NWBLT Career Insights with Chris Woodroofe
Tell us a little bit about your current role at Manchester Airport
As Managing Director, I am accountable for the day-to-day operations and commercial revenues of the airport and for the experiences of our passengers flying through the airport. I am also tasked with fostering the right culture, driving improvement and planning for the future, so that we can achieve our long term objectives: whether that is growing our business; achieving our ambitious sustainability targets; or cementing our role as a key player in a globally connected North.
The next big milestone for Manchester Airport is just around the corner – our £1.3bn transformation programme, launched in 2015, will complete later this year. This will see a significant change in the way our airport operates – the centre of gravity will shift to Terminal 2, with almost three quarters of our passengers experiencing its transformed infrastructure. I’m delighted that Terminal 2 has already won the prestigious Prix Versailles award for its architecture and design, very much putting Manchester Airport on a par with major international airports in capital cities across the world.
What’s the greatest challenge that you have faced in your career or as a leader?
It’s well documented that when I joined the business in the summer of 2022, we were emerging from a really tough period following the Covid-19 pandemic. We had to rapidly scale-up our operations and there were some negative headlines regarding passengers’ experiences, particularly in security and at baggage reclaim.
Our colleagues worked tirelessly on the frontline and, as we recruited additional team members and our airline and ground handler partners did the same, the experiences of our passengers improved significantly. We now have the shortest queues for security in our history and are achieving our best ever Net Promoter Scores (NPS) across our operations.
What does responsible business leadership mean to you?
As we build for the future, in a way that allows the airport to grow and continue connecting people across the North to the places they want to travel to, we have to ensure that we create a sustainable business. That’s why we are investing in infrastructure that will allow us to achieve our goal of becoming a Net Zero airport by 2038, 12 years ahead of the Government’s target, and working with partners across the industry to accelerate the transition of aircraft to Net Zero outcomes too.
Responsible business leadership is also about supporting our colleagues and our minimising our impact on our communities. We’re proud to have had more than 2,000 local school pupils visit our AeroZone educational centre in the last 12 months to learn about aviation careers. Equally, nearly 1,000 local adults who were long-term unemployed or lacked formal qualifications were given training and employability support at our Airport Academy last year.
As a business leader, what skills, values, and behaviours are you looking for in future employees?
We have a set of company values that we adhere to, fostering the kind of culture we know creates a great working environment for our colleagues, and that in turn helps them to deliver a great experience for our passengers. Some of these are linked to our wider business objectives but many are about the values and behaviours that we want to see, like ‘the power of teamwork’ and ‘people at our core’ – promoting collaboration and encouraging colleagues to proactively support one another and our passengers – and ‘safe hands’, which reflects the important role each and every one of our colleagues has to play in keeping a huge international airport operating smoothly and safely.
Through the NWBLT you are a mentor to future leaders – what have you learnt from being a mentor?
I have learnt that things like ‘imposter syndrome’ are not just experienced by people who come across as underconfident – they are experienced by some of the most successful people I know. I am the Exco Sponsor for our mental health awareness Colleague Community ‘Mind Matters’ and am incredibly passionate about removing the stigma associated with getting help with our mental health, like we would with our physical health.
What advice would you give to those thinking about their first career steps?
Your career is something you will grow over 40 years or more and, as such, you should seek to be intentional as you set off on your first steps, rather than falling into something out of convenience (I can recommend our jobs fairs if you want to see all the career possibilities aviation can bring). You’ll also spend a significant part of your week at work, so you need to enjoy what you do…perhaps not every moment of every day, but a decent proportion of them! Finally, you get to choose the path you take – you can make wrong turns, go back, try again and, within reason, jump paths from one discipline to another. Keep asking yourself if you’re being challenged – if the answers no, it’s time for a change.
If you could have any other role, in any sector, what would it be?
I have an enormous respect for our politicians – the vast majority work tirelessly on our behalf with little thanks or praise. As a Chemical Engineer, there is also some appeal for me to return to my routes and run a business perhaps linked to our country’s Net Zero ambitions. To be honest, though, I feel incredibly privileged to be Manchester Airport’s Managing Director.