Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
In order to realize a well-functioning replication mechanism, each operative unit
has to follow a strategy of acquisition of components over time, with a precise in-
crement rate. The members which join a unit, since their employment, are linked to
other members in order to learn from them specific tasks and skills, with the aim of
reaching a skill level similar to that of their teachers. The components of groups are
aware of their split, but nobody will know neither the exact time of this event, nor
who will leave for the new airport and who will remain in the original one. This kind
of ignorance, of the specific details about the separation, is important for avoiding
bias in the way individuals are related to their groups. Of course, this ignorance is
difficult to realize in the central management unit; therefore a casual mechanism has
to be followed on which all the members have to agree. Moreover, a mirror of all the
operative units has to be available to the management unit, in order to appropriately
direct the splitting operation.
In conclusion, if we limit our analysis only to the human resources of an airport,
we clearly distinguish: i) a personnel acquisition office, ii) a distributed system of
personnel formation (transforming people in operative members), iii) an office for
monitoring the state of affairs of all operative units, iv) an office controlling the right
relationships among all the operative units, and v) an office providing solutions
of conflict and emergency, which require a very quick redistribution of tasks and
responsibilities. These offices are a sort of “meta operative unit” directly related
to vi) the central management office and vii) the maintenance office, which has in
charge the migration plan and the installation phase of the newborn airport.
In each group their oversized structure, due to the doubling of abilities, is in many
aspects a way for having a more reliable and efficient realization of the specific
tasks, but at the same time, it opens the possibility of conflicts due to situations
of competition. This means that when the structure is big enough, it is at the right
moment for a separation which provides a reset for a new deal in the life of the
system. Therefore, when the split order is given by the central management unit, all
the groups are split and move, in a specified number of days, to the place where it
was decided to place the new airport.
Firstly, the structure builders are moved, with the suitable materials they need,
which belong to the operative units for the maintenance of buildings and airport
areas. Then, the groups move that are needed for activating the main structures.
When they are in the new reality the basic functions are organized, by following the
emergency protocols, which were used in the original system. An important aspect
deserves particular attention, which is related to the specificity of the activities. At
beginning, basic and generic tasks are required, therefore a sort of lack of special-
ization is required to individuals, in order to be able to carry out generic tasks. For
example, a member operating surveillance of luggage, at beginning, when only a
few flights are regularly established, probably has to be willing to perform other
kinds of surveillance activities, when they are required by the superordinate units
on which he/she depends.
As results from the previous metaphor, replication is related with two distinct,
even if related, aspects: the replication of resources which are needed for assembling
the new structure and its processes, but also an aspect which is crucial in another
