Operations and Project Management: Review, Critique, and Continuous Improvement Plan for British Airways

This report discusses the implementation of Operations Management Principles in British Airways. It includes a review and critique of the principles, a continuous improvement plan, and analysis of its effectiveness. The report identifies the good and bad areas of the airline and suggests areas for improvement. The report is relevant for students studying Operations and Project Management in any college or university.

Operations and Project
Management

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................1
P1: Review and Critique of implementation of Operations Management Principles..................1
M1: Review and Critique of Operations Management................................................................5
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................5
P2: Continuous Improvement Plan..............................................................................................5
M2: Analysis of the effectiveness of Continuous Improvement Plan.........................................9
D1: Application of appropriate theories, concepts, and models..................................................9
CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Operations and Project Management refers to the use of methods and techniques through
which organizations can make sure that they can manage the work which is being done properly
so that the goals and objectives can be attained (Alves, Ferreira, and de Nadal, 2021). Thus, it
can be stated that the managers of the firms should be able to make sure that they should be able
to make its use to ensure that the attainment of the goals and objectives can be carried out. For
this report, British Airways has been chosen. It is one of the main airlines in the United
Kingdom. In this report, a detailed and specific focus will be made on the way the use of
Operations and Project Management can be made to manage the different types of needs and
requirements in the organization.
TASK 1
P1: Review and Critique of implementation of Operations Management Principles
British Airways is one of the main airlines in the United Kingdom. It is a carrier that
operates flights to different countries in the world. It is an airline that provides services to the
customers as per their wide range of needs and requirements effectively and efficiently.
Therefore, it can be stated that British Airways is the airline that can make sure that it provides
its customers with the best services which can ensure their higher level of satisfaction quite
effectively and efficiently (Arasteh, 2020). The airline has been chosen because it can make sure
that it provides a wide range of services to the customers who will ensure that they can be
satisfied.
Operations- Operations refer to the management of the inner workings of the business so
that it can run as effectively as possible (Barrado and et.al., 2020). These inner workings are
related to the proper and appropriate management of the operations of the organization.
Therefore, it can be stated that the businesses are required to make sure that the management of
the different types of needs and requirements of the business can be done through bringing the
improvements in it so that the goals and objectives can be attained. British Airways can therefore
make sure that it can find out how the necessary improvements can be made which will therefore
help the company a lot in managing its own needs and requirements. Therefore, it can be stated
that the Businesses are required to ensure that they can take the essential steps which will help
them to be able to attain the future goals and objectives quite effectively and efficiently.
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Operations Management- Operations Management refers to the use of different types of
practices through which the overall efficiency and effectiveness level of the Business can be
enhanced so that the management of the different types of needs and requirements can be carried
out by it in a proper manner which will therefore help it a lot (Bhalla and et.al., 2021). For
British Airways, it is therefore quite important that its use should be made quite properly and
appropriately so that the attainment of the goals and objectives can be done. Operations
Management is therefore concerned with ensuring that the organization can identify how can
properly and appropriately identify how it can bring out the necessary improvements in the level
of operations which will thus help it a lot in the future.
Principles of Operations Management-
There are various Principles of Operations Management. It is quite necessary and
important that their use should be made within the organizations for the particular purpose of
ensuring that the organization can manage its own needs and requirements (Chen and et.al.,
2020). Also, through making use of Operations Management Principles, British Airways can
make sure that it can bring improvements. The Principles of Operations Management can be
implemented in the following manner in British Airways-
Principle 1: Reality- It has to be ensured by the organizations that they put their focus on
Reality and therefore in this way they will be able to make sure that they can attain the goals and
objectives (Chipulu and Vahidi, 2020). Thus, the managers of British Airways should make sure
that they should put their focus on ensuring that they can identify how they can enhance the
overall efficiency and effectiveness.
