Seattle-Tacoma International Airport 

SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Prepared For: Federal Aviation Administration 

Office of Airports 

Airport Safety and Operations Division 

Prepared By: Landry Consultants LLC, on behalf of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and 

 Operations Senior Manager, Mark Coates 

 

Date: 11/25/2009 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Revision History 

Date Version Summary 

11-18-09 v.0.1 Initial draft for SEA review 

11-20-09 v.0.2 Revised draft 

11-25-09 v.1.0 Final 

Prepared in Support of Statement of Work Section A – Safety Policy, Task 2 

Define Safety Manager’s roles and responsibilities including Safety 

Committee functions, where applicable. 

While roles and responsibilities of a ‘Safety Manager’ may vary at each airport, a 

core set of duties will be developed to help guide airports to determining who in 

the organization may best serve the SMS program. This includes development 

of a Safety Committee’s functions including authority and reporting capabilities. 

These roles will be reviewed with regard to the current Part 139 activities within 

the airport’s organization for assessment of future impact of SMS on Part 139 

staffing and management. To complete this task, the airport will develop a 

comprehensive set of duties; develop options for shared and single Safety 

Management position; develop Safety Committee activities and sample process 

flows for reporting; and, provide guidance on how to engage current staff in 

Safety Committee activities. If changes are made to the airport’s SMS as a result 

of the findings under this task, the airport should report on those changes.

Safety Policy i 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Safety Policy ii 

Table of Contents 

1.0 Introduction ................................................................................................. 1

2.0 SMS Committees and Stakeholders ........................................................... 2

2.1 SMS Committees ................................................................................................ 3

2.1.1. Sea-Tac Safety Action Committee .............................................................. 3

2.1.2. FOD Subcommittee ..................................................................................... 4

2.1.3. Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee ........................................ 4

2.1.4. Landside/Terminal Safety Committees........................................................ 4

2.2 SMS Committee Stakeholders............................................................................ 8

2.1.5. Airport Safety Leaders ................................................................................. 8

2.1.6. Station Managers ........................................................................................ 8

2.1.7. Airline Airport Affairs Committee (AAAC) .................................................... 8

2.1.8. Internal Collaboration Groups (ad hoc) ....................................................... 9

2.1.9. Senior Aviation Management (SAM) ........................................................... 9

3.0 SMS Positions - Core Skills ...................................................................... 12

3.1 Safety Manager Skills ................................................................................... 13

3.2 Safety Specialist Skills .................................................................................. 14

4.0 Roles and Responsibilities ........................................................................ 15

3.3 SMS Personnel Core Duties ......................................................................... 15

4.1 SMS Personnel Collateral Duties ..................................................................... 15

4.1.1 SMS Manager............................................................................................ 16

4.1.2 SMS Specialist .......................................................................................... 18

4.2 SMS Personnel Collateral Duties ..................................................................... 19

4.2.1 Accountable Executive .............................................................................. 19

4.2.2 Airport Duty Manager ................................................................................ 19

4.2.3 Airport Operations Specialist ..................................................................... 20

4.2.4 Maintenance Liaison.................................................................................. 20

4.2.5 Maintenance Lead ..................................................................................... 20

4.2.6 Communications & Dispatch Liaison ......................................................... 20

4.2.7 Tenants...................................................................................................... 20

4.2.8 Health & Safety Liaison ............................................................................. 21

4.2.9 Port Construction Services Liaison............................................................ 21

4.2.10 Risk Management Liaison ......................................................................... 21

4.2.11 Environmental Liaison ............................................................................... 21

5.0 Integrated Duties – Hazard Example ........................................................ 22

6.0 Summary of Findings ................................................................................ 24

List of Figures 

Figure 1 - SMS Committees .................................................................................. 3

Figure 2 – Interoperability Example - Hazard Flow by SMS Role ....................... 23

List of Tables 

Table 1 - Committee Roles and Responsibilities................................................... 7

Table 2 – Stakeholder SMS Collaboration / Integration ...................................... 11

Table 3 - SMS Manager Core Skills .................................................................... 13

Table 4 - Safety Specialist Core Skills ................................................................ 14
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

1. Introduction 

The success of a Safety Management System (SMS) relies on qualified, experienced, 

and competent staffing. At the core of a SMS is the Safety Manager who typically 

provides program and project oversight, strategies, staff management, operational 

integration, and the culture inherent in the SMS. At large airports, a SMS is not likely to 

succeed without the full-time commitment of a Safety Manager. Collectively, existing 

staff cannot take on the various management and tactical tasks of a Safety Manager as 

collateral duties. This recommendation is largely due to the need to manage the many, 

individual efforts (projects) that make up the SMS. The Safety Manager can provide 

oversight and serve as a central point of contact to coordinate staff activities and monitor 

the SMS as a whole. 

