Originally Posted by
Dehavillanddriver
Not sure who you were thinking of but the one I spoke to was well regarded by most as far as I can tell
Too many good people who could have taken that company into a fit financial state and contributed exponentially to its success were cast aside.
People I've known and trust in the industry who were a dead-set coup for VA to obtain and have work for them, even in project roles, because of their depth of experience and proven track record, were disposed of after being attacked by the incompetent, know-nothing 'high school' mafia (meaning mostly sh-t kickers straight out of High School who know nothing) and highly qualified 'Advisors' (qualified in highly aviation related academic pursuits such as 'arts'). I'm not against academia at all, I believe the purpose of any tertiary area of study is more about expanding a person's mind than the resultant qualification, teaching them to think outside the box so to speak. But, while those people existed in the past, they were always tempered and their influence ameliorated by professional airline people who knew the business, knew the mechanics of how it all fit together and had a grasp of what industry they were in.
Now, anything goes. Some of the people I've seen over the years came into senior positions with direct affect on operational performance and decision-making who's sum total aviation experience was working in the gaming room at a casino, being a crew trainer at McDonalds or working in a retail chain. Not that those people can't make good airline employees eventually, but you start them at check in or marketing, not as the head of a major department that has an affect on people's lives.
I suspect it's not just airlines though, but all through industry. Once narcissists and Dunning-Kruger types got into some positions of power, down went the quality of leadership and up went the salaries and the extent to which seriously senior people were utterly out of their depth. People who's ego runs a mile wide and their substance about a millimetre deep.