Principle 2: Humility- Managers are required to show humility so that they can
understand and respect limitations by avoiding trial and error at all costs. Therefore, In British
Airways it can be stated that the managers should be able to display humility which will
therefore help them a lot. This will help ensure that the proper and detailed management of work
can be done in the organization.
Principle 3: Organization- The managers are required to put their focus on ensuring that
the proper and appropriate improvements in the system can be made by them. For British
Airways, it must be able to deal with the different types of needs and requirements properly and
appropriately by identifying the methods and techniques which are required to be used.
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Principle 4: Accountability- It is desired in the organizations that the creation of proper
accountability can be done properly. In the context of British Airways, it can be stated that it
becomes quite crucial that the accountability for the work which has been done is created so that
the organization can identify the mistakes and rectify them.
Principle 5: Change- Change is quite important and should be considered in
organizations (Dandage, Rane, and Mantha, 2021). This is so because the relevant adjustments
with the change are required to be made within the organizations which will therefore help them
a lot. Thus, British Airways is required to make sure that its different types of employees can
adjust properly according to the change which will be helpful for the organization. This will help
it in the attainment of success.
Principle 6: Quality Control- Quality Control is quite crucial and therefore it is
important to consider it so that the enhancement in the quality of the goods which are being
produced can be done which will help the firms (Mahmoudi and et.al., 2020). British Airways
should make sure that it can enhance its overall quality properly and appropriately. In this way,
the company will be able to manage its needs and requirements.
Principle 7: Success- It is important that the overall level of satisfaction of the customers
can be ensured so that success can be ensured in the operations. Therefore, it can be stated that it
is important for the organizations that should be able to put their focus on bringing the desired
improvements so that the attainment of success can be done by them. In the context of British
Airways, it can be stated that it will be quite important as well as essential so that it can properly
bring out the improvements.
Principle 8: Know your competition- It is crucial that the study of the different types of
competitors can be done appropriately which can create a particular level of impact on the
organizations (Maraqa, Sacks, and Spatari, 2021). For British Airways, it is quite essential that it
can assess the level of competition and take the necessary decisions accordingly which will
therefore help it a lot in managing the needs and requirements.
Principle 9: Causality- Operational problems have tell-tale signs before they occur.
Therefore, the organizations must be able to identify them so that the appropriate rectifying
actions can be taken as per the needs and requirements. In the context of British Airways, it is,
therefore, necessary that the identification of the operational problems can be done so that the
appropriate actions should be taken.
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Principle 10: Consumer Collaboration- It is quite important for the managers within an
organization that they can understand customers in-depth by collecting insights from them on the
way the improvement can be made in the products/services in the right way. For an organization
like British Airways, it is highly necessary and important that it can be done so that the
improvements can be made properly and appropriately.
Therefore, it can be stated that a proper understanding can be developed about the
Principles of Operations Management so that the work can be managed in a better way in the
organizations. For British Airways, it must take the essential actions.
The Good Areas in British Airways are as follows-
 Design of Goods and Services- This is the Good Area in British Airways which has to
be considered so that the Airline can attain its goals and objectives (Maree, Rotimi, and
Rotimi, 2021). Therefore, it can be stated that in this way British Airways can make sure
that it can provide the right services to the customers for the price which they are paying
for them which can ensure that they are satisfied quite effectively and efficiently. Thus,
the management of British Airways is required to put its focus on ensuring that the
customers can be satisfied.
 Quality Management- This is also a Good Area in British Airways because in this way
the best quality of services can be provided to the customers. British Airways can make
sure that it provides the best quality services to the customers which will ensure that it
can manage the different types of needs and requirements of the customers. Therefore, it
can be stated that the quality is required to be improved which can be helpful for the
organization in attaining future goals and objectives.
The Bad Areas in British Airways are as follows-
 Supply Chain Management- In British Airways, this is a bad area because the supplies
are not managed correctly which therefore creates quite a bad impact on the level of
operations properly and appropriately (Picciotto, 2020).