In selecting a Safety Manager, three core areas of proficiency and expertise should be 

met. These include Technical, Management, and “Soft” skills (see Section 3.0 Core 

Skills ). The Safety Manager must be qualified in each of these areas to ensure program 

success. And, since a key aspect of the Safety Manager’s role is to communicate and 

champion the SMS, soft skills are considered equally important as the technical and 

management skills. 

This document reflects research, findings, and relevant information to help guide airports 

to the successful engagement and deployment of a SMS team including tenant 

responsibilities on SMS Committees. In addition to core skill sets for a Safety Manager 

and Safety Specialist are roles and responsibilities for both primary and collateral duty 

staff. The inherent success of an SMS relies on participation throughout the 

organization; the role of the Safety Manager is to enlist the assistance of additional 

resources and stakeholders to implement and operationalize the program. The Safety 

Manger alone cannot make an SMS succeed, but the collection of resources, skills, and 

knowledge the Safety Manager brings to the program can guide and shape the disparate 

efforts more effectively. 

A SMS can be comprised of an intricate set of processes and procedures; however, 

through solid interpersonal relationships, effective communication among staff, 

collaboration, and clear guidelines to roles and responsibilities, the SMS team can 

overcome many of the complexities. 

Safety Policy 1 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

2. SMS Committees and Stakeholders 

As part of a SMS program committees create a community, a conduit for communicating 

and resolving safety issues, and an opportunity to develop stronger safety relationships. 

Most airports conduct safety meetings in a variety of formats and functions. Committees 

should include representatives who have adequate expertise to either make decisions or 

assign a subject matter expert to assist in decision making. A SMS committee’s primary 

function is to ensure safety is improved through hazard identification and analysis and 

corrective measures. Success of a SMS Committee is founded on trust and on an 

agreement that safety is a collective goal. 

The diagram on the following page represents the existing and proposed committees to 

support the SMS at Sea-Tac. The groups are placed in context of formal and informal 

communication paths from committees, to subcommittees, to key stakeholder groups. 

At the core of the program are SMS-specific committees (Sea-Tac Safety Action and 

future Landside and Terminal Safety Committees). 

Also included in the illustration are two new subcommittees that support the SMS 

program through staff participation in risk assessments and foreign object debris (FOD) 

programs. FOD and risk programs require close collaboration between the airport and 

tenants and merit a smaller, focused team to build continuity and resolve issues quickly 

and effectively. Aside from these subcommittees, no new committees will be developed 

to support the SMS. Members of the subcommittees are expected to be a subset of the 

core Sea-Tac Safety Action Committee which will provide continuity, safety awareness, 

and integrated communication. 

Surrounding the committees are relevant stakeholder groups who are established at 

Sea-Tac and who will have review and approval functions for some of the SMS 

committee activities, budgets, and policies. Specific committee functions are described 

further in the next section. 

Safety Policy 2 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Figure 1 - SMS Committees 

2.1 SMS Committees 

As the SMS evolves, so will the community that participates in the proposed committees 

and review sessions. The committees will not be static and will focus on discussing and 

resolving safety concerns as a collaborative group. Although politics can exist in all 

levels of airport/tenant relationships, the team’s research suggests that the proposed 

committees are more likely to succeed in managing safety if the meetings focus on 

compiling accurate facts, sharing responsibilities, and resolving safety issues as a 

community of informed stakeholders. A brief description of each committee is presented 

in Sections 2.1.1 through 2.1.4. 

1.1.1. Sea-Tac Safety Action Committee 

The Sea-Tac Safety Action Committee was formerly referred to as the Airline Safety 

Committee. During this study, the name was specifically changed because the previous 

name did not accurately reflect the either the committee purpose or attendees. The 

group is comprised of airport and tenant representatives such as senior operations 

managers, station managers, ramp managers, safety managers, safety trainers, and 

other safety related staff such as Sea-Tac’s Safety Construction and Health & Safety 

Safety Policy 3 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Liaisons. The committee is currently co-chaired by an Operations Senior Manager and a 

Station Manager. The Operations Senior Manager provides the committee oversight 

regarding logistics and leadership and the Station Manager typically facilitates the 

meeting. Over the past year, the meeting has evolved to focus more effectively on 

documenting and discussing issues regarding collective concerns such as snow removal 

procedures, ramp drive lane compliance, FOD on the ramp and garbage in the bagwell, 

and speeding in general. Meeting notes are scribed and action items are identified but, 

because a SMS is not officially in place at Sea-Tac, the committee is working in an ad 

hoc manner to document and track these concerns. While recent improvements have 

been made to the format and content of the meeting, without the support, scope, charter, 

and structure of a formal SMS and associated Safety Manager, the Team believes the 

committee will continue to struggle with formally and consistently collecting information 

on hazards, identifying responsibility, and tracking mitigation. Actions are assigned to 

specific groups and often coordinated with maintenance to review and resolve the issue, 

but no formal process or oversight is in place to ensure resolution actually takes place. 

