Building a Performance-Driven, Customer-Centric Culture for a Major International Airport & Aero City Developer
Transforming a legacy family-owned organisation into a world-class, professionally managed airport company capable of scaling from 20M to 65M passengers.
- International Airports & Aero City Infrastructure
- 1,000+
- South India
- Transition from family-owned to Private Equity–owned
Client Overview
A major international airport in South India—already handling 22 million passengers, exceeding its 20M capacity—was acquired by a Private Equity fund. The new ownership brought an ambitious vision:
- International Airports & Aero City Infrastructure
- 1,000+
- South India
- Transition from family-owned to Private Equity–owned
Transformation Goal
To deliver this transformation, the organisation needed to evolve from a laid-back, hierarchical, familial culture to a professional, customer-centric, performance-driven company.
- Expand capacity from 20M → 35M → 65M
- Build a commercial Aero City ecosystem
- Grow non-aero revenue streams
- Create a world-class aviation, cargo, and airline hub
Business Challenge
The airport’s legacy culture and operating style posed major risks to large-scale expansion:
- Strategic & Operational Challenges
- Managing rapid capacity expansion (20M → 65M)
- Delivering Terminal 2, runway expansion & commercial real estate projects
- Improving passenger experience and operational reliability
- Growing non-aero revenues significantly
- Cultural Challenges
- Strong clan culture: informal, relationship-based, low accountability
- Weak customer-centricity
- Limited performance focus and execution discipline
- Hierarchical decision-making
Engagement Objectives
Planet Ganges was brought in to architect and implement a full-scale culture transformation program:
- Measure and map current vs desired culture (OCAI)
- Run culture evangelisation workshops across leadership
- Define core values, behaviours & leadership principles
- Establish leadership competencies aligned to desired culture
- Embed competencies in hiring, performance, promotions & rewards
- Build capability in competency-based interviewing & assessments
- Conduct 360-degree leadership assessments
- Coach senior leaders to drive cultural and behavioural change
- Drive organisation-wide mindset shift toward ownership, customer focus & performance
Approach & Methodology
Planet Ganges implemented a structured, multi-phase transformation:
01
Diagnostic
- OCAI culture assessment across leadership & teams
- Mapping of Current Culture → Desired Culture
- Leadership interviews to understand barriers and opportunities
02
Culture Design & Alignment
- Leadership workshops to define the desired culture
- Redesign of values, behaviours and leadership competencies
- Culture communication frameworks for cascading the new culture
03
System Integration
Embedding the new culture into organisational routines and HR systems:
- Competency-based hiring
- Behaviour-linked performance management
- Promotion & reward systems aligned to cultural attributes
04
Leadership Development
- 360° assessments
- Coaching for senior leaders
- Managerial capability workshops
05
Organisation-wide Mindset Shift
- Culture evangelisation sessions
- Behavioural workshops
- Realignment of leadership roles where necessary
Results in 24 Months
- Rejuvenated leadership team aligned to new cultural norms
- Top 75 leaders fully aligned on values & behavioural expectations
- Competency-driven performance, hiring & promotion systems institutionalised
- New leaders hired to support expansion; misaligned leaders transitioned
- Visible shift to a customer-centric, performance-driven culture
- Strong leadership foundation built for Terminal 2 development, Aero City expansion and commercial growth
Client Testimonial
Planet Ganges is a prominent player in Business Transformation, delivering tailored interventions in Organisational Culture, Climate, and Leadership Capability.