Environmental Factors Influencing SpaceX - Case Study Example

SpaceX and Environmental Impacts Environmental Factors Influencing SpaceX Space Transportationhas always been a great ambition for humans. In the last few centuries humans have been able to achieve this level of technological advancement and SpaceX is one of the significant companies that have been involved in initializing and advancing space travelling. SpaceX is a renowned organization established in 2002 by Elon Musk. The company has expertise in designing, manufacturing and subsequently launching the highly developed and technologically advanced rockets and space craft. Ever since its establishment the company has maintained its mission of revolutionizing the transportation of space which will eventually facilitate people to survive on other planets as well. In the recent times the company is bringing competitive edge to the space transportation and technology with the help of Dragon Spacecraft and Falcon Launch Vehicles (SPACEX: COMPANY OVERVIEW, 2013). In the current period due to the immense competition and significant advancement in technology, companies cannot survive solely on the basis of their profit margins and sufficient sustainability. Therefore today companies are focusing more towards the long term sustainability which requires them to control the environmental factors influencing the organization. Companies which are directly dealing with the atmosphere and environment such as SpaceX need to manage the environmental factors more effectively and efficiently than any other company operating in other business sectors. Environmental factors influencing the business activities are largely divided in to two groups, i.e. internal environmental factors and external environmental factors. Following are the environmental factors which influence SpaceX: Internal Environmental Factors: These include the employee relations, internal conflicts, leadership and the role of management to enhance the productivity of employees. This is commonly known as corporative environmentalism in which managers and key executives play the most significant role. They are responsible for the negotiations related to business dealings, acceptance or rejection of proposals, executing the strategies and handling of conflicts. This indicates that if the managers and leaders of SpaceX are unable to perform their duties with integrity then it poses serious challenges for the overall organization which might lead it to some business loss and lack of future sustainability (CHERRIER, 2012). The commitment of employees especially those working on the key posts is the most substantial component for the achievement of long term sustainability. However, the employee commitment and involvement should be at the individual, collective and functional level. If the commitment is missing from any of these levels then it will not be as beneficial for the organization as it should be (STOUGHTON, 2012). The human resource is the most valuable asset of SpaceX and therefore it also influences the organization in a much substantial way. For instance the managerial decisions and their successful execution are completely dependent upon the leadership and business intellect of human resource. In such circumstances it becomes even more important to apply best suitable strategies of human resource management in order to generate substantial profits and future sustainability (O’DONNELL, 1997). External Environmental Factors: These include the economic, political, social and climatic conditions which directly or indirectly influence the business operations of SpaceX. For instance, whenever a new government takes over the administrative responsibilities of the country then it comes up with new strategies for the corporate world. These might influence the prevailing business operations either negatively or positively. Similarly economic indicators such as GDP and per capita income also mark substantial impacts over the business operations of huge corporations such as SpaceX. These external environmental factors can also have serious impacts over the competitive edge of an organization (AGARWALA, 2005). This indicates that the management of SpaceX requires building a relationship between the managerial decisions and the overall environmental factors considering the goals and objectives of the organization. However, in most of the situations it is significantly difficult to tackle the external environmental factors and to turn the environmental threats into real business opportunities (WISNER et al., 2010). Impact of Environment over the Sustainability of an Organization Internal and External Environment both have substantial impacts over the sustainability of an organization. For instance, consider the business operations of SpaceX. The company is involved in to such business activities which influence the overall economy and political position of the country in addition to imposing serious global threats. Therefore it extensively requires maintaining balance between company policies and environmental influence (BANERJEE, 2001). Organizations can develop wide range of environmental policies and plans for long term sustenance. However, there is always a substantial gap between the policy formation of an organization and the environmental influence due to which companies face significant losses and also setback in their long term sustainability. However, today many organizations are considering the environmental factors while making policies in regard of their future sustainability. But still there are few organizations who neglect the influence of environment over the