strip boarding passes, and offers more choice for passengers: they can be accessed via the web, a kiosk, a check-in desk or even a mobile phone. 100% BCBP by the end of 2010 is IATA’s next big mandate, saving the industry up to US$1.5 billion every year.
The Fast Travel programme gives passengers more control over their journey by introducing self-service options in four areas: bags ready-to-go (bag registration), document scanning, self-boarding and bag recovery (lost bag registration). Fast Travel can save the industry up to US$1.6 billion every year.
BIP will recommend baggage mishandling solutions that, when implemented, will cut mishandling in half by the end of That will save the industry up to US$1.9 billion every year.
IATA e-freight takes the paper out of air cargo - replacing paper documents with electronic messages, allowing for faster, more reliable air freight, saving the air cargo supply chain up to US$4.9 billion every year.
BCBP: 100% by 2010, US$1.5 billion in savings
Fast Travel: more self-service for passengers, US$1.6 billion in savings
BIP: cutting mishandling in half by 2012, US$1.9 billion in savings
IATA e-freight: paper-free air cargo, US$4.9 billion in industry savings
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5. For more information, visit the StB website
Simplifying the Business Ó International Air Transport Association 2009