november-december 2021 - 39

Age: 34
Hometown: Union,
Kentucky
Alma Mater: Northern
Kentucky University and
Mount St. Joseph University
Fun fact about yourself:
I am a father of four kids
under 8 years old.
Someone I look up to in
the industry: The frontline
employees that make this
industry tick day in and day
out.
Stephen Saunders
Stephen Saunders has been at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky
International Airport (CVG) for 12 years, working in various
roles all while climbing higher. Saunders first started as a
ramp worker for one of the airlines at CVG, then moved to an
emergency dispatcher, advanced into an analyst role and was
then promoted onto customer service terminal management.
Saunders left CVG for a year-long assignment with ACI World
in Montreal as a secondee, and then returned to the airport,
excelling into the role of director of Innovation and IT.
" I tell people all the time, I wouldn't change my path to get
to where I am today, and I still have a lot of room to grow. I
certainly have not arrived. But I think starting on the front
line and developing relationships and perspective, not just
being dropped into an administrative role, right out of college,
has served me extremely well. Because it really helps me
understand the fundamentals of this business on a day-to-day
basis, " Saunders said.
Saunders is front and center on CVG's brand strategy centered
around strategic growth, customer delivery, community connectivity
and enhancing the business portfolio by developing
new streams of revenue. He was instrumental in the initial
After successfully demonstrating a proof of concept with
graduate students and educators from Purdue University,
Saunders program managed the introduction of what is now
Veovo's capacity management solution, previously known as
BlipTrack. CVG was the first airport in the U.S. to introduce
security wait times using IoT in 2014.
" The complexity of taking on the business challenges of today
and planning for those of tomorrow using increasingly accessible
advanced technology solutions is extremely intriguing.
Designing, testing, and delivering solutions that go against
traditional ways of thinking serves my insatiable curiosity.
It just takes those of us that are constantly asking 'what if'
that can open doors to tremendous amounts of learning and
progress, " Saunders said.
development phase and deployment of a joint ACI IATA venture
in developing the New Experience Travel Technologies
(NEXTT) initiative. This assignment fit quite well with his prior
experience at CVG, being on the leading edge of introducing
Internet of Things (IoT) technologies into the airport operating
environment.
www.AviationPros.com/21245443
Rising to the occasion.
Nathan Sims has charted a bold path. Starting his
career in aviation as a travel document verifier at an
airport, Nathan now serves as a project manager,
leading special systems and technology projects
for airports across the country. Congratulations,
Nathan, on being named one of Airport Business
magazine's Top 40 Under 40.
STEPHEN SAUNDERS
Director of IT and Innovation
2021 Airport Business Top 40 Under 40
CONGRATULATIONS
We are proud of our
Director of IT and Innovation
for his commitment to CVG and our industry.
CVGairport.com
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http://www.AviationPros.com/21245443 http://www.CVGairport.com https://www.burnsmcd.com/ http://www.AVIATIONPROS.COM
november-december 2021

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