A Well Balanced FBO Management Approach
/
Successful FBO owners and/or managers have a well-balanced management approach that is straightforward, easily understood and communicated throughout the organization.
In working with many FBO organizations over the years, we have found those that are the most successful have several traits in common that seem to standout; there are shared threads that connect the organization from top to bottom. These four traits are:
A sense of purpose
A desire to excel
A pervasive sense of trust
A shared passion
For this blog post series, we will focus on the first trait: A Sense of Purpose.
The best way to communicate a sense of purpose within an FBO organization is to develop a Mission Statement that can be shared with all stakeholders, including customers, employees, vendors and suppliers. By definition, a mission statement concisely defines an organization’s core purpose and values. It can serve as a guide post to help focus and motivate employees by connecting work to a larger objective.
We have found that the best mission statements involve input from employees at all levels. This can be done with a simple survey, and if desired, administered anonymously.
The answers to the questions may seem obvious, but the survey results may surprise you.
The questions asked can include:
A. Our Purpose
What is our purpose, the fundamental reasons why we exist as a company?
As an organization, what problems do we solve for our customers?
What is our main contribution or motivation to serve?
B. Our Service Delivery
How do we best serve our customers?
What makes our services unique, different?
C. Our Core Values/Philosophy
What are our fundamental beliefs?
What principles guide us and our organization?
D. Our Strengths
As an organization, what are our unique strengths?
What sets us apart from other FBOs?
E. Our Customer Promise
What can we promise our customers?
What can we do to make sure our customers come back?
Once results are received from the internal employee survey, crafting the mission statement is fairly straight forward. It should be short, concise and easily understood. Here is a sample mission statement.
“Our mission and purpose is to deliver the best possible service to all of our stakeholders and to add value to everything we do. We believe in anticipating our customers needs by delivering the right results in a timely manner. Our promise is to provide a safe and secure environment and to be an honest and valued source for solutions.”
After the mission statement is developed, it should be shared with all employees who made it possible. We’ve witnessed FBOs gathering all their employees together for a mission statement pizza party and presenting the mission statement as a team effort. A large copy of the mission statement can be printed and all employees sign during the pizza party and then posted in the customer lounge.
In addition, copies of the mission statement should be posted throughout the entire facility and included in the company website, used in correspondence such as customer emails and on social media posts.
In a follow-on blog post, we’ll discuss the next trait successful FBOs have in common: A desire to excel.
© 2025 ABSG/TJG
Please leave any comments you have about this blog post below. If you have any questions, please send us an email: John Enticknap, jenticknap@bellsouth.net; Ron Jackson, ronjacksongroup@gmail.com.
ABOUT THE BLOGGERS: John Enticknap is the founder of Aviation Business Strategies Group (ABSG). He has more than 35 years of aviation fueling and FBO services industry experience and is an IS-BAH Accredited auditor. Ron Jackson is co-founder of ABSG and president of The Jackson Group (TJG), a PR agency specializing in FBO marketing and customer service training. Visit the biography page or absggroup.com for more background.