Greg is Head of Helicopter Programmes at PZL-Świdnik in Poland, which he joined in 2011 and where he is now in charge of Platform Lifecyle Management. Among his most delicate tasks is that of liaising, as a main contact point, with the Polish MoD Armament Agency.
In recent years, his commitment has been crowned by important successes, such as the contract signed in July last year for the supply of 32 AW149 multi-role helicopters to the Polish Armed Forces. “Challenges are part of everyday life in this business, which I love and enjoy facing,” says Greg. “Probably my biggest challenge these days has been to take part, as a key stakeholder, in negotiations and the signing of the AW149 contract for the Polish MoD, to date the greatest helicopter contract in Poland’s history and one of the biggest for PZL-Świdnik and Leonardo.” Being able to support Poland’s national security has been “a privilege, but also a great challenge to meet the very tight criteria and requirements of the Polish MoD”.
Next will be the delivery to the Polish Navy of their first AW101 in naval version: “Bringing a completely new helicopter platform, of which I am a huge fan, to my homeland’s Navy, merging the cultures of Poland, the UK and Italy, is not only a great challenge, but also involves a very exciting cooperation between these countries.” Multiple level cooperation management, matrix organisation of PZL-Świdnik/Leonardo, and communication with MoD representatives, are the elements that drive Greg in the execution of this programme. Greg proudly considers himself “the bridging element for people’s needs, communicating, providing guidance, planning operations and managing requirements.”
For Greg, Leonardo is a very stimulating company, in which technologies are exploited to the fullest to develop advanced products and solutions: “In this high-paced world, technology is key to driving the world forward. Leonardo has this approach within its DNA.” One of the technologies that most excites him is undoubtedly “augmented reality, which extends the human-machine interface capacities and grants the pilot and aircrew a completely new operational situation awareness, with significant benefits vis-à-vis the conditions they have to face during the mission.”
At Leonardo, getting bored is not an option as “you work with passionate people and obtain skills that are unheard of in most businesses”.
Greg considers precision, an open approach and the enhancement of skills to be the keys to success, both at work and in his private life. He believes in continuously developing new ideas and solutions, because “what was the right approach or skill 5 years ago may not be the right approach or skill today.” This attitude is an absolute must in order to achieve goals. For example, “the Industry 4.0 process which we are taking part in these days is the best example of a completely non-linear approach that was not available 10-15 years ago”.