Improving Operations: A Project Management Report on British Airways

This report provides an analysis of operational and project management within British Airways, a major player in the aviation industry. It examines the company's approach to service provision, brand loyalty, and customer satisfaction. The report identifies key challenges, such as service quality and punctuality, and proposes recommendations for improvement. These recommendations include recruiting qualified staff and offering unique service promotions. The analysis utilizes the transformation model and the 4Vs typology to assess British Airways' performance. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of continuous improvement in operations to maintain a competitive edge and enhance customer trust.

Operational and Project
Management

Executive summary
Operations management can be understood as an activity of handling day to day tasks of
any organization. This helps in analysis of the situation and performance of the organization. The
global market of aviation industry is evolving rapidly as it has a lot of service providers. The
British Airways have improved itself in providing better services to its customers. They have
managed to create a brand loyalty amongst their customers by providing them premium services
at an affordable cost.
The purpose of this report was to understand and examine the main problems and ways of
improvements of the operations of the organization. The main problems with the airline
companies is lack of proper services. This creates a downfall in the revenue generation of the
aviation industry. The result of the analysis is to provide better and premium services so that the
customers can trust the companies.
There are various important aspects of the British Airways such as quality of service and
punctuality of flight arrival and take off. The various methods of working and the specialities of
the organization is the customer focused strategies, and the premium services of food that the
company provides. Various recommendations that can help the British Airways to improve their
day to day operations is also provided. The first recommendation to the British Airways is the
Necessity of recruiting qualified staff. Second recommendation is to Provide various new and
unique offers on their services.

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................4
Task 1
Transformation model
4Vs Typology of operations
Objectives of operations performance
Order winners and order qualifiers
Task 2
Recommendations to improve everyday operations of British Airways:
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION
Operation management is an activity which deals with the day to day issues that can
arrive in the business. This helps in understanding and creating strategies to counterfeit the
situations so that the organization will not be required to feel the impact in the future. The
strategy prepares the organization for the future obstacles by providing the information about
current situation of the business. Operation management helps the organization in creating and
making necessary changes in the organization so that the business can operate better. Project
management is the use of specific knowledge and skills so that the organization can deliver
better performance in achieving their goals.
The British Airways is one of the largest airline company in the aviation industry. This
industry of UK is growing at a very rapid speed (British Airway, 2022). British airways is a
global airline and the flag carrier of Britain. The company is one of the most premium airline in
the world. The headquarters of British airways is located at London and England. Company
always gives their top priority to the customer satisfaction. The British airways have one of the
busiest network as there are a lot of flights of the Company giving services to the customers
worldwide. It is one of the most successful airlines in the world that attracted a lot of the
customers with its unique and premium services. British Airways provides services with a
motive that every traveller can experience their services worldwide.
Furthermore, the report will describe about the various factors and the concepts that will
be applied and the examples will be discussed. The report will more give info about the
recommendations given to the operation manager to improve the day to day performance of the
organization. This will help in making decisions for the future improvements of the operations.
MAIN BODY
Task 1
Transformation model
The transformation model is basically a process in which an organization puts their inputs
into transformation process, and then they give the outcome to the customers. There are various
types of resources that can be transformed with this process such as materials and informations.
The transformation can also be done of the staff and facilities to give better and improved

