Q&A With the Airport Director: Michael Stephens

Michael Stephens began his term as CEO of Tampa International (TPA) in April 2025. A U.S. Air Force and Army veteran, he joined the airport in 2015 as general counsel and executive vice president, overseeing information technology services, human resources and administration, government and community relations, risk management and business diversity. Before his tenure at TPA, Stephens forged a distinguished career in public service and transportation. He served on active duty as a captain and trial counsel in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps, where he was also appointed Special Assistant U.S. Attorney. Earlier, he served as an air traffic controller in the Air Force.

In October 2024, Tampa International was named “Best Large Airport” and “Best Airport for Dining” by USA Today’s 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards. What do you think contributed to those honors, and how do you plan to maintain those rankings?

I believe our award-winning performance is based primarily on two ingredients: First, creating a culture that supports a highly engaged, world-class dedicated team that deeply believes in our mission. Second, our unwavering and laser focus on the guest experience. From the moment a traveler arrives, we’ve reimagined every touchpoint — streamlined security lanes, intuitive wayfinding and curated local dining that tells Tampa Bay’s story. We maintain our rankings by empowering every team member with servant-leadership principles: they’re empowered and encouraged to innovate daily, whether that means piloting a contactless dining kiosk or redesigning gate seating for comfort. Constant feedback loops — through passenger surveys, community roundtables and walking the terminals to see what our team and guests are experiencing every day — help us iterate and stay ahead of expectations.

What advice do you have for other airports seeking to increase their rankings?

Start by truly listening — to your passengers, your frontline team members and your neighbors. Create and embed continuous feedback to know what’s resonating. Ultimately, it’s about blending vision with pragmatism: big ideas executed in ways that matter to the team you lead and the people you serve.

The airport has made it a mission to bring local dining and shopping into the facility. Why is that important and how do your passengers react?

Part of our goal is to give people a feel for Tampa Bay when they arrive at TPA. Curating local restaurants, breweries and artisans honors our community and regional roots, fuels economic impact and gives travelers an authentic sense of place. Passengers love it. I still remember a family from Iowa delighted to taste a Cuban-style sandwich for the first time, or frequent flyers raving that each trip they see and experience something new and cool when they come to Tampa Bay.

In December 2024, the airport broke ground on a nearly 600,000 square foot Airside D — the first new airside in nearly 20 years. Why is this needed and what does it mean for the future of the airport?

Breaking ground on Airside D was about future-proofing the airport for growth and enhancing the guest journey. The new 600,000 square foot facility provides 16 gates, state-of-the-art security screening and advanced baggage systems — all designed with modular flexibility so we can adapt quickly to evolving aircraft and passenger needs. For the community, it means more destinations, better connectivity and economic opportunity. For our team, it’s a living laboratory in human-centric design that allows us to deliver a world-class experience to our guests.

How do you attract and retain new airlines and have existing airlines increase their service levels?

We start with data — market-demand analytics, origin-and-destination gaps, revenue-potential forecasts — and pair that with personalized relationship building. We meet each airline’s leadership to understand strategic priorities, then co-develop incentive packages that balance risk and reward, like promotional incentives for new routes. Once service launches, we support joint marketing campaigns and track performance collaboratively to encourage capacity increases. Success breeds success: when one carrier finds strong yields, others follow.

How do you motivate your staff?

Servant leadership means removing obstacles so our employees can bring their best ideas forward. We celebrate wins — big and small — through an internal “Spotlight TPA” program that highlights team innovations monthly. We invest in professional development, from leadership academies to formal and informal learning opportunities. And we maintain an open-door culture: I hold frequent listening sessions with our frontline team members where anyone can share ideas or voice concerns. Recognition, empowerment and genuine listening fuel engagement and ownership.

What is your biggest challenge and how do you overcome it?

Managing growth amidst global uncertainty is our greatest challenge — balancing capacity expansion with shifting travel behaviors and supply-chain volatility. We overcome this through scenario and long-range planning and maintaining a resilient, agile operating model. That means developing and executing innovative initiatives, multi-skilled staffing strategies and a continuous improvement mindset so we can pivot quickly. By embedding flexibility into our culture and infrastructure, we turn volatility into opportunity.

What are you focused on for the future?

Looking ahead, we’re doubling down on three pillars: seamless digital journeys (think biometrics and AI-driven wayfinding), sustainable operations (we are in hurricane season again and have to make sure that we are prepared and can recover quickly in the event of a major storm) and community enrichment (expanding small-business partnerships and workforce development). Each initiative aligns with our vision of TPA as both a world-class travel hub and a continuing catalyst for regional prosperity.

What advice do you have for those starting out in the airport operations and management field?

Be relentlessly curious and cultivate cross-disciplinary skills — operations, finance, technology, customer experience. Seek out mentors across every department and volunteer for stretch assignments. And most importantly: never lose sight of the human element. Airports are about people — both those who work here and the travelers we serve.

What is one fun thing someone wouldn’t know about you?

I love a good karaoke night with friends. The worse the singing, the more fun it is.

If you weren’t working at the airport what would be your dream job?

I believe I am more of an entrepreneur at heart. I would love to lead and grow a company that is developing any type of innovative technology that advances humanity in a meaningful way. For example, biomedical sciences, applied materials, robotics, or other advanced technologies.

Where is your dream-travel destination and why?

I am fortunate in my career to have the opportunity to travel extensively. However, I have never been to sub-Saharan Africa. I am planning a trip to South Africa next year with family and friends and am looking forward to going on a safari and visiting wine country.

What is your long-term goal for TPA?

To cement Tampa International as the global benchmark for passenger-centric, sustainable aviation — where every journey feels seamless, every innovation scales industry-wide and every team member finds purpose in serving our region, community and our guests.