 Inventory Management- In British Airways, this is a bad area because the stock items
are not managed properly and therefore this creates quite a bad impact on the customers
and can impact them a lot.
The Areas to improve in British Airways are explained as follows-
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 Scheduling- This is an area where improvement can be made because by creating the
schedules British Airways will be able to make sure that it can help the customers a lot.
 Maintenance- This is an area where the necessary improvement can be made which will
therefore help ensure that the best services can be provided to the customers which will
be useful in enhancing their overall level of satisfaction.
M1: Review and Critique of Operations Management
Operations Management is quite useful for organizations so that they can manage their
overall needs and requirements in such a way so that they can attain the necessary goals and
objectives. For an organization like British Airways, it is highly crucial as well as necessary that
it can find out the right way in which the use of Operations Management is required to be made
so that the attainment of the goals and objectives can be made in the right and proper way which
will therefore help the organization a lot. Thus, it can be stated that the managers of the
organization are required to make sure that they can bring out the proper and appropriate
improvements through making its use which will therefore help it a lot in ensuring that the
attainment of the goals and objectives in the future can be done.
TASK 2
P2: Continuous Improvement Plan
Continuous Improvement Plan is a plan which is required to be framed in the
organizations so that the identification of the problems and issues which are related to the
operations can be done and the actions can be taken on them which will help in solving them
(Sharma and et.al., 2021). For British Airways, it is quite necessary and important that the
preparation of this particular plan can help ensure that it can bring out the necessary
improvements properly and appropriately.
British Airways makes the use of Continuous Improvement Plan so that it can make sure
that it can identify its operational problems and take the desired actions accordingly to solve
them which will therefore help it a lot in enhancing its overall profitability level. The Continuous
Improvement Plan which can be used by British Airways is as follows-
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Continuous Improvement Plan
Problems Actions to be taken Person Responsible
for taking actions
Time-period
Lack of efficiency and
effectiveness of the
employees
The HR department is
required to organize
proper training for the
employees which will
help ensure that they
can work properly and
appropriately towards
attaining the goals and
objectives. This will
help in finding out the
shortcomings of the
employees and
ensuring that the
actions can be taken so
that they can be
removed which will
help them in working
more productively.
HR Manager 3 months
Lack of proper
management of the
work by the managers
The Operations
Department is required
to make sure that the
managers are provided
with proper and
detailed instructions
about how they can
manage the work quite
properly and
Operations Manager 6 months
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appropriately. This
will be useful for them
in managing the work
properly so that the
attainment of the goals
and objectives can be
done.
Poor feedback on the
services provided to
the customers
The managers are
required to make sure
that they can act on the
feedback received and
can make sure that
they can ensure that
they can make the
right decisions
accordingly which will
help a lot by bringing
the desired
improvements
effectively and
efficiently. In this
way, the managers will
be able to ensure that
they can take the
necessary actions.
Operations Manager 9 months
Lack of proper
management of the
processes within the
organization
The managers are
required to make sure
that they can identify
how the desired level
of improvement can be
Operations Manager 12 months
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made in the processes
so that they can ensure
that the attainment of
the necessary goals
and objectives can be
done. Thus, in this
way, the processes can
be improved and
therefore the
attainment of the goals
and objectives can be
done.
British Airways makes use of Six Sigma & Lean Principles. It helps it in attaining its
goals and objectives in the future.
The use of Six Sigma methodology is made in the following manner by British Airways-
Six Sigma is an approach that can be used so that the Businesses can bring the necessary
improvements in their overall processes and therefore they can reduce the chances of making an
error quite effectively and efficiently properly and appropriately. DMAIC approach is used by
the managers of British Airways. Its explanation can be made a follows-
 Define- This refers to defining the problem. It is necessary because this will help in
finding out a solution.
 Measure- This refers to measuring the impact which can be created by the problem. It is
quite crucial to be done so that the proper and appropriate actions can be taken which will
be highly useful and helpful.
