There’s no denying that the business aircraft brokerage model is evolving and causing a competitive environment among aircraft brokers. This is blurring the line between aircraft dealers and brokers and causing a need for regulations and boundaries in the industry. Brokers such as Par Avion’s Janine Iannarelli are working with organizations like EBAA’s Associate Member Advisory Council (AMAC) to create ethics guidelines for the business aviation industry.
Iannarelli notes that the relationship between the buyer and seller of an airplane and a qualified sales professional has eroded. Buyers and sellers usually do not know each other, and neither party wants to pay the qualified sales professional working in the middle. Iannarelli told AIN that the key to a better business aircraft brokerage model is business ethics.
“As long as there is a willing buyer and a willing seller and you’re not paying over market for the airplane, there’s a fair transaction,” Iannarelli told AIN. “When it’s used for any other means, that’s when it becomes a questionable practice.”
Iannarelli and her colleagues in AMAC are working to create protocol for business aviation ethics. She put together a committee of sales professionals from different areas of expertise that takes place during a transaction to contribute to the criteria. The guidebook, the framework of which is expected to be completed by the EBAA committee meetings in March 2018, will feature concise bullet points and a question-and-answer section for easier reading.
The broker also sees panels and discussions as a way to improve business ethics. As chair for the sales and acquisitions committee for AMAC, Iannarelli often voices her opinions and concerns as part of the organization's meetings. In doing this, she found that many of her peers held the same beliefs and interests. Holding open panels and discussions could make people more comfortable in understanding business ethics in the aviation industry. According to Iannarelli, an open dialogue like this could contribute to growth in the industry.
“Having an open dialogue is a good thing,” Iannarelli told AIN. “It’s not meant to single out anyone. It’s just the modernization and evolution of the aircraft sales industry. Has it reached maturity? In some respects, yes, but it still requires some growth.”
