Airway Services, a TAKKION Company, is proud to announce that Jeremy Black has been named the Human Resources Manager.
Black brings with him years of experience, knowledge, passion, and leadership skills.
Black has been working in the world of Human Resources for close to 20 years. It’s something he began to have an interest in when he was still in college.
“When I first went to college, I didn’t really know exactly what I wanted to do,” Black shared. “So I ended up just landing on psychology. And that’s what I got my bachelor’s degree in. But I never really wanted to do the traditional counseling route. So, I went into industrial organizational psychology and got my master’s degree in that. It’s a blend of psychology in the workforce, human motivation, leadership theory, performance management, and things like that. And that’s what led me into HR.”
Black graduated from grad school in 2004 and shortly thereafter began his career in Human Resources.
Before joining Airway, Black owned and operated his own HR and safety consulting company, and Airway was actually a customer of Black’s on the safety side of it for the last nine years. Black developed a relationship with all of the management, and he liked the way they operated. They felt the same about him, so they approached him with the idea of joining their team on the inside.
“Honestly, it just boiled down to the fact that I’ve been working with Dusty and Chase and Reed and some of the other leadership for so long; I’ve had a great personal and professional relationship with them already,” Black said. “So I felt very comfortable that it would be a good place to work. And I couldn’t have been more right. I love it, and I couldn’t be at a better place.”
Black began working with Airway Services in April of 2023 and, in the six months he’s been a part of the team, he has learned a lot, taught a lot, and done a lot.
Some of his responsibilities as the HR Manager include overseeing the recruitment and onboarding aspects of the job.
“That part is huge because of how much growth that we’re having right now,” he said. “And we’re trying to make sure that we’re keeping up with the turnover. I’ve got two great recruiters, and my role is supporting them and making sure they have everything they need to be successful.”
Black also helps managers create performance improvement plans if a technician or another employee has some areas of their job in which they’re struggling. He is also responsible for hiring employees and, if necessary, termination.
“It’s my job to make sure that the decisions and actions we take are legal and consistent with our internal policies,” he said. “That means being consistent in how we do things from a personnel decision and action standpoint.”
It’s a big job, and it’s not one that Black takes lightly. But, he said, he absolutely loves it; mostly because of the individuals he gets to work with on a daily basis.
“My favorite part is the people,” he said. “I love working for Chase and I love working with Grant and Keith and Dusty and the rest of the leadership team. It’s a great support team that we’ve got here, from the accounting team to the finance team, and everybody else. It’s just a great group of people, and my favorite thing about coming to work is just getting to interact with them, whether it’s quote/unquote “work-related” or on a personal level, just chatting in the hallway.”
Black has spent the better part of 25 years invested in the world of Human Resources. He’s worked with and for numerous companies and he says, Airway is absolutely his favorite company he’s been a part of.
“I truly believe the reason that we’re so successful is because of our people,” he stated. “We truly value people. We understand that taking care of our technicians is crucial – making sure that they’ve got proper training and proper equipment, and that we’re offering them good pay and benefits. You have to care for your people in order to be successful. And I think we do a good job of that.”
In actuality, that is what Black believes his main job is – taking care of people. That goes for his employees and for Airway customers.
“I just really like dealing with people,” he said. “I like working with people. One of my favorite things about being in HR is that you really get to learn the whole business, and you get to be involved in all aspects of the business. Ultimately, you’re supporting all of your employees, so you really have to have a good understanding of the entire business to be effective.”
Jeremy Black, as Airway Services’ Human Resources Manager, is absolutely effective. But he couldn’t do it by himself.
“As the HR Manager, I love it here,” he said. “And I have a great team with Tammy, Anthony, and Chriselda, too. It definitely makes my job easier, having good people that I can count on. And for the employees – my job is to be here for you. So if you have questions or comments or concerns, my door is always open, and my phone is always on.”
