Our judging panel is composed of International Airport’s advisory board members. They represent experts from across the global airport and aviation community. They have been selected to ensure they can apply their knowledge, expertise and skills to the judging criteria and ultimately, to award the finalists.
We are committed to ensuring the judging process for The Airport Honour Awards is transparent, independent, fair and unbiased.
Sustainable Transition Leader
Christchurch International Airport
Claire Waghorn is the Sustainable Transition Leader at Christchurch Airport. She is a Barrister and Solicitor of the High Court of New Zealand with a focus on international climate law, with MSc International Relations (LSE, London), and LLB and BA (Hons) in Diplomacy and International Relations (UC, New Zealand). She is currently working towards accelerating the transition within the aviation sector towards zero emissions. Claire’s previous roles include Parliamentary Researcher for the Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand, and Foreign Policy Officer for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Claire currently sits as a Director of Hollin Consulting NZ, a Board Member of the New Zealand Centre for Global Studies, and the Kaikoura Canterbury Lotteries Commission, as well as the International Airport Review Advisory Board.
President & CEO of Ports
Toronto
Roelof-Jan (RJ) Steenstra joined PortsToronto in September 2022. Previously President and CEO of the Fort McMurray Airport Authority in Alberta, Mr. Steenstra is an accomplished executive leader who is recognized for driving businesses forward in challenging economic conditions by making smart and dynamic decisions and leveraging revenue diversification and lean principles to propel organizational refocus and change. His passion for airports is evident and he is recognized for developing innovative and fiscally-grounded solutions – without losing sight of the passenger and employee experience. This passion and approach will be applied to all of PortsToronto’s businesses including Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport, the marine Port of Toronto, Outer Harbour Marina, and other properties and holdings within the organization’s portfolio.
Mr. Steenstra is past Co-Chair of the 2023 Arctic Winter Games Bid Committee, Director for the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)/ Airports Council International World (ACI) Community of Practice and the American Association of Airport Executive’s (AAAE) Northwest Chapter. He currently serves as Chair of the Policy Board for the Canadian Airports Council and Director on the Airports Council International – NA (ACI-NA) Executive Committee. He also serves as a director for the global board for Airports Council International – ACI World which represents the collective interests of airports around the world to promote excellence in the aviation industry.
Mr. Steenstra holds a Bsc. in Anthropology and a BA in Communications from the University of Calgary, as well as an MBA from Royal Roads University. He has earned several industry designations including an Accredited Airport Executive (AAE) designation, an International Airport Professional (IAP) designation from the ICAO/ACI and an Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD.D) designation from the University of Calgary’s Schulich School of Management, Canada.
Chief Technology Officer and VP of Innovation
Edmonton International Airport
Tara Mulrooney is the Vice President, Technology & Innovation at Edmonton International Airport (EIA). Tara is accountable for enabling the innovation expansion for the organisation and for building an information-based platform using IOT, messaging and data. She is excited to bring her two decades of experience to the aviation sector and to continue to build the reputation of EIA as a leader in airport innovation.
Prior to this role, Tara was the Chief Technology Officer for the Alberta Energy Regulator and successfully led a digital transformation which resulted in recognitions including: 2019 Canadian CIO of the Year (ITAC and IT World Canada) and the John Zachman CIO of the Year for 2017 in oil and gas.
Her approach to IT includes converting strategic plans into tactical reality by leveraging people, technology and efficient processes. Tara focuses on building high performing teams that outperform their peers by providing an inspiring and fun professional environment.
Chief Innovation Officer
Miami International Airport
Maurice Jenkins functions as the principal advisor to the Aviation Director on all matters related to information management and information technology, and has served in this capacity since September 2000.
Jenkins is responsible for defining and managing capital planning as well as investment management processes to ensure their successful implementation and integration with the department budget, acquisition and planning processes. His strategic vision has successfully culminated in the integration of new technology in the opening of the new South and North Terminals at Miami International Airport.
Prior to his appointment as Division Director, he served as the Aviation Department’s Chief of Information Systems.
Chief Strategy & Development Officer
Bangalore International Airport
Satyaki Raghunath is the Chief Strategy and Development Officer at BIAL. He has over two decades of experience in working with public and private sector investors and operators of aviation and transport infrastructure advising on business, finance, strategy, regulatory and project delivery-related initiatives across the world. During this time, he has had extensive experience with aviation system planning across major cities including Chicago, Dubai, Houston, Istanbul, London, New Delhi etc.
In his role at BIAL, Raghunath leads the Strategy and Development business unit, focusing on front-end corporate strategy and business development; traffic forecasting and slot coordination; the aviation business (aero commercial), including airline marketing, cargo and concessionaires; capacity, master planning and programme management; and innovation and digital transformation.
Prior to joining BIAL, Raghunath was with GMR Airports Ltd as Chief Innovation Officer for the airport sector across the group. Before this, he held leadership roles at London Stansted Airport and at Dubai Airports, where he was Head of Master Planning. Between 2002 and 2014 he was based in San Francisco and London working for LeighFisher, a specialist global aviation advisory firm, where he served as Managing Director – Asia from 2008-2014.
Raghunath is a licensed architect and a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley, from where he holds a Master’s degree in Urban Design. He is also an alumnus of the National Centre of Excellence in Aviation Operations Research (NEXTOR), UC Berkeley.
Managing Director
Manchester Airport
Chris Woodroofe was appointed Managing Director of Manchester Airport in June 2022.
He previously served as Chief Operating Officer of London Gatwick Airport where he led numerous successful people, process and system change programmes. Prior to that, he held a number of senior positions at the airport including Head of Engineering and Head of Security.
Chris is a chartered chemical engineer who left Imperial College London with a first class masters degree to join Nestlé UK’s graduate scheme. He also holds an MBA with distinction from the University of Warwick.
Senior Vice President of Airport Operations
Denver International Airport
Sarah Marquez is Senior Vice President of Airport Operations at Denver International Airport (DEN). As an airport operations professional she has been recognised for her effective leadership and success in leading teams while driving performance and collaborating with stakeholders.
Winning an award can increase your company’s visibility and reputation within the industry. This can help attract new customers, improve brand recognition, and ultimately increase sales.
Participating in an awards competition allows companies to benchmark themselves against their competitors and gain valuable insights into their strengths and weaknesses.
Being recognised for their hard work can be a great motivator for employees. Entering an awards competition can inspire them to strive for excellence and take pride in their work. Winning an award can also help to boost employee morale and build team spirit.
Entering The Airport Honour Awards will provide valuable networking opportunities and a great place to meet industry leaders, potential customers, and suppliers. This can help to build relationships that may lead to new business opportunities in the future.
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