British Airways: Innovation Management and Capabilities Analysis

This report analyzes British Airways' innovation management strategies, focusing on enhancing revenue and profitability through innovative capabilities. It examines the future of the airline industry beyond 2020, emphasizing technological advancements and environmental concerns. The report suggests the implementation of biometrics to improve operational speed and customer experience, highlighting the financial strength of British Airways as a crucial factor. It explores various innovation models, such as disruptive and sustaining innovation, and proposes 'going green' initiatives and enhanced in-flight entertainment. The study concludes that strategic technology implementation and a focus on premium services are vital for British Airways to maintain its competitive edge and improve revenue levels in the evolving airline industry.

Running head: MANAGEMENT OF INNOVATION IN BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT OF INNOVATION IN BUSINESS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The report is based on the analysis of the ways by which innovation based capabilities cam be
used for the purpose of increasing the levels of revenues and profitability. The organization
which has been considered for analysis is British Airways which is the flag bearer company
of the United Kingdom. The innovative service which has been suggested for implementation
in the organization is the use of Biometrics. The innovation based capability will be able to
increase the operating speed. The most important part of the innovation capability is based on
the financial strength of the company in the airlines based industry.

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Table of Contents
Introduction, purpose of report and the structure...........................................................3
Future of the industry 2020 and beyond........................................................................3
Innovation requirements of the organization 2020 and beyond.....................................5
Development of the future innovation capabilities of the organization.........................7
Conclusion....................................................................................................................11
References....................................................................................................................13
Appendices...................................................................................................................16
Appendix 1...............................................................................................................16
Appendix 2...............................................................................................................17

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Introduction, purpose of report and the structure
Innovation is considered to be a complex process which overlaps with various other
concepts including, creativity, technology and change. The research based on innovation is
mainly related to different fields which include, engineering, public administration,
economics and business. The innovation based study in organizations is thereby considered to
be multilevel, multidimensional and dependent on the context as well. The internal and the
external conditions of the organizations are thereby based on the innovation related
capabilities. Innovation is able to play a major role in the ways by which organizations
operate in the changing environment (Ali Taha, Sirkova and Ferencova 2016).
The report will be based on the innovation based plans which have been made by
British Airways in order to increase its innovation based capabilities. The ways by which the
company will be able to develop the innovative techniques will be analysed in the report. The
structure of the report is based on the future of the airlines industry after the year 2020. The
requirements related to innovation of the industry and the organization will also be examined
in the report. British Airways has acquired the position of flag bearer and the biggest airlines
based organization in the United Kingdom with respect to fleet size (Amabile and Pratt
2016). The organization has also gained the second biggest position after the company named
EasyJet based on the number of passengers.
Future of the industry 2020 and beyond
The future operations of airlines industry have been analysed with the help of the
study which has been commissioned by the Industry Affairs Committee. The institution is
able to help the management of airlines organizations so that they are able to anticipate the
opportunities and risks which the business can face between the current year and the year
2035. The external forces in the environment can affect the organizational operations mainly

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include the technological innovations and different environmental concerns as well. The
study is important for the purpose of shaping the future operations of the organizations which
are a part of the airlines industry (Airlines.iata.org 2018).
According to Anderson, Potočnik and Zhou (2014), the study based on the airlines
industry is able to prove that the operations of different organizations will be affected by
different factors which include, data, geopolitics, Asia-Pacific and Africa, government,
borders, security, trust and privacy based factors. The different factors that affect the industry
are thereby explored with the help of four scenarios including, sustainable future, new
frontiers, platforms and resource wars. The factors are thereby examined based on different
perspectives which include, the shift of power, the prosperity of the world based on the
sustainability, war based on resources and the domination on the world based on different
agendas.
As discussed by Baporikar (2015), all different situations are able to provide effective
levels of challenges to the airlines based industry. The airlines industry is thereby influenced
by the different changes which take place in the geopolitical situation of the country. The
study which has been made by the institution is able to depict that different operations in the
airlines industry will face huge number of changes in the next few years, especially after
2020. The operations in airports are expected to be automated in the future with the aim to
increase the levels of efficiency. The cost related to human resources in the organizations will
be reduced due to decrease of employees in different areas.
As argued by Boukis (2016), the levels of privacy of customer data needs to be
maintained by the organizations so that they are able to gain more number of consumers. The
mismanagement of data can thereby cause huge issues for the proper operations of different
airlines organizations. The companies need to adhere to different policies and management

