The Benefits of Diversity in Aviation and Aerospace

Diversity is a hot topic of conversation across every industry, though when it comes to the aviation and aerospace sector it seems as though the balance is universally one-sided. Studies by Data USA show that a huge 93% of pilots and flight engineers are male, and that 92.3% of these are white – this is clearly an issue that needs addressing. Before we can hope to reshape the balance of diversity in such roles as pilots, engineers and the executive level staff of the aviation and aerospace industry, we first need to outline and communicate the benefits of diversity across the industry and what it can bring to individual businesses and organisations.

A diverse representation of thoughts

The first benefit is simple – when you invite more people from all walks of life and backgrounds to be involved in an industry or in your business, they bring to the table different experiences, understandings, and perspectives.

It has long been understood that when the thought-process of a business remains the same, so too does its operational approach and the success rate and outcomes. By embracing diversity, whether it be bringing more women, those from different backgrounds, or those from different generations together, the outlook of the industry as a whole will gradually start to expand with new ideology and thus – hopefully – become even more successful.

Diversity is important to the modern-day candidate

Not only does diversity and inclusion check the boxes of your organisation’s ethical commitment to the workforce, but it also makes you a relevant and worthy potential employer to modern day candidates. Businesses and organisations across all industries are seeing the priorities of candidates and potential employees shifting, with diversity at the centre of some of the biggest conversations in recruitment.

Embrace diversity to ensure that your business is an attractive and enticing potential place to work.

Ensure you meet industry standards in the long run

Aviation and the aerospace industry cannot escape the rise of technology, marketing, communication, and all of the other consumer touchpoints of the 21st century – with all of these different roles and areas of focus requiring different skill sets and talents.

From the constantly changing task of modern engineering, to understanding the importance of communication within your executive team, diversity is one of the best ways of opening your internal skill set wide enough to accumulate the skills you need.

On top of that, a more diverse recruitment process will mean that you are better able to fill vacancies with high quality candidates – regardless of their gender or background.

A step towards removing unconscious bias

Unconscious bias exists in every corner of modern day society, with pre-existing ideologies and beliefs influencing the way we feel about certain things, people, and actions. While not all of these are negative when used in everyday life, when they filter into the workspace they can lead to outdated attitudes and a lack of collaborative ideas.

Inviting diversity and inclusion into your workspace is a way of showing a move away from unconscious bias, embracing the skills of women, older or younger candidates, and those from different ethnicities or backgrounds.

It shows the industry that your organisation or business is committed to collaboration and modernising your approach and can open new doors of opportunity for those businesses who strive to broaden their recruitment horizons.

How to increase diversity in your business

From anonymous first-stage applications for vacancies, to increasing your focus on talent building earlier on in the lives and careers of potential candidates – there are many ways that aviation and aerospace industry leaders can change their recruitment model to become more inclusive and diverse. Some of these include:

Bringing in a third party recruitment advisor to help remove the unconscious bias of your hiring process, and put diversity at the heart of the process
Creating non-discrimination policies to provide a roadmap of change to internal staff
Gain buy-in from top level executives, to ensure your business is cohesive in its approach
Partner with schools and other groups for young people to nurture the idea of aviation and aerospace as a future career

Diversity in Aviation & Aerospace: Summary

It is clear that diversity in the workplace can be massively beneficial for all industries, this is especially true in the aviation and aerospace space. Although many businesses have a long way to go, it is positive to see that industry leaders are starting to make changes to their recruitment process to ensure diversity throughout.

For further information on Oaklands Global Executive Search please email: info@oaklandsglobal.com

by William Finden

About the Author: William Finden is the Founder and MD of Oaklands Global. He is a seasoned executive search and recruitment specialist with over 16 years of experience, dedicated to the international aviation & aerospace markets. William leads Oaklands Global’s C-Suite practice and has had a successful career delivering at the executive level for a diverse portfolio of clientele including Business Jet Operators, OEM’s, MRO’s, FBO’s Airlines and Rotary businesses. To learn more about how William can assist with your next career move or to discuss your next director level hire please contact him by email: william.finden@oaklandsglobal.com