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On the 8 June 2023 two Buckinghamshire New University second year undergraduates from the School of Aviation and Security, Sophie Devine and Avtar Purewal, travelled to Amsterdam to participate in the German Aviation Research Society conference. The conference was held at the University of Applied Sciences in the centre of the city. The purpose of the visit was to present a BNU research project called ‘Two Panda Management’ or, more properly, ‘Hybrid Hardening’, for organisations.

‘Two Panda Management’ envisions the need for every organisation to be run as two ‘pandas’. One panda, a live panda, drives the organisation physically; the other panda, akin to a Fiat Panda car, represents the cyber works and drives the organisation virtually. Just as in the driving analogy the organisation cannot function without a physical and virtual operation combining to operate together.

The research undertaken by undergraduates looked at 14 different aviation organisations to understand how well they conformed to both the ‘Two Panda’ idea, and a new Board structure suggested by head-hunters Saxton Bampfylde. In each case the research found shortcomings in the aviation organisations. The shortcomings identified demonstrated why some airlines have excellent aircraft reliability performance but staggeringly poor passenger service performance. Research also identified why the disparity existed, because the two different worlds were managed to different standards.

This was a fantastic opportunity for undergraduate students to engage in original cutting edge research, usually only available to postgraduates. This is another way in which BNU is breaking down traditional barriers and giving our students authentic real world experiences to prepare them for successful future careers. Warm thanks to Dr Maitland Hyslop for mentoring them through this amazing experience.