Birmingham Airport's new MD has flying ambition
Feb 13 2009 By Ian Halstead, Birmingham Post
Paul Kehoe is the first CEO at Birmingham International Airport to be appointed externally. Ian Halstead met him.
Paul Kehoe suggests that serendipity has been the catalyst for his impressive career path, and it’s a measure of the man’s easy charm that you almost believe him.
Outlining one’s achievements with the necessary conviction, whilst retaining the very British quality of self-effacement, is a tight-rope from which all too many public figures tumble.
However, it’s a challenge which Kehoe meets with good grace.
His CV is indeed impressive; with two decades of senior executive roles at BAe Systems, and a trio of major plcs; aviation services specialist Serco Group, airport operator TBI, and logistics provider DX Services.
Kehoe ran three sizeable British airports – Luton, Belfast and Bristol – before reaching BIA, and held senior management roles in Australia, the Far East and North America.
His appointment surprised some observers though, as the region‘s corporate gossips had rated the airport’s stand-in MD, Joe Kelly, a certainty for the new CEO position.
“The first time BIA’s head-hunters asked me to apply for the vacancy, I declined, as I thought it would go to an internal candidate,” admits Kehoe.
“The second time, I decided to apply, as I really did see it as the last great aviation opportunity in the UK. A lot of people thought Joe would get the position, but I didn’t find that awkward. I think the shareholders just wanted someone a little more outgoing, and a little more risk-ready.”
Kehoe’s proven ability to succeed in the corporate stratosphere will be crucial as the airport attempts to deliver its £120million runway extension, restructure its business model, and keep both its political and institutional shareholders content.
His diplomatic skills will be equally important, to placate the rag-tag alliance of affluent rural residents, perennial protestors and third-rate celebrities which sees airport expansion as the route to hell. However, Kehoe certainly won’t be taking the easy options.
“I’m not here to win a popularity contest, and I know there will be up days and down days. My simple goal is to deliver results for the shareholders, but in the wider sense, I have to make this hub into a wealth-generating vehicle for the region, which is obviously harder to fulfil,” he says.
A hint that Kehoe’s role models are characters with purpose and passion edges into the conversation, as he admits admiring the way Birmingham’s council leader, Mike Whitby, carries himself.
“I don’t know him as a person, but I do find him a charismatic figure, and also a very
