Change Management in British Airways

UNDERSTANDING AND
LEADING CHANGE

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................3
PART- 1........................................................................................................................................................3
1. British Airways and its change processes.............................................................................................3
2. SWOT analysis identifying the key drivers of change...........................................................................4
3. Evaluating impact of change on the organization’s strategy and operations.......................................5
4. Change affecting the leadership, individuals and the team behaviour................................................6
5. Models applied to minimize the impact of change and undertake the process efficiently..................6
6. Recommendations for the change management.................................................................................7
PART- 2........................................................................................................................................................7
1. Force field analysis determining opposition and support for change..................................................7
2. Recommendations for meeting the organization’s objectives.............................................................8
3. Barriers to change influencing the decision-making and leadership....................................................8
4. Success and accomplishment of change..............................................................................................8
5. Advantages and disadvantages of the leadership approaches in dealing with the change.................8
6. Critical evaluation of the leadership approaches and models of change management.......................8
CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................................8
CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN BRITISH AIRWAYS. 2021. [Online] Available through:
https://myassignmenthelp.info/assignments/change-management-in-british-airways/............................9
Management Changes within British Airways. 2021. [Online] Available through:
<https://ukdiss.com/examples/management-changes-within-british-airways.php>..................................9
INTRODUCTION
Change management in a company refers to the approach that is used for the successful
implementation of change in respect of the operations, departments or the organization as a

whole. The changes in an organization are in response to the factors in the external environment.
The current project shall be showing the change processes that are undertaken in the British
Airways company. Apart from that it shall be reflecting the SWOT analysis of the company to
demonstrate the key drivers of change. Further the report will be elaborating the impact of
change on the organization’s strategy and operations. Its impact on the leadership, individuals
and the team behaviour shall also be studied in the report. It shall be highlighting the models and
the approaches that are used to minimize the impact of change and smoothly undertake the
process. Force field analysis shall be done to find out who are in support and opposition of the
change. The various barriers to change and their influence on the process of decision-making.
Lastly, it shall highlight upon the leadership approaches and their impacts on the process of
change management.
PART- 1
1. British Airways and its change processes
British Airways is the UK based airline company providing the services of air transport in
the country. It is the flag carrier and is the second largest airline company in the country. The
company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered in London. It provides with flexibility and
ease in the travel and is known for enhancing the customer experience with its services. It has
been one of the largest flights based on the international flights and the destinations that are
covered by the company (Jayatilleke and Lai, 2018).
The process of change that took place in the British Airways was a continuous process
that took place for a long time and also it was impacted by several key factors in the organization
and its competitive environment. In 1981, the company was facing huge losses and was failing
miserably because of the economic crisis and the euro-zone crisis. Apart from that the company
also faced issues post the merger with Iberia which further built inefficiencies in the operations
of the company. This lead to the cultural differences among the employees of the company, the
resources and capacity of the company was being wasted, poor management, flop business
model and the overstaffed organization were some of the major causes that has impacted the
operational efficiency and profitability of the business.

The processes that were involved in the successful implementation of change in the
business were the appointment of John King as the chairperson and Colin Marshall as the chief
executive officer. The change in the top management and the leadership of the business was the
most effective step for the change management. The decisions related to the cost-cutting, cutting
down the extra staff in the business, focusing on the customer expectations and satisfaction and
purchasing the cargo and latest flights in the business. There were two programs that were run by
the management of the company one was the Putting people first which was concerned at
changing the relationship and interactions among the employees of the business (Matthews,
Love, Mewburn, Stobaus and Ramanayaka, 2018). Another program was related to managing the
people first which concentrated on the top management of the company and how they should
coordinate such that employee satisfaction could be build and they are motivated to contribute to
the organizational objectives of the business. These were some of the most prominent steps that
were taken in the business to revive it back and generate better financial results for the company.
2. SWOT analysis identifying the key drivers of change
The SWOT analysis of the company shows the various key drivers of the process of
change in the company. The weaknesses and the threats that were faced internally and from the
external environment are the major reasons that initiated change in the company and this change
was efficiently managed through capitalizing on the various opportunities and focusing on the\
strengths of the company.
Strengths:-
 The international route networks that the company has established over time covering
large destinations is one of the major strengths of the company. It has developed an
unbeatable brand image in the market by providing easy and flexible travelling. The
brand loyalty has caused trustworthiness and competitive advantage in the aviation
industry (Hayes, 2018).
 Another major strength is the strategic partnerships and the collaborative working that the
company has undertaken with various small businesses in the industry. This has provided
them with the benefit of synergy and the operational capabilities.