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related practices in order to ensure that the trust of customers is maintained effectively. The
value which is provided to customers and their retention is an important factor which will be
able to affect the future of operations of airlines organizations.
The companies thereby need to follow the customer first based policy in order to
maintain their position in the industry as compared to the others. The personalized and value
driven offers which are provided to the customers are also able to play a key role in the future
of airlines based organizations. The different technologies are expected to affect the
operations of airlines based organizations in the future and the after the year 2020. The
different modern technologies which are able to affect the companies in airlines industry
include, drones, robotics and artificial intelligence, cyber security, big data (Cano-Kollmann,
Hannigan and Mudambi 2018).
Innovation requirements of the organization 2020 and beyond
British Airways has been able to become first airline based organization in the world
which had introduced different high technology based remote controlled devices. These
devices were mainly used in order to implement the short haul based operations. The
organization had started modernising the operations in order to maintain and also to improve
the punctuality for the customers. The organization had implemented the technologies by
partnering with Heathrow. The eco-friendly Mototuk tugs have allowed the staff of British
Airways so that they are able to prepare an aircraft for the departure in an efficient manner
(Mediacentre.britishairways.com 2018).
As discussed by Edmondson and Harvey (2018), the airline had become the first
operator to use these high technology devices in different aircraft stands. The equipment is
thereby used for the purpose of moving an Airbus short-haul based aircraft which is able to
replace the different traditional diesel based tugs. The new technology which has been

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implemented by the organization has proved to be emission-free and the plane is moved in a
precise manner. The technology implementation based steps which have been taken by the
organization is based on modernising the operations. The organization had also launched
different other technologies including self-serve bag drop based points and self-boarding
gates on the domestic flights. British Airways has also decided to use iPad in its air travel
based activities. The implementation of iPad has been able to reduce the time based on
different types of operations in the organization.
The future operations of British Airways will also be based on the effective
implementation of innovation. The expectations of the consumers based on short-haul flights
will be able to affect the operations and future plans of British Airways. The organization can
plan to ignore the passengers who are budget-conscious in nature and focus on providing the
best quality services to the existing consumers. British Airways gains most parts of its
revenues from the corporate customers (Funk 2014). The organization needs to concentrate
on the ways by which it is able to provide effective services to the customers. British Airways
is also planning to add seats to the aircrafts. The main aim behind adding seats to the aircraft
is to lower the costs related to the seats offered to customers. The airlines organization has
been criticised for lowering the costs based on services offered to the customers (Glor 2014).
According to Hameed and Counsell (2014), the addition of seat recliners is also a plan
which has been developed by the organization. The changes are planned to be implemented
in the airports of the United Kingdom. The future airports will also not require parking based
facilities. The private messaging based activities are also planned in order to avoid the blow-
ups in social media. The organization thereby plans to invest around 5.9 Billion Dollars on
the proper improvement of passenger based experience. The main aim of the organization in
this case is to improve its operations and increase the revenue levels. The installation of
power points is an important part of the services offered to be passengers. The major aim

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behind technology implementation by British Airways is to provide premium services to the
passengers (Hervás-Oliver and Peris-Ortiz 2014).
Development of the future innovation capabilities of the organization
According to Jarle Gressgård et al. (2014), innovation based models can be
implemented in an effective manner in order to increase the levels of revenue. The different
trends which are able to contribute to the evolution of different innovation based models
include, research, development and technology. The activities related to innovation are based
on different models. The models have many advantages and disadvantages as well.
Disruptive innovation is considered to be an important part of the development of a new
service or product. An effective value based network is developed for the purpose of
disrupting the existing market.
As discussed by Kuratko (2015), on the other hand, sustaining innovation is
considered to be a major capability which already exists in the market. The organizations in
this case does not create a new value network. Another major innovation process is based on
the new technology which disrupts the market and existing business operations as well. The
economy in which the business operates is also disrupted by the process of radical
innovation. Incremental innovation on the other hand refers to the series of improvements
which are made in the existing processes and products. This is helpful for the company to
develop a competitive position in the industry. The innovation matrix is based on the ways by
which different types of innovation processes are implemented by different organizations
(Refer to Appendix 1).
British Airways can thereby implement many different innovative capabilities in order
to increase the revenues levels and profitability. A major innovation which can be
implemented in British Airways is based on the reduction of the effects of its operations on

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the environment. The organization can implement “Going totally green” based capabilities
which is related to the usage of solar power in order to operate the flights. Another innovation
based capability which can be used by British Airways is termed as “convertible seating”
(Mendes et al. 2016). British Airways can also implement a major innovation capability
which is based on “taking the first class facilities to a new level”. “iPads on board” is also
considered to be a major innovation based facility which is able to affect the levels of
operations and revenues of British Airways (Oly Ndubisi 2014).
“Entertainment and connectivity” is also considered to be a major capability which
can help British Airways to improve its services and provide premium facilities to the
consumers as well. “Biometrics can also play a key role in the ways by which the
organization is able to develop its position in the industry in an effective manner. Biometrics
will be helpful for the organization in order to provide the passengers with self-service
checkout related facilities. The app-based QR codes will be able to play a key role in the
ways by which organizations are able to reduce the amount of time which is required for
checkout. Biofuels can also be used by British Airways in order to reduce the fuel based costs
which are incurred by the organization (Palacios-Marqués, Merigó and Soto-Acosta 2015).
The technologies which are being proposed to British Airways are based on the
innovation process related to disruptive and sustaining innovation as well. The process of
disrupting innovation is applicable as some of the innovation based activities are based on the
ways by which the organization needs to develop new facilities and value network in order to
implement them. On the other hand, some of the innovation activities already exist in the
industry and the organization just needs to implement them. The development of a new value
network is thereby not necessary in order to implement the innovation based activities in an
effective manner (Salomo and Gemünden 2015).

