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Malaysia, UCLA-NUS EMBA (Class of 2025/2026)

Claire Curtis

Head of Central Region Commercial Sales

Malaysia Airlines

Leading in Motion: Learning from an Industry That Never Stands Still

My interest in aviation began with travel, but it stayed because of responsibility.

Travel changes people. When someone steps into another country, they gain perspective they cannot learn from a screen or a book. Airlines make that possible. Every route we open and every schedule we manage helps people reconnect, discover opportunity, and see beyond their own borders. That purpose has always grounded my work.

Over time I also became fascinated by what passengers rarely see. A flight may look straightforward, yet it depends on decisions across pricing, fleet planning, partnerships, regulation, technology and geopolitics. Nothing operates in isolation. The challenge of aligning all these moving parts keeps the industry intellectually alive for me.
Aviation rewards those who accept that stability is temporary.

Learning to Work Across Perspectives

Working in Europe and North America taught me quickly that leadership cannot rely on habit. The same message can land differently depending on context, and the same decision may require a different approach depending on the market.

I learned to listen before acting. Understanding how a team interprets risk, feedback and accountability matters more than applying a single style everywhere.

Today, when I lead global strategy and sales planning, I focus on alignment rather than uniformity. The goal is shared direction, not identical execution.

Navigating Uncertainty

In aviation, change is constant. External events reshape priorities faster than plans can anticipate. During those periods, teams look less for certainty and more for steadiness.

I try to provide clarity around what we know and honesty about what we do not. Decisions still have to be made, even with incomplete information. Waiting for perfect visibility rarely helps.

Maintaining belief in a path forward, while acknowledging the difficulty ahead, allows people to continue moving with confidence.

Building Change Through Participation

One initiative I value involved strengthening coordination between global strategy and regional execution. It began as a structural exercise but quickly became a human one.

The turning point came when conversations shifted from presentations to dialogue. When people contributed to shaping the solution, adoption followed naturally. Alignment came from involvement, not instruction.

That experience reinforced that implementation succeeds when people understand why their role matters within the wider outcome.

Growing as a Leader

Early in my career I sometimes needed to work harder to have my voice recognised. Over time I learned that influence develops through reliability. Preparation and consistency build confidence in others.

I now encourage women within my teams to participate early in strategic discussions and take ownership of complex work. Confidence grows through participation, not observation.

Encouraging progress across the industry is visible, and the presence of more diverse leaders strengthens decision making.

Continuous Development

Completing an Executive MBA while working full time changed how I structured my thinking. It also reminded me to pause and evaluate experiences rather than moving from one issue to the next.

Equally important has been community. Leadership is sustained by the people around you. Colleagues, mentors and family provide perspective that keeps decisions grounded.

What Leadership Means to Me

My role has shifted from driving outcomes directly to enabling others to achieve them. Long term performance depends on people having the clarity and support to do their best work.

For those considering leadership roles, understand the business, invest in relationships and step forward before certainty arrives. Growth rarely waits for complete readiness.

Leadership is less about control and more about responsibility for the direction taken together.