profitability, success and long term sustainability (FAULKNER, 2005). This indicates that huge corporations such as SpaceX need to make certain resolutions in order to reduce the impacts of environmental factors and gain sustainability. These include (FAIRFIELD et al., 2011): Improvements in the Eco-efficiency: It will facilitate SpaceX to identify new business opportunities in the competitive economy while making substantial strategies to enhance the productivity level of the organization. Eco-efficiency actually enables the organizations to make business decisions as per the environmental requirements. Furthermore it is an essential requirement of sustenance in markets with substantial competition. SpaceX can achieve eco-efficiency by ensuring the delivery of quality space transportation services and fulfillment of human needs in association with space technology. In addition to this SpaceX would have to consider the changing economic trends which are beneficial or hazardous for its business activities (ECO-EFFICIENCY, 2013). Identification of renewable energy sources: SpaceX is currently using non-renewable energy resources for the development and operations of its spacecraft and rockets. These sources are not expected to last for longer and therefore the identification of renewable energy resources has become a significant need for the long term sustainability of SpaceX. Renewable energy resources which might prove beneficial for SpaceX include: Biodiesel which can be obtained from esterification of Soya Beans or from the leftovers of oils products and Fischer-Tropsch Kerosene which is a significant alternative of aircraft fuels and can be used in order to achieve cost effectiveness. These renewable sources would not only increase the sustainability of SpaceX in the current environmental conditions but they would also reduce the poor environmental effects of aircraft and rockets (SAYNOR, 2003). Local sourcing: It indicates that SpaceX would have to incorporate its business activities with the locally available human and natural resources in order to reduce the environment influence. This will also facilitate the organization to fulfill national interest of the population with a highly cost effective strategy. SpaceX would have to indulge itself into community services and activities related to human welfare and this will initiate good communal relationships ultimately leading to better productivity level and reduced environmental affects (STODDART, 2012). Energy Conservation: Energy Conservation has been a significant issue for SpaceX ever since its development. The energy that is released during the take-off of aircrafts and rockets puts serious environment threats. SpaceX can conserve energy through the development of energy and fuel efficient aircrafts. This would require heavy investments at the initial level. However, later on it will yeild substantial results which will significantly reduce the environmental threats for the business operations of SpaceX in addition to increasing its overall sustainability (BOWLES, 2010). Reduction of Pollutants, Emissions and Wastes: The activities of space crafts and rockets increase the environmental pollution to a significant level which includes emissions and wastes harmful for humans and other living creatures. The pollutants, emissions and wastes releasing in the atmosphere can be reduced with the use of renewable fuel resources along with substantial changes in the overall design of space crafts (LUBIN, 2010). Today organizations need to improve their long term sustainability and productivity so that they can easily manage the environmental influences. The above mentioned strategies can significantly help SpaceX to tackle the sustainability related issues. In addition to this SpaceX requires improving employees’ involvement in order to ensure their health and safety. This would actually enable the organization to deal with the overall environmental impacts influencing SpaceX with the active participation of employees and the management (FAIRFIELD et al., 2011). Conclusion SpaceX is huge corporation which designs and manufactures the space crafts and rockets. There are significant environmental factors which influence its overall business operations. The company is working very well ever since its establishment, however, like many other organizations it does require to make certain changes in its organizational policy so as to cope up with the current environmental conditions. There are merely two types of environments which largely affects any organization and these are internal and external environmental factors. Company leadership and the overall managerial decisions play a substantial role in reducing the bad influence of these factors. However, the correct managerial strategies and proficient use of human resource might change the environmental influences into real business opportunities (WU CI-SHENG, 2012). The stability and long term sustainability of SpaceX can be ensured through the management of environmental factors influencing the organization. References ANNE M. STOUGHTON, JAMES LUDEMA, (2012) “The driving forces of sustainability”, Journal of Organizational Change Management, volume 25, page 501 – 517. BOB SAYNOR, AUSILIO BAUEN, MATTHEW LEACH (2013) “The Potential for Renewable Energy Sources in Aviation”, London: Imperial College Centre for Energy Policy and Technology. DAVID FAULKNER, YSANNE M. CARLISLE, HOWARD P. VINEY, (2005) "Changing corporate attitudes towards environmental policy", Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, volume 16, page 476 – 489. 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