Capt. Michael Varney & Dr. William Cox
Captain Michael Varney, Managing Director, EBT Foundation
Mike presented his idea for what ultimately became EBT to IATA in 2007, and this resulted in the creation of an international working group which he led until the publication of ICAO Doc 9995 in 2013. Mike and his team are now engaged in supporting the implementation of EBT worldwide, with operators, ATO’s and regulatory authorities.
Mike’s career began in the Royal Air Force flying fast jets, followed by time as an airline pilot as commander on the Boeing 757/767. He spent eight years with the UK Civil Aviation Authority in operations and training oversight also flying the Airbus A319/320/321 and A330, before joining Boeing (Alteon) and then Airbus in Toulouse. In his Airbus role of Senior Director Training Policy and Development, Mike began the EBT Project. Between 2009-2011 Mike worked for Mechtronix, now part of TRU Simulation + Training, who with IATA sponsored his activity in developing EBT. He returned to Airbus in 2011 assuming a senior role before becoming Head of Training Strategy for Etihad in Abu Dhabi. Mike is President of the EBT Foundation and a Director of the LOSA Collaborative.
Dr. William Cox, CEO, Management & Excellence SA (M&E)
Dr. William Cox is CEO of Management & Excellence SA (M&E) in Madrid and M&E Global Inc., in New York. M&E was established in 2001 with the support of the IE Business School, Madrid, and has pioneered calculating the financial impact of human processes on the risk and return of companies. These processes include everything from pilot and maintenance training in aviation to customer services and digital upgrades in banks and industrial companies. M&E’s SMART ROI™ and Value for Safety (VfS) services have been successfully applied in over 130 corporate client projects in most sectors, including for Pratt & Whitney, Hartford and Airbus.
Cox has regularly presented on training ROI at ICAO and Halldale events, including APATS, WATS and EATS, in addition to a host of financial and investor conferences in New York, Madrid, Hong Kong, Frankfurt and Sao Paulo.
Cox is author of six books and several hundred articles. He received his Ph.D. from the London School of Economics, a graduate degree in finance from the University of Oxford, two degrees from Boston University and a Certificate in Finance from Harvard Kennedy School. He was a Visiting scholar at Georgetown and Freiburg Universities. He is a member of Who´s Who Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
The Financial Impacts of EBT Training for Airlines
This presentation addresses two points:
1) How competency-based training such as EBT can significantly help pilots manage threats and avoid errors,
2) the financial impacts of better managing threats for the airlines, and how these support dealing with the consequences of Covid-19.
EBT (Evidence Based Training) provides learning tailored to meet individual needs, based on the development of underlying competencies. The application of learning provides for better managed outcomes when crews are faced with complex or unexpected situations. By accelerating the development of expertise in the flight deck through exposure to a huge variety of situations the aim is to increase cognitive capacity and provide better flight management overall. Data from mature EBT programs demonstrate greater levels of confidence and effective management in the flight deck, dealing with ATC threats, weather, interruptions and passenger issues in addition to aircraft malfunctions
Nine competencies, ranging from improved workload management to better communication in the cockpit are at the core of EBT. As a result, pilots are better able to successfully manage the “surprise” effect of unexpected events and stress situations which impact operational efficiency and safety.
Improved management of the flight through the application of EBT learning creates quantifiable financial impacts using a SMART ROI® approach. First, such factors as avoided delays, reduced fuel consumption and avoided ground costs reduce operating expenses and generate a cash Return on Investment (ROI) for the airlines per sector and time period (avoided costs).
Second, avoiding errors entails more resilient safety related processes and thus a higher institutional safety level of the airline. These data translate into a lower airline risk rate (discount rate) and therefore higher company value – a compelling investor story during Covid-19 times.
Calculation examples based on industry data will be presented to demonstrate how EBT and financial analysis synergize to help airlines operate more efficiently and safely.