As part of the future SMS, this committee will serve as a primary forum to discuss 

potential hazards, safety issues, safety policies, and other safety topics., Both airport 

and tenant personnel will be expected to attend the meetings to provide expertise or 

advisements to the group. 

1.1.2. FOD Subcommittee 

As mentioned in the FOD Program Manual, an expanded FOD program is proposed for 

Sea-Tac. In addition to other resources requested from the SMS community, the FOD 

program calls for the development of a FOD Subcommittee. This Subcommittee was 

recently formed (Fall of 2009) and is chaired by a Ramp/Safety Manager. To date, the 

Subcommittee has briefly met to discuss existing and proposed FOD programs 

underway at Sea-Tac. To ensure the success of the FOD Subcommittee, a collaborative 

effort between Sea-Tac’s designed FOD Coordinator (assigned from the Airport Duty 

Manager Team) and the FOD Subcommittee Chair will need to be in place to organize 

and coordinate FOD efforts. The formalized structure of the SMS will provide a forum for 

FOD coordination at all levels of the organization including joint coordination of the SeaTac and tenant FOD programs. 

1.1.3. Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee 

The Guide to Safety Risk Management program outlines a structured process for 

assessing and mitigating identified hazards. The role of the Safety Risk Management 

Subcommittee members will be to serve as experts to perform risk assessments and 

provide recommendations for corrective actions for high risk hazards. As needed 

subject matter experts will meet to assess severity and probability of hazards to identify 

and rank risks and to discuss mitigation strategies. For more information on the 

proposed Risk processes and procedures, see the Guide to Safety Risk Management. 

1.1.4. Landside/Terminal Safety Committees 

The initial roll out of SMS at Sea-Tac will be limited to airside operations (including the 

bagwell), but eventually the program will be rolled out to landside and terminal 

operations. The Landside and Terminal Safety Committees will take on safety hazards 

Safety Policy 4 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Safety Policy 5 

that exist in the non airside operations and jointly resolve issues that bridge more than 

one operational area. It is likely the Safety Manager will attend these new meetings and 

likely serve as a leader as the new committees are formed and deployed. 

Table 1 on the following pages presents responsibilities for each committee relevant to 

SMS and includes recommendations for Chair assignments. In some cases airports 

may decide to co-chair with a tenant, but for the purposes of this documentation, the 

recommendation is founded on the skills, objectives, and accountabilities of the most 

effective SMS stakeholder which are representatives of Sea-Tac. Additionally, a list of 

required and as-needed members is included. 
SMS Role

Committee Responsibilities (as related to SMS program) Chair MemberSeaTac Safety Action Committee 

• Review high risk hazards and discuss mitigation strategies • Provide recommendations to AAAC for mitigations requiring capital 

investment 

• Provide a forum to capture newly identified hazards for review and 

assessment by the SRM subcommittee 

• Determine ownership of hazards and corrective actions for those that do not 

clearly fall under either the airport or airline SMS 

• Disseminate relevant safety information • Participate in safety assurance (quality) programs, as defined • Draft, update, contribute to, or review airport SMS policies, as necessary 

Senior Manager, Airport Operations Secondary – Airline Rep. 

Require• Airli• Gro

Man

• Airp• Airp• Airp• Con

As Need• Airp• Airp• Airp• Mai• Risk 

• Env

FOD Subcommittee 

• Coordinate ongoing FOD prevention activities, including FOD walks, trash 

removal 

• Discuss and capture FOD hazards • Perform root cause analysis on FOD-related accidents/incidents • Review FOD trends and patterns • Collaborate and participate in FOD prevention strategies, enforcement 

methods, and FOD-awareness campaigns 

• Organize and sponsor twice annual all-airport FOD walks • Make policy recommendations to SeaTac Safety Action Committee 

FOD Coordinator (Airport Duty Manager) Secondary – Airline Rep. 

• FOD 

tena

• Airp• Airp• Airp

Coo

Safety Policy 
SMS Role

Safety Policy 

Table 1 - Committee Roles and Responsibilities 

Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee 

• Identify Airside safety hazards • Perform risk assessment for initial high risk hazards • Discuss corrective action alternatives and provide recommendations to 

SeaTac Safety Action Committee for high risk 

• Review safety trends and patterns • Make policy recommendations to SeaTac Safety Action Committee 

Airport Safety Manager Require

• Airp• AirpAs Need• Airp• Airp• Airp• Airp• Risk • Env• Con

• Airp• Airp• Ten

Landside Safety Committee (pending) 

• Identify Landside safety hazards • Validate risk assessment for initial high risk hazards • Discuss corrective action alternatives and provide recommendations to 