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As discussed by Schippers, West and Dawson (2015), the proper implementation of
innovation in different operations plays a major role in the ways by which the organization is
able to maintain the profitable operations in future as well. The implementation of innovation
will thereby play a key role in the ways by which the organization is able to improve the
competitive advantage in the airlines based industry. British Airways has been able to create
its position in the industry as the flag bearer and the biggest airlines organization in the
industry. The effective implementation of technologies will further provide effective
opportunities to the organization in order to improve the customer base in the industry. The
organization has been able to create its position as a premium service provider. This position
can be maintained effectively with the help of proper innovation based levels.
British Airways needs to develop many activities in order to implement the innovation
based capabilities in a successful manner. The most important part of implementation of
innovation is related to the development of the human resources of the company. The human
resources or the employees are thereby able to play the most significant role in the ways by
which innovation capabilities can be improved effectively. The development of a new
product or service thereby requires the proper engagement and collaboration of the
employees (Sharmelly 2017). The recommendations which have been made earlier in the
report based on innovation will be applicable for improving the revenues of the company in
an effective manner. However, the development of a new product or service will be based on
the implementation of any one of the above mentioned innovation capabilities.
The plan which has been made by the CEO of British Airways Alex Cruz based on
implementation of disruptive technologies in the operations of the company is related to the
digitization of the various organizational operations (Refer to Appendix 2). The development
of a fleet is thereby considered to be an important factor which has been able to influence the
operations of the company in a huge manner. The implementation of proper innovation

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facilities can play a major role in the development of revenues of the company in an effective
manner. Innovation based implementation is thereby considered to be an important factor
which will be helpful in increasing the speed of operations of the company. The reduction of
operating costs is also considered to be a reason behind the implementation of innovation
capabilities (Sung and Choi 2014).
Automation of activities is thereby considered to be the most effective way of
reducing the costs based on production. The reduction of human resources in different
organizational operations is also considered to be important for the proper reduction of costs
related to production. The implementation of Biometrics in the operations of British Airways
will be able to play a key role in reducing the time required for operations. The self-checkout
facilities can be implemented easily with the help of biometrics (Tomić, Strugar and Boljević
2016).
The organization has already planned for the implementation of the “iPads on board”
based innovation facility which has been suggested in the report earlier. The next innovation
facility which can be implemented by the organization is Biometrics for smooth checkout.
The time which is required for checkout is also reduced effectively with the help of
biometrics based facility. The process of fingerprint recognition is considered to be a major
process with the help of which the requirement of human resources and employees can be
reduced in the operations of British Airways (Sung and Choi 2014).
The financial capability of the organization is considered to be an essential factor
which is considered to be helpful for the ways by which innovation capabilities can be
implemented. The financial strength of the organization is thereby considered to be highly
important for enabling automation based activities within the organizational processes and
further reducing the levels of requirement of human resources. The organization can

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implement the effective innovation based capabilities with the help of proper financial
capabilities and strengths. British Airways will be able to increase its revenues and growth
with the help of implementation of high levels of innovation (Salomo and Gemünden 2015).
The organization can think of taking the innovative steps as it is capable of implementing the
activiti4es easily and in an effective manner as well. British Airways can thereby maintain its
flag bearer position in the industry with the help of implementation of the new innovative
services within the different operations. The customers can also be served in an effective
manner with the help of innovation (Palacios-Marqués, Merigó and Soto-Acosta 2015).
Conclusion
The report can be concluded by stating that British Airways has the capability of
increasing its capabilities in an effective manner with the help of its innovation based
activities. The ways by which the organization can plan for the implementation of innovation
have been based on the management of the organization. The leader of the organization has
played a major role in the ways by which the innovation capability can help in increasing the
speed of operations. The requirement of human resources has also been reduced effectively
with the help of automation based activities. The report has also been able to state that the
training provided to the employees is also able to play a key part in the organizational
operations.
The innovation capability of the organization is thereby considered to be an important
part of the increase in revenues of British Airways. The analysis has also been able to state
that the financial capability of the company is able to support the ways by which British
Airways is able to operate in the industry. The new service which has been suggested in the
report is the implementation of Biometrics for the purpose of self-check in. The speed of
check-in can be increased in an effective manner with the help of biometrics. The