Advertise on podcast: The Voices of Airports

Airport construction is everywhere! On this episode of Voices of Airports, we caught up with airport professionals at very different stages of their airports' construction journeys. Listen as Megan O'Connell, Assistant Director of Marketing, Communications and Guest Experience at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport; Eddie Clayson, Director of Airport Maintenance at Salt Lake City Department of Airports; and Bob Kerlik, Director of Public Affairs at Pittsburgh International Airport, share their tips and tricks for navigating the challenges of construction.

Welcome back to Season 2 of The Voices of Airports! In this highly anticipated season premiere, we sit down for an interview with our very own President and CEO, Kevin M. Burke, before he officially steps down from his tenure at ACI-NA. As he prepares to retire, Kevin pulls back the curtain on his remarkable career journey, leadership legacy, and hopes for the future of this organization!

Aviation professionals are always looking for ways to advance their careers, whether through leadership development or specialized industry knowledge. That's why ACI-NA created the U.S. Airport Professional (USAP) Program, designed to support growth at every stage of a career in aviation. As we wrap up USAP Month, the Voices of Airports podcast is shining a spotlight on the e-learning training curriculum that has benefited so many across the industry. In this episode, we sat down with Aneil Patel, Senior Vice President of Programs at ACI-NA and USAP Program Administrator, and Sabrina LoPiccolo-Kane, USAP, Manager of Marketing at the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, to discuss the program and its impact. For more information on the USAP Program, visit airportscouncil.org/usap.

Have you ever wandered through an airport and found yourself confused about how to sort your trash or why the guidelines seem to differ from one location to the next? In this episode of The Voices of Airports, we cover everything related to waste management at airports. From sorting your trash to handling waste arriving on international flights, the co-chairs of ACI-NA's Waste Management Working Group break it all down! Join us for a special earth day episode with BJ Carpenter, Airport Environment and Sustainability Officer at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and Morgan Turner, Owner & Principal at Airport Zero Waste Consulting.

Airports today face many challenges in attracting and retaining talent in a competitive market. The Airport Workforce Development Accreditation (AWDA) was launched by ACI-NA last year to help airports and aviation related organizations of all sizes roadmap their workforce development efforts. The AWDA program has 5 levels that ensure measurable progress and builds a sustainable framework for workforce development. During this episode of the Voices of Airports, we spoke with three individuals who represent different aspects program. We first spoke with spoke with Peter Gargiulo, the program administrator of AWDA, who shared the high level overview of AWDA. Next we spoke with two airports at different stages of their workforce development efforts. Listen to Gina Stough, Vice President, Human Resources at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Intl. Airport, and Jessica Lipton, Marketing & Communications Manager at Fort McMurray Airport Authority, share their experiences with the program. To learn more about AWDA, visit https://www.astrongerairportworkforce.org/.

Leaders in the industry help to inspire the next generation of aviation workers. On this episode of the Voices of Airports, ACI-NA spoke with two figures who are the forefront of making things happen. Listen to these leaders share how they got into the industry, their background before aviation, and what they hope for the future. This episode includes interviews with Tamara Vrooman, President and CEO, Vancouver Airport Authority and Justin Erbacci, Director General, Airports Council International (ACI) World. https://airportscouncil.org/education/conferences/

The Aviation industry is siloed but there are ways we can fix that! This episode of Voices of Airports is all about growing the workforce and breaking down those silos. One of the groups working to accomplish this is CU Denver, in partnership with DEN. CU Denver is about to launch its executive MBA in aviation, a program that combines a traditional executive MBA with all aspects of the aviation ecosystem. You will hear from program director, David Chandler, Associate Dean of Executive Programs at CU Denver Business School, and Matt Cornelius, Executive Vice President at Airports Council International - North America. Matt is also on the advisory board of the executive MBA in aviation. To learn more visit, https://business.ucdenver.edu/mba/emba-aviation.

We live in a world that thrives on satisfaction and airports are no different. There are many different ways that airports receive feedback and in an effort to improve and track the airport stakeholders, AirportNEXT was created. AirportNEXT allows individual airports to survey their airport, industry and community stakeholders and gain access to information that was not readily available from passengers. Join us for a conversation with two professionals who have been on each side of AirportNEXT. We have Paul Ouimet, the chairman of AirportNEXT and Kate O'Rourke, the Manager of Public Relations & Marketing at Fredericton International Airport (YFC). YFC was one of the first airports to participate in AirportNEXT.

Animals are PAWS-ITVELY the best but when you think of an airport, you don’t necessarily associate them with pets! However, the Wag Brigade at San Francisco International Airport is trying to change that by emBARKing on an important mission to make passenger travel more enjoyable. The Way Brigade brings certified stress-relief animals throughout the terminal to visit with all those who need it! On International Dog Day, we share our interview with the Wag Brigade from inside the terminal. These animals have a very PAW-SOME job at the airport and throughout our conversation, listeners will get to understand the role that they play in expanding the overall customer experience.

Have you ever wondered how airports are kept safe? On this episode of the Voices of Airports, we speak with three security professionals who have a passion for creating the safest airports. Join us for a conversation with Wendy Reiter, Director of Aviation Security and Emergency Preparedness at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, Scott Alexander, Director International Relations at Houston Airports, and Renee Tufts, Security Operations Manager at Charlotte Douglass International Airport. For more on the topic of security, join us for the 2025 ACI-NA PS&S/ACC Security Technology Conference in Arlington, VA on September 29. https://airportscouncil.org/conference/2025-aci-na-pss-acc-security-technology-conference/ To learn more about the rest of the ACI-NA Conferences, https://airportscouncil.org/education/conferences/.

New technology and infrastructure is vital to making sure that airports run smoothly and effectively. On this episode of the Voices of Airports, we are all in at Airports@Work. During the conference, we sat down with Daver Malik, the Assistant Aviation Director/Chief Development Officer at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) During this insightful conversation, Daver shares what is new with PHX, how new technology is support their airport growth, and the new ways that the airport leverages AI. https://airportscouncil.org/education/conferences/

Last month, Kevin Burke, President and CEO of ACI-NA, sat down with Justin Erbacci, Director General of ACI World, for an important conversation surrounding the role of ACI World, the biggest challenges facing airports, and what the industry must do to remain competitive. To hear more conversations like this sign up for the 2025 ACI-NA & ACI World Annual General Assembly, Conference and Exhibition taking place October 25 – 28 in Toronto! https://airportscouncil.org/conference/2025-annual-conference-and-exhibition/

We heard you wanted more MarComCX! In October 2024, The Voices of Airports caught up with a few special guests at the Marketing and Communications Conference. During this episode, we heard from Charles Schuler at SFO, Tawana Allen at MCO, Tiffany Chase at YHZ, and Angie Korcerka at CDA. All of these special guests are members of the ACI-NA MarComCX steering group and are doing very exciting things in the industry.

Do you know what goes into creating new airport restrooms? With the help of Paul Shank, the chief engineer at BWI, we will bring you along for the entire journey of building new airport restrooms at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. During this episode you will learn what goes into the creation of new airport restrooms, how they are built, and what the airport does to maintain them. Follow along to hear about these award winning restrooms!

Let's talk marketing and communications! During our time in San Francisco, CA for the 2024 Marketing and Communications Conference, we caught up with the MarComCX Committee leadership, Heather Shelbrack and Erin Burns, to discuss what is new with the committee and with their airports. We also got to speak with the 2024 Ted Bushelman winner, Justin Meyer.