SeaTac Safety Action Committee for high risk 

• Review safety trends and patterns • Make policy recommendations to SeaTac Safety Action Committee 

TBD TBD 

Terminal Safety Committee (pending) 

• Identify Terminal safety hazards 

• Perform risk assessment for initial high risk hazards • Discuss corrective action alternatives and provide recommendations to 

SeaTac Safety Action Committee for high risk 

• Review safety trends and patterns • Make policy recommendations to SeaTac Safety Action Committee 

TBD TBD 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

2.2 SMS Committee Stakeholders 

A group of SMS Committee Stakeholders serves the SMS as interested business 

partners, budgetary approvers, information distributors, advisors, and subject matter 

experts. These stakeholders consist of both internal (Safety Leaders) and external 

(Airline Station Managers) groups that currently exist in the Sea-Tac airport business 

and operations community. A brief description of each Stakeholder group and their 

importance to the SMS is presented below. 

1.1.5. Airport Safety Leaders 

Led by a Sea-Tac Deputy Director, the Airport Safety Leaders are a group of internal 

staff who meet monthly to review safety trends and activities. The group is focused on 

Sea-Tac staff as a priority but also include safety issues associated with construction 

projects, fire and police issues, and maintenance staff issues. The meeting is typically 

facilitated by Port of Seattle (POS) Health & Safety personnel who present information 

on POS staff injuries, accidents and incidents (including vehicular accidents), and 

bagwell citation information (manually collected from the Airport Duty Manager Logs). 

As SMS is introduced at Sea-Tac, the Airport Safety Leaders group will establish a 

formal relationship with the Safety Manager to discuss internal safety trends especially 

safety hazards that overlap with Health & Safety issues such as air quality, 

recommendations on personnel protective equipment (PPE) and human factors. The 

Safety Manager will attend the Airport Safety Leaders meetings to report on SMS 

Committees activities such as airside safety issues. 

1.1.6. Station Managers 

Station managers representing airlines and ground service providers meet monthly to 

discuss Sea-Tac facility and operations issues including airside, terminal, and landside 

concerns, problems, and operational changes. The group is chaired by a Station 

Manager on a rotating basis. Station Manager meetings provide an excellent forum to 

discuss safety issues that impact the airport-wide community. Also, Station Managers 

are in a position to disseminate information at a local and corporate level. The Safety 

Manager will attend Station Manager Meetings to brief the group on emerging safety 

issues, to ask for input on potential hazards, and to collaborate and prioritize hazard 

mitigations. 

1.1.7. Airline Airport Affairs Committee (AAAC) 

The Airline Airport Affairs Committee (AAAC) is comprised of airline and ground service 

provider representatives as a budgetary oversight committee. The committee meets 

quarterly and is chaired by a committee representative on a rotating basis. With regard 

to the SMS, any large-scale or high-cost corrective actions to resolve hazards would 

need to be presented to the committee for funding or other approval. To inform and 

educate the committee, the Safety Manager will attend meetings to provide program 

information and to brief the group on significant safety concerns or trends. 

Safety Policy 8 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Safety Policy 9 

1.1.8. Internal Collaboration Groups (ad hoc) 

At Sea-Tac, airport operations combines the skills and knowledge of many departments 

including Maintenance, Aviation Operations, Facilities Engineering, Construction Safety, 

Risk Management, and Health & Safety. The SMS will require formal and informal 

committee meetings to address safety trends, hazards, corrective actions, and best 

practices. Of the committees presented, this is the most fluid and flexible and will 

change depending on existing safety concerns and projects. The Safety Manager will 

lead these committee sessions and rely on the Safety Specialist to coordinate invitees 

as needed to support the effort. Buy in from each department represented will be critical 

to the success of these ad hoc committee meetings. 

1.1.9. Senior Aviation Management (SAM) 

Senior Aviation Management (SAM) is led by the Airport Director and made up of SeaTac Senior Airport Managers representing Finance, Airport Operations, Business 

Development, Public Affairs, Community Development, etc. These leaders meet on a 

recurring basis and discuss airport wide concerns and programs, trends, inter-related 

business and budget issues. SAM member buy in to SMS is extremely important to the 

program success. The SAM team has the ability to promote safety from the airport’s 

highest levels, which promotes a safety culture. The Safety Manager will attend the 

SAM meetings to instruct, inform, and foster SMS participation from the SAM. 

