The latest round of making airports more “passenger friendly” reflects what social scientists have long known about the way organizations adapt its goals and internal means in order to survive. The newest policy changes and pilot studies reflect this attempt. But will they work?
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| Source: TSA |
Reality: they are still viewed as “mass production” units whose operations are based on industrial production techniques utilizing cutting edge technology.
In terms of security, passengers are viewed as an integral part of the mass production process where effective output relies on tighter “controls!” Passengers are not viewed as people but cogs in a complex machine.
But how do these two opposing views fit into what airport organizational administrators need to do in order to survive?
Today, the answer seems to be a repetition of the mass production perspective! Rather than revamping the airport into a people servicing organization, we see the same reliance on production techniques and “control.”
But people are not cogs in a mass production factory, they are customers who want a service. When this message gets through, perhaps the decision makers will start to think in terms of making security a part of the service package along with duty free malls and parking facilities which are customer oriented and have been proven to be both profitable and attractive.
*The writer is the initiator and coordinator of BEMOSA (Behavioral Modeling of Security in Airports).
Since 9-11-2001, I have changed how I look at air travel. Not because of the potential terrorist threat, but primarily based on the hassles of airport security. I have a choice if I am not in a hurry, and am willing to drive or take a train even if it takes 24 hours to get there, because flying now is an all-day affair anywhere in the country.
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