Scott Plumb joins Jetcraft

Scott Plumb speaking at Corporate Jet Investor London 2014.

Scott Plumb has joined Jetcraft as senior vice president of sales he leaves Beechcraft where he was previously vice president of sales for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

“Scott has a wealth of business aviation knowledge and boasts an impressive list of accomplishments,” said Chad Anderson, president of Jetcraft. “Scott’s leadership experience with large, global companies will be invaluable as we build the world’s most credible, experienced, and long-term devoted sales and management team to continually elevate the results of our clients

Plumb started working in aviation in 1987 working on commercial aircraft sales at British Aerospace and Airbus. He joined Gulfstream in 1998, where he was division vice president North American sales for nine years. Plumb left Gulfstream to become chief commercial officer at VistaJet. He joined Beechcraft in September 2010.

Plumb will be based in Jetcraft’s office in Switzerland.

Corporate Jet Investor: The last few years were extremely tough for Beechcraft, so why are you leaving now?

Scott Plumb: As the private aviation industry stumbled through the worldwide recession Hawker Beechcraft, and subsequently Beechcraft Corporation, went through a necessary, but difficult business transition.  Even though the company needed to go through that business transition, the outcome couldn’t have been scripted any better, and I am proud to be a small part of that transition and the outcome.

Hawker owners and Beechcraft owners, together with Beechcraft employees, vendors, suppliers, and partners are now in the very good hands of Textron Aviation, and the future is brighter now than it had been for decades.  For me personally, I sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence that Scott Ernest and Kriya Shortt gave me, to manage the sales and marketing activities for Textron Aviation in the Middle East and Africa.

I always hoped that at some point in my aviation career I would move to the consulting/brokerage side of the business.  Thanks to Jetcraft that opportunity is now; leveraging what I have learned and applying those skills to their business, is a perfect nexus.

You have worked for lots of OEMs (and VistaJet) but this is first time you have worked for a broker? How different do you think it will be to an OEM?  

Yes, this will be the first time on the consulting/brokerage side of the private aviation business.  My experience at OEMs has been to manage the sales teams and the sale and marketing process – the leaders at Jetcraft have asked me to bring some of that sales and marketing management experience to their team.  While working for OEMs I of course tried to consult the buyer into purchasing a product my company manufactured, now I can consult buyers (and sellers) on the purchase that best fits their needs, irrespective of OEM.

You have sold turboprops (Beechcraft), business jets (Gulfstream) and commercial jets (Airbus, BAE) how different are these markets?  

The aircraft are very different, but the buyers are not.  I have spoken about accessing the entire pyramid of wealth and while some aircraft are only for the top of the market, even those at the top of the pyramid require transportation to more regional or hard to reach destinations.  For each purchaser throughout the pyramid, they are spending a significant portion of their net worth, so whether its a King Air or an ACJ, purchasers can benefit from the experience of those who have been in the industry, across many market segments, as they make their decision.

Which of those markets is the most fun and why?  

While I enjoyed my years on the commercial side of the business with British Aerospace and Airbus, the campaigns on the commercial side take years to develop and conclude, and airlines tend to look at airplanes the same way (cost per asm).  The private aviation side can be much faster paced, and each buyer has a different set of perspectives – understanding and solving for their perspectives is not only financial, but operational and emotional.

What do you think will be the biggest challenge in your new role? 

I prioritize my time to be in market with my team and customers – learning this new role and with the market picking up, I hope my wife and dogs recognize me when I return home for visits!

What is the key to keeping your customers happy?  

Planning, effort, communication, and honesty.  One hopes that the ownership experience (purchase, operation and sale and repurchase) of a customer is positive – it doesn’t go smoothly all the time.  For an ownership experience to be positive planning, effort, communication and honesty can help it go as one hopes.  I have watched buyers purchase the wrong airplane because they were consulted by a friend (rather than a professional) who had purchased an aircraft – square pegs and round holes.  They then end up with an aircraft that may not be the best fit for them; that’s where Jetcraft can help.

What advice would you give to someone working in business aviation?  

The private aviation industry is small and close-knit community; and no matter whether its a product or a service you represent, its really how you represent, than what you represent, that matters most.

What is the secret to selling aircraft?  

Developing relationships that can span the test of time, that are based on trust and mutual benefit.