Table 2 presents specific stakeholder groups, their integration and collaboration with the 

SMS, and additional or existing members as they related to the SMS. 
SMS Role

Stakeholder Collaboration/Integration with SMS Members Airport Safety Leaders • Report out from SMS committees 

• Discuss Airside, Landside, and Terminal safety trends • Review safety hazards that overlap with internal Health & Safety 

initiatives (i.e. air quality in bag room) 

• Airport Safe

• Airport Hea• Airport Main• Airside Rep• Terminal Re• Landside Re• Constructio

Station Managers • Report out from Safety Management Action Committee on safety risks, trends, actions required from tenants 

• Review and discuss policy recommendations from Safety Action 

Committee, when necessary 

• Disseminate safety-related information to employees and to corporate 

office 

• Collaborate on solutions to airport-wide safety hazards, where 

necessary 

• Station Man• Airport Duty • Airport Safe• Senior Man• Ramp Servi• Airport Qua

Airline Airport Affairs Committee (AAAC) 

• Report out from Safety Management Action Committee on safety risks, 

trends, high visibility tenant concerns 

• Approve large-scale, high-cost corrective action plans to mitigate risk 

• Airline Repr

• Airport Ope• Subject Mat

Internal Collaboration Groups • Collaborate on corrective actions for safety hazards that impact multiple 

groups 

• Share safety-related information, data, and trends • Transfer and communicate hazards routed incorrectly 

• Maintenanc• Health & Sa• Risk Manag• Environmen• Port Constr• Engineering 

Safety Policy 
SMS Role

Safety Policy 

Table 2 – Stakeholder SMS Collaboration / Integration 

Senior Aviation Management (SAM) • Report out from Safety Management Action Committee on safety risks, trends 

• Review and approve policy recommendations from Safety Management 

Action committee 

• Review high risk hazards and corrective action plans • Promote SMS and safety-related initiatives • Foster and actively create safety culture • Participate in, lead and be visible at safety-related activities (including 

FOD walks, safety fairs, etc.) as much as possible 

• Create and communicate open door, non-punitive environment and 

policy for hazard reporting 

• SeaTac Sen
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

3. SMS Positions - Core Skills 

Two positions are recommended for the Sea-Tac SMS program: a Safety Manager and 

a Safety Specialist. These positions, while suggested for SMS implementation, have not 

yet been filled and are not, to the Team’s knowledge, included in the Sea-Tac 2010 

staffing budget. Impact to full SMS implementation will need to be considered when the 

deployment phase of the project is initiated.

Core skills for each position are included in the following tables. These skills were 

compiled through research and discussions with airport operations management at SeaTac and other airports that have SMS programs in place. The skills listed are not 

specific to Sea-Tac’s proposed SMS; in fact, they reflect the capabilities expected of 

Safety Managers and Specialists at most large hub Part 139, Class I airports. Each 

table is comprised of core and optional skills segmented into three sections: 

• Soft Skills – Soft skills are essentially people skills; the intangible, personalityspecific skills that determine strengths as a communicator, negotiator, facilitator, 

diplomat, and problem solver 

• Management Skills – Management skills include leadership capabilities including 

the ability to develop strategies, control budgets, manage staff, and implement 

change effectively 

• Technical Skills – Technical skills for a Safety Manager include exposure to the 

aviation industry, proficiencies such as AAE certifications or a regulatory 

background. Technical skills are likely the easiest to quantify through resumes, 

reviews, or interviews 

Qualifications for a Safety Manager require a balance that integrates interpersonal and 

management skills, and technical proficiency. Because the Safety Manager role relies 

heavily on relationships with airport staff and tenants, the Safety Manager must have 

strong communication and people skills. 

Also, in the early stages of the SMS implementation, the Safety Manager will likely serve 

as a program / project manager but as the SMS evolves and becomes operational, the 

Safety Manager’s role shifts to SMS advocate, strategist, and ambassador. This 

combination of skills may seem difficult to find in today’s aviation industry where SMS is 

a new and emerging program. However, airports who have engaged Safety Managers 

and Safety Specialists indicate that an excellent pool of qualified professionals exists, 

especially from the airline and risk industry, who can fill these positions. 

The Safety Specialist position is a support role that is self-directed and focused on data 

and information management but also includes strong communication and investigative 

skills. The Safety Specialist will likely spend a great deal of time in the field collecting 

and validating information from hazard, accident, and incident reports. The Specialist 

will understand the organization and responsibilities to assist in escalation and issue 

resolution. The Specialist will manage the inputs and outputs of the SMS database 

including reports and alerts. 

The two following tables provide a listing of soft, management, and technical skills for 

each of the positions: Safety Manager and Safety Specialist. 

