Aug. 12, 2024
Volunteering for an industry organization, like NBAA, is a proven pathway to better managerial skills, an excellent venue for networking and a great way for professionals to contribute to business aviation’s continued success. That’s the word from an expert panel of business aviation veterans taking part in the NBAA Business Aviation Management Committee’s (BAMC’s) latest “Summer Learning Series Webinar, Developing Leadership Skills Through Volunteerism.”
“My life has completely changed because I raised my hand to volunteer early in my career. The people I met have become my best friends, and I now have a strong network of supporters from my volunteer experience,” said Jenny Showalter, founder and chief motivational officer at Showalter Business Aviation Career Coaching and a former chair of the NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Committee.
“As a career coach, I will tell you that about 80% of people will get a job through somebody they know in their network,” Showalter added. “I can’t think of another better way that I grew my network other than volunteering.”
Volunteering should be rewarding for both the volunteer and the organization, noted Chuck Stroman, CAM, assistant director of operations at Executive Jet Management and moderator for the BAMC webinar.
“Volunteering works best when you’ve got a passion for what you do. You’ve got to do what’s meaningful to you, or it can be difficult to stay motivated,” Stroman explained. “And that’s how you bring this up with your leadership or a volunteer organization. Tell them what you’re passionate about. Tell them what is meaningful to you. And take charge of it, take ownership of it and push forward. And that’s the easiest way to succeed in volunteering.”
5 Key Traits
Passion is one of five key traits that NBAA has identified in its volunteers, said Molly Hitch, the association’s senior manager of professional development. “You want people who are passionate about the industry as well as the mission, goals and values we are working toward together.
“Reliability is also key. If you do volunteer, know what your constraints are. If you have time constraints, family constraints, professional constraints, be sure what you can commit to and be upfront about that at the beginning of your volunteer journey,” Hitch continued. Teamwork, integrity and flexibility are also core values for successful volunteering, she said.
“If you need to work on an area in your career, volunteering is an opportunity to put yourself into a space and challenge yourself.”
Joe Barber CAM, Chief Commercial Officer, Clay Lacy Aviation
Volunteering allows you to hone your skills, too, noted BAMC Chair Joe Barber, CAM, chief commercial officer at Clay Lacy Aviation.
“If you need to work on an area in your career, volunteering is an opportunity to put yourself into a space and challenge yourself,” Barber explained. “You are able to practice leadership, communication tactics and all types of leadership skills in this space, all with a little bit lower stake than in your full-time job. And in my experience volunteering at NBAA, I see a lot of empathy for volunteerism, so there’s this element of forgiveness should things not work out exactly like you intended. There is a real value placed on the effort you put into volunteering.”
Volunteering can also boost your resume as well as your skill set, said Showalter. “If you see two resumes with similar skills and one has additional volunteering experience, something that shows this person has stepped out from their normal day job and done more, you’d be more inclined to look at the person who puts in that extra effort,” she noted.
Volunteering works at every scale, Showalter continued. “No one size fits all when it comes to volunteering and organizations of any size, whether local, regional or national, will likely be open to an offer.”
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.