Rivals snap up Changi Airport staff

The boss of Changi Airport's investment and consultancy arm has quit, joining the ranks of about 120 people who leave the organisation every year - many bound for up-and-coming airports in China, India and the Middle East.
While Mr Chow Kok Fong - who goes on leave from today - told The Straits Times he had no immediate plans, industry watchers said he would be much sought after by talent-hungry foreign airports.
Mr Liew Mun Leong, chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), which runs Changi Airport, recently told reporters that competition in the fast-growing airport sector is fierce.
'It's no secret that they - airports in the Middle East, India and China - are taking our staff,' he said. 'It's warfare.'
At 6 per cent to 7 per cent, the annual attrition rate is 'not alarming', said a CAAS spokesman, pointing out that it is below the 8 per cent average for statutory boards.
But experts say the brain drain is worrying because many who leave are mid-level to senior staff with invaluable first-hand experience at running one of the best-managed airports in the world.
Headhunters from India have also landed at Changi, recruiting for infrastructure giant GMR Group, which is leading the consortium tasked with building and running new airports in New Delhi and Hyderabad.
08/08/08 Karamjit Kaur/Straits Times, Singapore

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Aug 2008, Foreign Aug 2008