Safety Policy 12 
SMS Role

3.1 Safety Manager Skills 

Core Skills 

Soft Skills Management Skills Te

Inquisitive Leadership Root cause analysTelecommunication Program management Accident/incident iWritten/verbal Budget control Aviation backgrouPresentations/public speaking Strategy and planning Safety background Self starter Analysis (data and systems) Risk management Independent Staff management Data analysis People person Scheduling Technology proficMotivational Task Management QA/QC backgrounDiplomatic Implementation Audit programs Ability to work with government agencies Program risk management Regulatory compliProblem solver Escalation/change management Ethical Business and System process management Collaborative Facilitation 

Additional/ 

Optional Skills 

Soft Skills Management Skills Te

Negotiation Bachelor's or Master's degree OSHA 

C-level reporting experience Health and safety AAE Ramp operations 

Airport operations IATA (IOSA or ISAICAO Part 139 General airport ex

Table 3 - SMS Manager Core Skills Safety Policy 
SMS Role

Safety Policy 3.2 Safety Specialist Skills 

Core Skills 

Soft Skills Management Skills Technica

Inquisitive Data management Root cause analysis Self starter Document management Accident/incident investigWorks independently Process management Computer proficient Strong verbal/communication skills Time management Strong written/documentation skills Strong analysis skills Critical thinking skills Customer service skills 

Additional/ 

Optional Skills 

Soft Skills Management Skills Technica

Negotiation Staff management Ramp operations Facilitation Customer management Airport operations Presentations Part 139 

General airport experienInspections/Audit experie

Table 4 - Safety Specialist Core Skills 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

2.0 Roles and Responsibilities 

The integration of a SMS into airport operations requires a planned and coordinated 

effort where each individual participating in the program understands his or her roles and 

responsibilities. Designated SMS program staff such as the Safety Manager or Safety 

Specialist will manage and support the program through full time efforts, but the bulk of 

the day-to-day work, the observations, the hazard identification, the corrective actions 

will come from a collective pool of technical and professional experts. These experts 

include Airport Duty Managers; Airport Operations Specialists; Maintenance, Risk, 

Environmental, Construction Safety, and Health & Safety Liaisons; Communication 

Center Representatives; and tenants. 

3.3 SMS Personnel Core Duties 

Two full time positions are proposed for a SMS; the Safety Manager and Safety 

Specialist positions. These positions, while recommended for SMS implementation, have 

not yet been filled and are not, to the Team’s knowledge, included in the Sea-Tac 2010 

budget. Impact to full SMS implementation will need to be considered when the 

implementation project is initiated. These positions are considered designated resources 

necessary to manage and support the SMS program. Core responsibilities are defined 

in Sections 4.3.1 and 4.3.2 for the Safety Manager and Safety Specialist as either 

Implementation (Project Management and Support) efforts, or Operations (Program 

Management and Support) responsibilities for each of the SMS Elements (Policy, Risk, 

Assurance, and Promotion). The Core duties include interactions with collateral duty 

staff and tenants and participation in committees and meetings as described in 

Section 2. 

4.1 SMS Personnel Collateral Duties 

Section 4.4 includes a list of all identified Sea-Tac staff and tenants and their SMS 

responsibilities. This includes responsibilities for the Accountable Executive who will 

bear ultimate accountability for the SMS program. The Team recommends that the 

Accountable Executive position be filled at the highest level of the airport organization 

because of the authority held. 

Safety Policy 15 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

4.1.1 SMS Manager 

Core Responsibilities - Operations - Program Management 

Develop strategies 

Develop alliances and relationships 

Develop program mission and vision 

Design and develop program (program plan, goals, oversight) 

Define and establish program policies, objectives, and standards including compliance 

Develop program safety baseline and benchmark goals including monitoring, tracking and performance evaluation 

Manage and continuously improve operational safety performance 

Ensure all government safety regulations, corporate safety policies, and industry-wide safety programs and 

initiatives are met 

Continue to monitor/keep current with regulatory requirements 

Attend conferences, make presentations, and share best practices with industry partners and other airports 

Evaluate existing safety systems for program integration 

Manage budget and grants (if applicable) 

Manage documentation and record keeping 

Provide ongoing reports to top management 

Define roles and responsibilities for SMS staff 

Hire and manage SMS staff 

Collaborate with internal airport groups such as maintenance and operations 

Collaborate with tenants 

Serve as a safety ambassador 

Participate in Safety Meetings 

Coordinate with other agencies and organizations including the FAA and the general public 

Core Responsibilities - Implementation – Project Management 

Develop implementation schedule and budget 

Assess implementation project impact to existing staff and assign duties 

Develop a plan to integrate the SMS program plan into the overall airport operation (initially for airside but 

eventually to landside and terminal – this plan should be developed early in the project planning phase) 

Manage consultant and deliverables 

Coordinate internal staff participation, commitment, and logistics 

Provide project oversight and budget management 

Report project and budget status to management 

Core Responsibilities - Policy 

Draft or revise safety policy 

Safety Policy 16 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Author policy communication plan 

Develop minimum safety standards for program 

Review with Legal, Risk, and Ops 

Review Airport Rules and Regulations and make recommendations for SMS language and modifications 

Review Airport Lease agreements and make recommendations for SMS language and modifications 

Shepherd policy through organization 

Gain management commitment and sign off 

Develop a process to communicate policies and objectives throughout the organization 

Communicate and distribute policy internally and externally 

Review policy annually for revisions or updates 

Core Responsibilities - Risk 

Define the airport risk management program and its integration into the airport SMS. 

