Airport.

[littlebushy]

1 hour ago, Banker said:

Well Couch did have a medical degree so assume that counted towards his experience of health 

So does Harry Hill. Would you want him running the health service.

 

 

Qualified the same year incidentally...

[hissingsid]

I thought his degree was in physiatristics.

[Gladys]

Just now, hissingsid said:

I thought his degree was in physiatristics.

WTF is physiatristics?

[Ghost Ship]

I think Harry H made it up.  As a joke...  Or maybe it wasn't a joke...

[Ghost Ship]

23 minutes ago, Shake me up Judy said:

Tom Corlett you're thinking of. Ex fighter pilot too I think (?). Airport Director in the 1970s when there were far more daily flights in the summer months.

That's the man.

[Gladys]

5 minutes ago, Ghost Ship said:

I think Harry H made it up.  As a joke...  Or maybe it wasn't a joke...

I thought Hissing Sid was referring to Malcolm Couch.  I thought Harry Hill was a neurosurgeon/practitioner of some kind. 

[Ghost Ship]

17 minutes ago, Gladys said:

I agree that there are very competent and able locals, but the world has changed. There is a higher degree of technical input to most high level CS jobs and most public services are run on a private sector commercial basis.  There was once a belief that a good manager can manage any department, being a good manager or administrator was all that was required. 

That was true at one time, but not now where many parts of government are required to operate on a quasi-commercial basis.  It is no longer enough to define a cost budget for the year and stick to it, many areas also have to also generate revenue and have a business plan.

There is nothing wrong with that as a concept, but it also requires a different type of civil servant.  It requires someone with a high level of commercial acumen and a deep understanding of the operational aspects of the area they are running as well as understanding the civil service imperatives.  That is a pretty unique combination that isn’t met by the traditional 'good' civil servant or someone shipped in from the private sector. 

Again, I know what you mean, but my experience* tells me that you still need good general administrators to run any operation efficiently.  Technical knowledge and expertise is definitely needed somewhere at the top, but don't let them interfere with the general running of anything.

I've not been back to the island for over ten years so I don't know, but it sounds like Ronaldsway has been run recently by people with little technical expertise and no general organisatinal skills.

*I've seen highly skilled, competent and gifted clinicians make a complete balls-up of the most basic organisational tasks.

[Ghost Ship]

1 minute ago, Gladys said:

I thought Hissing Sid was referring to Malcolm Couch.  I thought Harry Hill was a neurosurgeon/practitioner of some kind. 

Now you've got me wondering.  Bugger.

[2112]

5 hours ago, Twitch said:

And mates with the boss.

Well ex CM Quayle when he was Department of Health and Social Care Minister set the standard, when he appointed Mark Charters. It helped if you ride a motorcycle!

[Gladys]

6 minutes ago, Ghost Ship said:

Again, I know what you mean, but my experience* tells me that you still need good general administrators to run any operation efficiently.  Technical knowledge and expertise is definitely needed somewhere at the top, but don't let them interfere with the general running of anything.

I've not been back to the island for over ten years so I don't know, but it sounds like Ronaldsway has been run recently by people with little technical expertise and no general organisatinal skills.

*I've seen highly skilled, competent and gifted clinicians make a complete balls-up of the most basic organisational tasks.

For those reasons, running something like the airport needs someone who:

a. Understands what a public sector organisation has to do including budgets as well as business plans.

b. Has commercial ability but understands how that needs to be tempered by the public service aspects. 

c. Understand the technical aspects of running an airport, including aviation and security compliance, as well as the other general management stuff.

So, yes, a good administrator could do it, but they also have to understand the technical aspects to be effective and also be able to sniff out bullshit or incompetence of those with the disciplinary responsibility reporting to them, or even to understand what they are being told. 

A good pilot is not necessarily a good airport manager, just like a good  doctor is not necessarily a good hospital director.  Nor is someone with a fervent belief in some area of social good necessarily going to be a good director of a charity (and also the reason why many charities fail). 

As I said, the public sector in many areas now requires managers/directors with quite a different set of skills to be effective.  That often requires experience elsewhere.

So, my question remains who on the island is qualified for the job? 

[Gladys]

18 minutes ago, Ghost Ship said:

Now you've got me wondering.  Bugger.

I could be wrong, but I am sure he referred to his medical discipline as being something neuro - I hesitate to say brain surgeon, but it was that kind of thing. 

[hissingsid]

I was referring to MR Crouch 🤣 as a man dealing with brain disorders rather than a general physician .

[littlebushy]

37 minutes ago, Ghost Ship said:

I think Harry H made it up.  As a joke...  Or maybe it wasn't a joke...

His real name is Matthew Hall and yes, he is registered with the general medical council and holds a licence to practice. He is equally qualified as Couch! However, I don't believe Couch holds a licence to practice....

[Gladys]

3 minutes ago, littlebushy said:

His real name is Matthew Hall and yes, he is registered with the general medical council and holds a licence to practice. He is equally qualified as Couch! However, I don't believe Couch holds a licence to practice....

He helped out during Covid, I think. 

[Omobono]

1 hour ago, Shake me up Judy said:

Tom Corlett you're thinking of. Ex fighter pilot too I think (?). Airport Director in the 1970s when there were far more daily flights in the summer months.

Tom Corlett was a brilliant airport commandant as they were known then as   , had a real love for the job and knew all about flying and looking after customers , his son became the AG ,  lived in the   big bungalow  with purple tiled roof Ballasalla , 

Even Phil Payne who came much later had a feeling for the place and oversaw  the new passenger lounges opened by Nigel Mansell , he also did much to promote the private flying side and literally hundreds of flights from all over Europe and beyond , came here for the TT and really boosted the  local economy  from what I am led to believe we don't want private aircraft now for TT   there only a bloody nuisance , what a shame !