Implications of Change in British Airways - Dissertation Example

Download file to see previous pages The ability of organizations to innovate and change is increasingly imperative in times of intense competition and economic downturn. Change is the only hope for the survival of organizations. According to Burke (2008, p.136), what to change usually starts when leaders of an organization are confronted with some shift or event in the firm’s external environment. Examples of drivers of change include economic recession, bursting of novel technology, mergers, and passage of new legislation to mention but a few.

Modifications in a firm’s external environment cause organizational leaders to consider what to change about their firm in order to address the new challenges and to survive. Following the 2008 economic downturn that affected many firms, most firms had to embrace change in order to survive. The assumptions on which the firms were built on and ran no longer fitted the real situation on the ground. The effects of the economic crisis affected local and international firms including British Airways.

British Airways is the United Kingdom’s biggest international airline. It is among the world’s leading airlines based on the fleet size and the number of clients. According to Rodionova (2017), the airline reported a 9.7% rise in operating profit for the first three months of 2017. The airline’s total revenue stands at €4.9bn (Rodionova 2017). The firm also enjoys an extensive market share, particularly for its long-haul flights. Between 2007 and 2008, the firm registered higher profits. However, the firm, just like other firms across the world, encountered major setbacks that affected its performance. The firm needed to look for ways and means to survive. According to Cawsey, Jessica, and Mongols (2012, p.16), the financial crisis and economic downturn of 2008 and 2009 forced firms to react.

It was not the planning that helped most firms such as British Airways to survive, but it was the sense of responsiveness and adaptive ability that allowed firms to respond and survive the crisis. According to Milmo (2009), British Airways made a profit of £875 million in 2008, but the profit was followed by a loss of £401 million in 2009. In 2009, BA posted its worst-ever financial performance that made the chief Executive, Willie Wash, scrap its dividend following the collapse in business travel and increased fuel costs. The abrupt decline in its vital markets that triggered the losses prompted the leadership to derive change strategies. ...Download file to see next pages Read More