Develop safety risk management (SRM) processes (for operational risk) 

Develop safety cases 

Participate in SRMD reviews and participate on panels as needed 

Develop hazard collection and risk review program 

Develop risk matrix and criteria for severity and probability 

Develop and deploy hierarchies of control 

Develop and deploy hazard categories 

Develop risk tolerance criteria 

Develop corrective action program and documentation/monitoring processes 

Create guidance on the use of SRM and data and trend analysis 

Define a process for documenting the results of SRM, including a description of how documents will be stored, i.e., 

electronic or paper. 

Define how top management will follow up on SRM to ensure safety mitigation strategies are appropriate. 

Core Responsibilities - Assurance 

Develop QA/QC Program 

Align Assurance program with Part 139 operations (if FAA Rule requires ) 

Align assurance program with minimum standards 

Develop, oversee, and participate in Audit program (QA) 

Develop, oversee, and participate in ramp/bagwell inspection program (QC) 

Develop and oversee FOD program (see FOD documentation) internal and external (tenants) 

Create a process to document and review lessons learned from within the organization. 

Develop a plan to integrate apron safety management into the airport SMS program 

Create a detailed method to document self-auditing processes and their findings. 

Create a detailed method to document self-inspection reviews, analysis, and findings. 

Safety Policy 17 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Core Responsibilities - Promotion 

Communicate policy/program to staff and tenants 

Develop and provide oversight to promotional safety program including logo, prizes, posters, etc. 

Develop documentation and communication plans for training and education, safety communication, competency, 

and continuous improvement 

Develop a plan for employee SMS indoctrination and training including an outline of proposed curriculum and 

resources 

Design, develop, and provide oversight of the tenant orientation program 

Promote safety awareness through workshops, events, discussions, on-site presence, and management 

commitment 

Develop a plan to validate training effectiveness and the process to gain training feedback including useable metrics 

Design procedures to promote safety awareness and participation in non-punitive (just culture) reporting systems 

4.1.2 SMS Specialist 

Core Responsibilities - Operations - Program Support 

Support SMS Manager in meetings, collect and manage documentation, 

Route hazard reports to appropriate department 

Serve as point of contact for information and documentation requests 

Communicate information to relevant departments 

Manage data base and data flows 

Support business processes 

Assist in report development and deployment 

Coordinate Maintenance response 

Coordinate Airport Duty Manager response 

Coordinate Airport Operations Specialist response 

Core Responsibilities - Implementation – Project Support 

Assist with implementation coordination and logistics 

Assist with software requirements definition and data flow process documentation 

Core Responsibilities - Policy 

Assist with communication and delivery of policy to staff and tenants 

Serve as point of contact for question routing 

Assist with updates to policy and routing policy changes through proper internal channels 

Make corrections or changes to policy from SMS Manager 

Core Responsibilities - Risk 

Collect hazards and enter into “system” either electronic or paper based data entry 

Safety Policy 18 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Manage day-to-day status of hazards, risks, and corrective actions 

Route questions and concerns to SMS Manager 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Core Responsibilities - Assurance 

Collect inspection reports and enter into “system” either electronic or paper based data entry 

Assist with providing proper forms and information to internal and external staff 

Serve as document manager for inspection forms 

Compile QA information for reporting and dashboard feeds 

Core Responsibilities - Promotion 

Serve as first contact for promotion questions and answers 

Deliver media (posters etc.) to tenants and staff 

Route questions and concerns to SMS Manager 

4.2 SMS Personnel Collateral Duties 

4.2.1 Accountable Executive 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Serve as ultimate responsible entity in the organization for the SMS Program 

Responsible for establishing and maintaining the SMS program 

Sign off on budgets, staff, and program goals and objectives 

Serve as ultimate responsible entity for identified hazards, risks, and corrective action decisions 

Serve as public outreach contact for media, regulatory, and public concerns 

Meet with SMS Manager for escalation issues and resolutions 

Sign off, approve, endorse, and promote the SMS Policy 

Review dashboard or score card results on a quarterly basis 

Report to CEO on SMS program results and concerns 

Serve as ultimate role responsible for providing a safe and healthy environment to staff and tenants 

Endorse all personnel to think and work safely at all times, regardless of any real or perceived pressures to do 

otherwise 

Be knowledgeable of how the SMS program works, who the key SMS personnel are, and what significant safety 

issues exist in the organization. 

