Virgin Atlantic’s Paul Deeks joins Quinyx’s ‘The WFM Show’ podcast
“The job becomes effortless,” “every day is rewarding” and “I have confidence to move forward in my career” are just some of the soundbites from Paul Deeks, last year’s winner of Quinyx’s annual Frontline Hero Awards.
Paul, an airline engineer with Virgin Atlantic, joined Quinyx’s ‘The WFM Show’ podcast to officially launch this year’s global awards. During the interview with host Jack Pidgeon, he talked about what has kept him engaged on the frontline, including the variety of work, mentoring by his managers, personalisation within his role, and opportunities for career development.
The discussion also touched on what Paul describes as a “hunger to do good” at Virgin Atlantic – resulting in him becoming part of a charitable initiative to bring 52 orphans and their carers to the UK, away from the dangers of the war in Ukraine.
Celebrating his 25-year long service milestone this year, Paul was one of four global winners in the inaugural 2023 awards. Described by his manager as “100% a frontline hero”, he beat hundreds of other entrants to take the UK title.
The international awards, by workforce management experts Quinyx, recognise those who work tirelessly to deliver outstanding service and make a positive difference in the workplace.
Paul, who joined Virgin Atlantic as a teenage apprentice in 1999, clinched the accolade because of his ongoing willingness to take on extra tasks and help enhance working conditions and processes for his team. This included the implementation of a new radio system to improve internal communications and boost overall efficiency and productivity.
Paul’s passion for encouraging young people into STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering) subjects was also commended, following his work in schools both in the UK and the US to help inspire students to consider aviation and STEM-related careers.
And, when events in Israel resulted in reduced engineering support in the country, Paul volunteered to fly out to Tel Aviv, ensuring the airline could continue to operate and passengers could get home before all international flights were halted.
Entries for the 2024 Frontline Heroes Awards are now open, simply visit the Frontline Hero awards page to nominate. In 500 words explain how the nominee exceeds in their role, what values and standards they uphold and their attitude to the job, customers and stakeholders.
The deadline for nominations is October 28th and a jury will announce the winners in early November. Winners will receive a $500 gift card along with recognition in Quinyx’s Frontline Hero 2024 listing.
Erik Fjellborg, CEO and founder of Quinyx, said: “It was great to have Paul as our guest of honour on The WFM Show and it’s clear from the podcast that he is very passionate about his role – ensuring he delivers excellent frontline services.
“We’re now on the hunt for entrants for the 2024 Frontline Hero Awards. We want to hear from those going above and beyond to provide first-class service and exemplary results for customers and peers alike.”
In 2023, four global ‘Frontline Heroes’ were announced: Paul Deeks (UK), Joakim Anundsson (Sweden), Gwen Barrow (The Netherlands) and Taya Morin-Evans (Canada).
Listen back to Quinyx’s latest podcast by visiting: https://www.quinyx.com/the-wfm-show-hub
