I have seen dozens of airports over the years, but I can't remember one where arriving passengers, past the customs and luggage in tow, are allowed to just dash out into the wild. Except at Budapest Franz Liszt international airport, where chaos awaits in the arrival hall because of a layout I find illogical. So, here's my initial issue with it, followed by my proposed solution.
This is my depiction of the arrival hall in Terminal A, for what it's worth. Besides lines on the floor leading to official taxis and minibus transfer services, passengers entering the hall have no indication of where to look, and have 3 options : a) go straight ahead through the exit for the car park, taxis and public transport, b) turn to authorised waiting area #1, where tour guides and private transfer drivers await individuals and groups, c) turn to authorised waiting area #2, where only individuals (i.e. bearing no name sign) are allowed to wait.
Intelligent-looking security guards defend the area between the two authorised waiting zones as if their lives depended on it, but only if trespassers are holding a sign : the no man's land is nonetheless filled with wandering passengers who have no idea they're in the way, so in reality no one can see a thing.
So if you are a tour guide waiting for a group, it helps if you know at least one passenger. Obviously, in most cases neither party knows what the other looks like, hence the signs, so the next best thing is to have a group leader who will provide crucial information : Is everyone here ? Has someone lost their luggage ? And if they have any experience in travelling with groups, they will make sure that everyone enters the arrival hall at the same time.
Failing that, when the first members of a group spot their name in zone #1, they are told to go around the messy area and wait until everyone else has arrived - lest they too, block the view for their guide and everyone else. How do guides know that the whole group has arrived, and how do they make sure that the first ones are still around when the last ones arrive, is written down in every tour guide's magical book.
A lot of factors are to blame for the chaos : forgetful passengers or otherwise in the way, security personnel too strict or too lenient, passengers for whom the call for a cigarette is more urgent than being found, guides not positionning themselves properly, the understandable push of the airport to sell its taxi and transfer services. I blame the configuration of the hall, and I believe a simple restructuration could make everyone happy - and everything more orderly.
My proposed solution, once again for what it's worth, is to follow the example of every other major airport : have passengers follow a corridor for long enough to see what's on the other side of the rabbit hole before they are allowed to make a turn. Exits #1 and #2 can be used to filter out large groups as well as passengers using official taxi and transfer services, leaving the rest of the happy crowd flowing smoothly into the terminal.
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