Sophie Lane • 01.08.24 • 5 min read

Chief Relationships Officer Sophie Lane celebrates the success of the UK technology showcase at Farnborough International Airshow 2024 and reflects on some personal learnings.

It’s one week on from a fantastic Farnborough International Airshow that came and went in a flash and left me exhausted but excited about the future of our industry. UK aerospace was front and centre throughout a packed show that allowed our sector to shine and set out a collective vision for the future.

After nearly nine months in the making, the ATI team delivered a sector-wide technology showcase that brought the UK aerospace technology strategy Destination Zero to life. We wanted to showcase the strength and depth of the UK aerospace supply chain, highlight the possibilities and opportunities for collaboration and inspire partnership. We worked with some partners who took a risk on our concept and ultimately reached an audience of over 1100 in person and many more through our social media outreach. Our visitors engaged with the content and our theatre presentations which also allowed us to direct them to other UK stands, and we delivered a strong message to the new government on aerospace as an engine for growth. I’m proud of the impact and grateful for the positive feedback we have received but it wasn’t all plain sailing and as I reflect on the whole process there are three main areas of personal learning on leadership that I have taken away.

Having a vision is just the start

You also need to be able to sell that vision to others, you need to translate it into deliverables and you need to surround yourself with people who are committed to making it a reality. Inspiring that commitment in others is difficult. It requires that they take a leap of faith, that they invest time, perhaps money, into your vision. It requires consistency and focus on the outcomes and a very clear message. Achieving the vision is about the team you build around it. I’m so grateful to the ATI team and our partners who bought into my vision of a sector narrative and also to Farnborough International who trusted us to bring it to life. Without their buy-in we couldn’t have made this leap into a whole new format for showcasing UK capability and reaching a wider audience including more than 250 visitors during the Pioneers of Tomorrow day.

A snapshot isn’t the whole picture

There’s no doubt about it – there’s a lot we couldn’t represent in the space. There is so much capability in the UK that it was hard to choose the right areas to highlight and companies to work with.. If money and space had been no object (and possibly time!) there are so many more brilliant and inspirational projects in the UK that deserve a mention. I am always looking for those stories, capabilities and organisations that I can talk about when I am meeting delegations and engaging with partners and I encourage you to get in touch to share them.

The ATI wants to celebrate all of the diversity and innovation in our entire ecosystem but we only know what we know, so don’t be shy and share what you are doing so we can work with you in future. The ATI Awards, which close tomorrow, are another great opportunity to tell your story so get your nominations in before it is too late! www.ati.org.uk/awards

Be bold and take risks

The discussions at the UK technology showcase last week centred on partnership and new opportunities have opened up as a result. Collaboration and partnerships are going to be key to achieving Net Zero and increasing market share and that is going to mean working together in new ways and taking risks. Sometimes they will pay off and sometimes they won’t, but unless we are bold, our ambitious targets may prove unattainable.

Now, as I look ahead to the ATI Conference in October and beyond, I am proud of what we as a sector have achieved but fizzing with ideas about how much more we can do. I’m looking forward to developing a more granular understanding of UK capability and continuing to work with partners to celebrate our strengths. The sector focus on innovation and Net Zero is a clear driver for economic growth and I am excited about the role that ATI will continue to play in supporting that.