4.2.2 Airport Duty Manager 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Conduct accident and incident investigations, collect information, provide documentation, and serve as subject 

matter expert 

Assign staff for FOD program (see FOD documentation for detailed roles and responsibilities) 

Safety Policy 19 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Assist in hazard and risk assessments 

Serve as point of contact for hazard reporting from tenants 

Attend Safety Action Meetings as needed for information on hazards and risks 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Participate in oversight of ramp and bag room inspections and associated findings for appropriate routing 

4.2.3 Airport Operations Specialist 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Conduct ramp and bag room inspections 

Report on findings 

Participate as needed in review of hazards and risks based on inspections 

Serve as airfield safety eyes and ears for tenants and staff 

4.2.4 Maintenance Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Participate in hazard and risk assessments 

Assign appropriate staff for hazard and risk assessments 

Serve as liaison for FOD (see FOD documentation) and other safety program initiatives 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

4.2.5 Maintenance Lead 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Assign staff to hazard mitigation projects 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Provide maintenance expertise to hazard mitigation strategies 

4.2.6 Communications & Dispatch Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Collect information on hazards and document in “system” either paper based or electronic solution 

Dispatch maintenance response 

Dispatch Airport Duty Manager response 

Dispatch Airport Operations Specialist response 

Participate on strategy and planning sessions for SMS implementation 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

4.2.7 Tenants 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Report hazards 

Safety Policy 20 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Collaborate with other airline and GSE representatives and POS operations and maintenance staff 

Participate in Safety Action Meeting as needed 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Serve as point of contact for FOD program 

Participate in FOD Subcommittee 

Serve as point of contact for ramp safety inspections 

4.2.8 Health & Safety Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Participate in Safety Action Meeting as needed 

Serve as point of contact for Health & Safety and OSHA issues 

Manage and report on bag room safety issues 

4.2.9 Port Construction Services Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Participate in Safety Action Meeting as needed 

Provide briefings on construction activities that impact airfield and terminal operations 

Serve as a safety inspection resource if needed and for best practice exchange 

4.2.10 Risk Management Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Participate in Safety Action Meeting as needed 

Provide information on claims 

Provide guidance on risk policies/programs at airport and port facilities 

4.2.11 Environmental Liaison 

Collateral Responsibilities 

Participate in Airside Safety Risk Management Subcommittee Meeting as needed 

Participate in Safety Action Meeting as needed 

Provide project information for compactors, garbage, etc. as it relates to ramp operations or FOD issues. 

Advise on any environmental issues that relate to the ramp or bag room 

Safety Policy 21 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

Safety Policy 22 

3.0 Integrated Duties – Hazard Example 

To reflect the interoperability and collaboration required for SMS to function at Sea-Tac, 

the diagram on the following page demonstrates the steps required to identify a hazard 

and mitigate the safety risk. Nine roles are represented in the illustration; the processes 

will require coordination and communication to ensure safety risk management efforts 

are not bogged down in procedural delays. The roles include core SMS duties, collateral 

duties, committee duties, and stakeholders; all of which support the SMS through 

collaboration and communication. 

As represented in the diagram and consistent with Sea-Tac’s philosophy on SMS 

collaboration, anyone who is part of the airport or tenant community can report a hazard. 

This reporting will allow for hazards to be input through a variety of professional and 

technical operations. The routing of the hazard can take various paths depending on 

urgency and prioritization. Airport Duty Managers (ADMs) play an important role in 

responding to and resolving hazards and because of this, the ADM bears a responsibility 

to document and report information to the Safety Manager/Safety Specialist consistently 

and accurately. As needed, subject matter experts are brought in to assist with 

assessing hazards and their associated risk (see the Guide to Safety Risk Management 

for more information). As a hazard is further defined, the airport and tenant community 

has an opportunity to jointly agree to corrective actions and to risk acceptance. 

This sample flow diagram serves to emphasize the importance of roles and 

responsibilities throughout the safety community to effectively manage hazards, risks, 

and resolutions. 
SMS Role

Figure 2 – Interoperability Example - Hazard Flow by SMS Role Safety Policy 
SMS Roles and Responsibilities 

4.0 Summary of Findings 

As mentioned early in this document, staffing strategies are critical to the successful 

implementation of a SMS. New staff and their associated skills must be carefully 

assessed to ensure both technical proficiencies and personal “fit” into the organization. 

The role of Safety Manager can either make or break the program; the Safety Manager 

serves as the ambassador, the leader who not only manages day-to-day activities but 

gains Accountable Executive support, and develops long-term strategies to ensure the 

program is successful. 

Equally important to achieving a robust SMS program is the ability to clearly define roles 

and responsibilities for all staff and tenants who have a stake in the program. Core and 

collateral duties must be agreed to by personnel prior to launching the SMS. The SMS 

team extends widely and broadly throughout the airport organization and requires 

planning and structure to leverage its effectiveness. 

Safety Policy 24