Employee Engagement Flying High
November, 2019
DFWs Transportation and Parking Business Unit
Active, aggressive and comprehensive Employee Engagement programs establishes the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) Transportation and Parking Business Unit as one of the premier parking and transportation organizations in the industry.
My military logistics experience was an ideal fit for the parking and transportation industry.
The Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) Transportation and Parking Business Unit (T/PBU) leverages a holistic process to achieve organization, development, and engagement targeting leadership and frontline development to enhance competitive advantage and optimize bench strength.
This approach has proven to maximize enthusiasm, innovation, job satisfaction, productivity and customer service delivery. The Employee Engagement Team aligns strategic key results and drives innovation. Team members of diverse backgrounds and talents endeavor to ignite collaboration, productivity, and morale.
This team ensures a smooth transition into and mobility within the airport, ease in finding available parking, and an efficient exit from the airport. The DFW campus spans 5 miles, offers five (5) public parking rate options with 40,000 public and 9,200 employee parking spaces, processing an average of 128,000 transactions through 117 lanes of parking equipment daily.
Managing 4.25 linear miles of terminal curbside, the PBU provides transportation solutions, way-finding and information for DFW’s 28 million annual originating and destination customers. A curbside realignment strategy was implemented in 2018. This initiative enhanced customer experience, safety and traffic flow while reducing congestion and emissions. The team monitors 5.6 million transportation company trips annually and ensures customer experience. Insurance and vehicle standards are maintained by all commercial transportation services operating at DFW Airport.
The T/PBU leverages Business Intelligence to analyze data, forecast market conditions and deliver reporting through mobile platforms enabling proactive intelligent business decisions and customer experience improvements. Guided by its Business Strategy, formalized in 2002, it is the largest source of non-aviation revenue for DFW Airport. It has maintained financial strength, remained cost competitive and ensured alignment with the DFW Airport Strategic Plan, Vision, Mission, Key Results and Beliefs.
The Business Unit provides on-airport mobility to DFW Airport’s customers and employees. With 175 vehicles, the T/PBU transports over 7.5 million customers and 6.3 million employees annually. As an intermodal facility, DFW Airport hosts a TEX Rail and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) station providing on-airport transportation between local municipalities and terminals.
The team provides off-gate aircraft enplaning/deplaning (hardstand) operations, which are considered by other airports as the one of the most innovative in the industry, employing seven oversized Cobus vehicles to move more than 150,000 people annually between the ramp area and terminals, a service which is forecasted to reach an excess of 200,000 in the very near future. It also supports the DFW organization, transporting people in support of organizational and community engagement events.
Strong employee engagement is key to the PBU’s success. T/PBU Management’s priority on employee engagement is imbedded in the knowledge that an engaged workforce optimizes and maximizes productivity, efficiency, effectiveness, creativity and accountability. This creates an environment where each individual contributor takes ownership and accountability for their contribution to achieving DFW Key Results and internalizes DFW Beliefs.
The T/PBU has established an Employee Engagement Committee composed of frontline employee volunteers whose goal is to create an environment that values, supports, and aligns employee engagement with the DFW Strategic Goals, Key Results, and Beliefs.
The Parking Business Group had an extraordinary year in 2018. Through the exceptional leadership of each manager and the tireless efforts of each team member, our team significantly contributed to the Parking Business Unit to achieve over $170M in parking and GT revenue in FY2018. Other accomplishments over the past two years included:
• The full implementation of the Parking Yield Management System that produced over $3M in revenue in FY2018.
• The most comprehensive Parking and Transportation Strategic Plan in the industry. The plan is a strategic roadmap for the next 10 to 15 years that outlines our path to accomplish long term strategic operational and revenue goals.
• The renewal of the Off-airport permits with an increase in percentage fees as outlined in the strategic plan.
• The creation of the first TNC operating agreement in Texas. The agreement created customer-centric operational aspects for the business in addition to percentage fee growth.
• A Curbside Reallocation Plan that outlines a successful reallocation of the curbside based on market share.
• Designation as an International Parking and Mobility Institute (IPMI) Accredited Parking Organization with Distinction
• 2019 IPMI Parking Organization of the Year
• 2018 Recipient of the National Parking Association (NPA) Innovative Parking Organization Award
• 018 IPI Parking Professional of the Year
• Maintains active memberships in multiple mobility organizations including IPMI, WIP, NPA, TPTA, AAAE, ACI, GBTA and AGTA.
• Leadership serves on the Boards of IPMI, WIP, TPTA and AGTA. Nine (9) staff members hold CAPP credentials.
This parking and transportation organization encourages and supports leadership and frontline development to enhance competitive advantage and bench strength through mentoring. Employees are directed to have an Individual Development Plan and encouraged to participate in a Job Shadowing Program, team building, participate on engagement committees to align strategic key results, motivation and drive innovation.
Leadership sincerely gives back to the employees and recognizing them for their accomplishments. Sincerity is very important because the staff and frontline employees can see through efforts that are not genuine.
The results of DFW PTBU comprehensive employee engagement program has proven that it encourages the employees to work with passion and provides them with a knowledgeable connection to the organization. This makes them feel fully absorbed and enthusiastic about the core business and they understand how their position affects the overall mission of the parking and transportation operation (The Big Picture). This was instrumental in their positive actions to further the organization’s reputation in the industry. Their job satisfaction has driven innovation and moved the organization to the next level. Remember, a satisfied and engaged employee is a happy and content employee.
Genuine leadership, consistent with sincere employee engagement, is a critical element to becoming a successful parking and transportation operation. Our employees are the bread and butter – the backbone, and the nucleus of our parking and transportation organization. Without motivated and engaged employees, having a successful parking operation would be extremely difficult.
