Mohamed Khalil Ahmed chose the IATA Airport Strategic Management Diploma to enable him to better understand the aviation industry and reach his goals.
Bahrain Airport Services (BAS) was founded in 1977 to provide fully integrated airport services at Bahrain International Airport. Supported by approximately 3,000 staff, BAS is an ISAGO accredited Ground Service Provider which owns and operates four distinct business units: Airport and Ground Operations, Cargo Services, Catering Services and Aircraft Maintenance Services.
I hold a bachelor’s degree in architectural engineering which is a field far from aviation. When I joined Bahrain Airport Company (BAC) in 2012, I realized that specialized aviation training and education would complement my understanding of the air transport industry and provide me with the knowledge required to interact effectively with stakeholders.
I was interested in attaining a diploma-level certificate from a wellreputed aviation training provider, as I believed it would give me greater authority in my work. However, I also needed to fit studying into my already significant workload.
IATA’s reputation and the rich diversity of courses offered in the commercial field, that provide recognized qualifications, made choosing IATA Training easy. Additionally, as the Airport Strategic Management Diploma courses can be taken over a three-year period, it seemed to suit my workload.
I took four modules over two years: Airport Marketing and Corporate Communications, Airport Route Development and Commercial Management, Airport Financial Management, Airport Strategic Management with Business Simulation, and found the quality of the training to be excellent. I attended classes at IATA Training Centers outside of Bahrain, and the instructors who taught me were all exceptionally professional and knowledgeable.
This specialized Diploma enabled me to gain strategic management tools and analysis methodologies to address the key issues and opportunities in airport development and expansion, so I could sustainably manage operations and commercial units. There were many practical examples and case studies given during the training, whose scenarios we were able to relate to. This made it relatively easy to put what I learned into practice. And just having a diploma from IATA in the aviation field showed I was qualified for my job, which made my role easier and enabled BAC to showcase an executive management team with aviation-specific education.
Finally, adding this IATA Diploma to my management experience has positively impacted my career. It has enabled me to take on additional responsibility in other areas of aviation, including serving on the Boards of the BAC Jet Fuel Company during my tenure at Bahrain Airport Company and later on the boards of Bahrain Duty Free, SSP Bahrain and Bahrain Airport Services while serving as the Chief Business Development Officer at Gulf Air Group, and now as CEO of Bahrain Airport Services.
Download the outline to explore the diploma, its objectives and key topics.
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