The MSI Global Alliance Perspective

Heathrow Terminal 5 ... and Terminal 4

Much as been written in the UK press about the embarrassment to the nation caused by the problems surrounding British Airways' move to Terminal 5 ... so there were some problems; too much luggage went missing; some flights were cancelled ... but I for one thought the whole thing was blown out of proportion.  As questions were asked in Parliament, I couldn't help wondering whether the vast majority of people really cared.

The move was a major logistical operation which, by all accounts, went more smoothly than recent airport openings in Bangkok and, going back a bit, Hong Kong and Denver.  It was the PR that BA got wrong.

But despite being defensive of BA over the last couple of weeks, I was nevertheless quite grateful to be flying out of Terminal 4 on a BA flight last night ... until I got there ...  I had checked in on line and done everything that BA had asked me to do on the website, but at the 'Fast Bag Drop' area, there was a 30 minute queue, and only 2 desks open. 

Challenging one of 4 BA staff marshalling the queue, they apologised profusely and said that this was commonplace ..."all the staff have moved to Terminal 5 to sort out the mess there ..."

Hey ho ...

James Mendelssohn (jmendelssohn@msiglobal.org)

Mongolia - a steppe too far?

Whilst we in Europe tend to complain about air traffic control delays and queues at security check points, spare a thought for those wanting to travel into the increasingly important city of Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia.

Recently, I tried to do just that.  I was in Beijing for three days and I wanted to go into Mongolia for 24 hours.  The flight schedules made this look feasible; bookings were made; a visa obtained; and I was all set - or so I thought.

I checked in early at 7.15 am for a 9 am flight.  No problem.  At 8.45 am small boxes or hard-boiled eggs were distributed to keep us going during a short delay.  At 9.30 am, we were told we were going to be to be taken to a hotel, with the next announcement being made at 6.30 pm ....

At that point, I decided to cut my losses and cancelled the trip.  I e-mailed my contacts in Ulaanbaatar to explain that the bad weather had caused the delays and it was simply not going to be possible to visit them on this occasion.  They were bemused as they looked out of their windows at clear blue skies and bright sunshine ...

During the wait, I had started chatting to a South African couple who were going to visit their son in Mongolia.  Today, I received an e-mail from them ... and everything became clearer.  The flight eventually left THREE DAYS later ... but in the intervening period an Australian who was booked on the flight had managed to trace the movements of the aircraft that was scheduled to make the trip, only to discover that it had been reassigned to a (more profitable?) long-haul trip and only on its return did it go up to Ulaanbaatar.

Apparently, this happens all too regularly.  There are many lessons that can be learned from this when planning local travel in and around China, but if you want to go to Ulaanbaatar itself, perhaps you should take the advice of our lawyers in Beijing: "Take the train.  It takes 18 hours each way, but leaves without fail every day"....   I assume it comes back too.

James Mendelssohn (jmendelssohn@msi-network.com)

Riga and Warsaw - cities of opportunity

This week has seen visits to both Riga and Warsaw - with 24 hours back in the UK in the middle as a result of the vagaries of the airline timetables and fare structures!

Both are interesting cities.  Riga has a combination of architecture which reflects its recent and more distant history, as indeed does Warsaw.  Good places for a weekend away, but if you had to chose one, Riga would get my vote.

Both Latvia and Poland are seeing strong demand for the provision of legal services, with arguably not enough lawyers to provide them - perhaps an inevitable consequence of new EU countries becoming increasingly involved with Western Europe (and indeed further afield too) - but with under developed professions to support this growth.

The future, though, is bright.  In both cities, I met good, young firms that could really add strength to the MSI network - and indeed I believe that MSI could add real strength to the individual practices concerned.  A real 'win win' situation.

One firm has already accepted our invitation to join; the other will make a decision following some further internal discussion over the coming days.  We shall see.

But nevertheless, the opportunities in Eastern Europe should not be underestimated.  And if you have never been to some of these places - you should.

James Mendelssohn (jmendelssohn@msi-network.com)

Chicago

What a great city Chicago is - one of my favourites in the US.  Almost anything that you want is available.

Very seldom have we had such universal praise for the hotel that we selected for our conference - the Sofitel at the Water Tower.  It's unusual curved design makes it just that little bit different, but it works so well.  The facilities were great, the location was good and the staff were just outstanding - nothing was too much trouble.  The real winner, though, was the beds.  Spending 100 nights a year in hotels, you become quite an expert on sleeping comfort, and there is no doubt that this hotel has the best beds that I have come across yet!  Fantastic.

We had a couple of good social events - a dinner cruise incorporating the 'architecture tour' and the fireworks over Navy Pier (Wednesday and Saturday nights in the summer), and a more formal evening at the Chicago Historical Museum, which everyone seemed to enjoy.

A couple of warning points though about the city : the traffic can be a nightmare.  Coming in from O'Hare can be unpredictable and lengthy.  Secondly, beware the weather.  The spring and the fall should be great, but high summer and deep winter are best avoided, particularly when the storms hit the airport ...

James Mendelssohn (jmendelssohn@msi-network.com)