 Analyze- This refers to the analysis of the problems so that the right solution is
implemented. It is important and should be done so that the necessary actions can be
taken according to the needs and requirements which are prevailing which will help
manage the needs and requirements.
 Improve- This refers to how the desired level of improvements can be made which will
be quite important for attaining the goals and objectives (Silvério, Trabasso, and Pessôa,
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2020). Therefore, it can be stated that it is quite crucial to make sure that the appropriate
improvements can be made so that the profitability level can be enhanced.
 Control- This refers to how the control can be kept in the organizations for the particular
purpose of bringing the necessary improvements as and when required. Thus, it can be
stated that for the organizations it is important and should be done so that they can make
progress.
Thus, it can be stated that the Six Sigma approach is helpful for the organizations in
ensuring that the identification of how the processes can be improved can be done which
will be quite useful in the management of the needs and requirements properly and
appropriately. Thus, this will help a lot in the attainment of the goals and objectives.
Lean Principles- These principles are useful for the particular purpose of ensuring that the
identification of the problems can be done and the actions can be taken so that these problems
can be solved quite effectively and efficiently. The Lean Principles are as follows-
 Define Value- It is quite important and necessary that the customer value can be defined
so that the essential actions can be taken. This will be helpful for an organization like
British Airways.
 Map the Value Stream- It is necessary to make sure that the identification and mapping
of the value stream can be done which is important to take action. This will be useful for
British Airways.
 Create Flow- It is important that a flow can be created by the organizations so that they
can identify how the problems and issues can be identified and the rectifying actions can
be taken effectively and efficiently (Straub, 2021). This is necessary for British Airways.
 Establish Pull- It is necessary to introduce a Pull-based system so that the work can be
managed in a better way. In British Airways, it is quite important.
 Pursue Perfection- The firms must put their focus on pursuing perfection which will
help them a lot. This is quite crucial in British Airways (Sun and et.al., 2020).
Therefore, through making the use of Lean Principles the management of the operational
needs and requirements can be done by the organization so that it can take the actions
which are essential quite effectively and efficiently properly and appropriately.
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M2: Analysis of the effectiveness of Continuous Improvement Plan
The use of a Continuous Improvement Plan should be made so that the essential
improvements can be made according to the needs and requirements. For British Airways, it is
quite crucial that through making the use of Continuous Improvement Plan the organization will
be able to ensure that the goals and objectives can be attained by it which will help it in making
progress in the future.
D1: Application of appropriate theories, concepts, and models
It is important that this can be done so that the organization can optimize its operations.
Therefore, British Airways is required to make sure that it should be able to identify how it has
to be done which will thus help it a lot in ensuring that it can attain its future goals and objectives
properly and appropriately quite effectively and efficiently. This has to be done so that the
organization can find out how it can bring out the necessary improvements which will therefore
be helpful in the attainment of the goals and objectives.
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CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that Operations and Project Management
refers to how the use of certain methods and techniques can be made so that the essential and
desired improvements can be made according to the particular needs and requirements quite
effectively and efficiently. It is therefore desired that the managers of the firms can make sure
that the management of the needs and requirements can be done by them which will help them a
lot. Therefore, this will be useful in ensuring that the attainment of the goals and objectives can
be done within the organizations. Thus, it can be stated that the organizations should be able to
identify how the attainment of the goals and objectives can be done which will help it a lot so
that the sustainable level of success can be achieved by it. Thus, the managers of the
organizations are required to identify the steps which they can take so that they can bring out the
relevant improvements quite effectively and efficiently. Therefore, it is crucial for the managers
that they should be able to optimize the operations properly and appropriately. In this way, they
will be able to make sure that the organization makes the right progress in the future which will
help it a lot and will ensure that it can get ahead of the competitors. This can be done by
optimizing the operations through the use of appropriate methods and techniques.
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REFERENCES
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