From a young age Collin Stannard had a fascination with airplanes. He combined his fascination of aviation with my interest in all things mechanical and chose to become an AMT.
He attibutes his speedy career growth to mentors including what he learned from his father like a hard work ethic and patience. Dan Podojil, who was his direct manager but has recently taken a new position within the company, has taught him what it means to really put the customer first, changing his understanding of an MRO that "aircraft maintenance is just a byproduct of interactions with customers and what we sell is customer service." And last but certainly not least, his wife.
Stannard started his aviation career with Gulfstream in Savannah, GA. He began as a mechanic in the service center working on G450’s and G550’s and moved on to the G650 production line performing final checkouts before delivering them to the test pilots. After his first child was born, his family moved to Indianapolis, IN, his hometown, to work for Comlux Aviation. He worked in the MRO on the Bombardier product line, from Lear 60’s all the way up to the Global Express. Less than two years later, he was offered the position of operations manager with Constant Aviation in Cleveland, OH. His job duties vary from being the customer's single point of contact to performing employee performance reviews. "There are even times that I roll up my sleeves to turn a wrench or perform scheduled inspections to help with meeting a customer's out date," he says. "I may be in charge of managing up to eight projects at at time including customer updates and approvals, outside services, vendor relations, the finances of work orders, manpower adjustments and priorities, hangar space and loading, and facility appearance and cleanliness."
He received his training from American Trans-Air Aviation Training Academy and Purdue University. Advanced training includes FlightSafety training on the Gulfstream G550, factory training on the G650, Challenger 604/605 training at Bombardier in Montreal, and Airbus A319-321 Gen-Fam training.
He was nominated by Dan Podojil, vice president, customer experience, Constant Aviation: "In a field that is driven by safety and quality, Collin responds to the requirements that have been established for him by the company leadership and the industry regulations. In addition, Collin has showcased innovation through how he accomplishes tasks with an emphasis on efficiency. Since time management is a highlight feature of Collin’s success, he has suggested, designed, and implemented process improvements. One recent example involves how the maintenance operation and the parts sourcing departments work in unison. Collin and his team designed a more effective system for sharing information to decrease downtime which ultimately provides more customer satisfaction. At Constant Aviation, we emphasis the importance of culture. We work with team members to establish a workplace where employees are valued and appreciated. Collin is fully aligned with our vision. He is a leader whose impact can be seen and heard by colleagues and customers alike."
As to future goals, Stannard says, "I am driven to be the best at what I do and to grow and take on new challenges over time. Ultimately, I’d like to assume more management responsibilities and get involved in product strategy and market analysis and forecasting."