experience to the customers. This helps the organization in bringing the necessary changes in
their existing services that was not performing well. This will also help the organization in
removing unnecessary burden of resources in the organization.
It is a simple way of starting and carrying out a change in the organization based on the
operations. The organization can make input in the form of labour, materials and capital with a
purpose of making outputs in the form of goods and services to the customers (Sharma, Kohar
and Jakhar, 2021). The organizations are required to maximize the quality of transformation
process so that they can meet their goals effectively.
The British Airways also used this transformation model to improve the performance of
the organization. In the previous time the company was not performing well as many customers
was not satisfied with the services of the airline. This created a negative impact on the operations
and revenue generation of the company. The company decided to create a change in the
organization by applying the transformation model. The British Airways made input by
appointing new Chairman and Chief Financial Officer. New Key managerial personal (KMP) of
the company created a processing transformation by making many changes in the previous
methods of the organization.
Decisions like reducing the number of workers and engagement of the previous workers
in focusing on the services provided to the customers. This made the British Airways to perform
better by providing better services to the passengers. The output was the new and improved
services to the customers which started making the people to believe the airlines again (O’Neill,
2018). The British airways managed to provide high quality of output to its customers by
providing them luxurious services. They always provide their premium services with a motive
that it will create brand loyalty amongst the travellers.
4Vs Typology of operations
The 4Vs typology of operations helps in measuring the process and growth of an
organization. It helps in understanding the various aspects and their positions in business which
can be helpful in future by taking necessary steps to improve these aspects (Slack and Brandon-
Jones (2019). Volume- The factor of volume refers to the fact and estimation of how much of the
production of a product is required to match the demands of the customers.

 Variety- This factor explains about the number of variety of goods or services to the
customer depending upon the preference of the customers. Variation- This factor describes about the change in demand of any specific goods or
service because of the external factors.
 Visibility- This explains about the presence of the service or product. This factor
describes about the overall services of the organization provided to the customers.
The British Airways used this factors to analyse the performance of their organization.
These factors helped the organization in understanding the various requirements of change in
their operations.
Volume- British Airways managed to maximize their services by increasing the number
of flights for the international travels. This helped in increasing the customer base of the
company as there are many people who travel from one country to another. The British Airways
increased their number of flights for the same destination so that the travellers are not required to
wait for the flight to come back or choose any other airline (Slack and Brandon-Jones (2018).
Variety- British Airways started providing a variety of services in their flights. The
services that is provided in flights depends upon the class of travel. The company has provided a
variety of classes of travel to choose so that the travellers find it easy for their preferences.
Variation- British Airways faced a variation in their business because of the global
pandemic of Covid-19. This made a huge variation in travellers as the international travel was
banned in many countries. Flights of British Airways saw a decline in number of passengers as
everyone was afraid of leaving their place.
Visibility- British Airways used this factor in providing many services to its customers
and giving them proper information about the services provided to them. The company gives its
passengers many services like providing them accommodation when there is a long delay in the
arrival of their flight. The British Airways also provide service of flight position details that can
provide information to the travellers that where the flight is currently.

Objectives of operations performance Quality- It is the sign of how an operation is performed. The quality of work plays a big
role when it comes to providing customer satisfaction. Speed- It is the indicator of how fast the services or goods have reached the customer
after it has been ordered Dependability- This factor describes about the reliance of a customer on the organization
and its services. Flexibility- It explains about how much an organization can make changes in their
operations to meet the requirements of the customer. Cost- This is one of the main factor for every organization because customers are very
concerned about the cost that they are paying for a product or service.
The British Airways always involved themselves in improving their operations and
objectives regularly (Slack and Lewis, 2019). They focus on these factors and makes necessary
changes that is required to meet the requirements and demands of the customers.
Quality- The British Airways always kept the quality of their services provided to the
customers as their top priority. The belief of this airline is to provide the best quality of their
services to every class of the customers to achieve maximum customer satisfaction.
Speed- The British Airways always managed to provide best and fast services to their
customers by keeping their system traffic free and free from any turbulences. The flights of
British Airways are always on their scheduled time which creates a discipline in their operations.
Dependability- The British Airways are one of the most reliable airlines in the world as it
managed to achieve excellence in their work and services. This made the British Airways to be
the first priority of the travellers.
Flexibility- The factor is not that involved in the operations of the British Airways as they
are not much flexible in their business. They just provide the best services they can to their
customers without ever having to listen about the requirements of them.
Cost- The British Airways are very actively following this factor as their main objective
is to provide services to every class of travellers. British Airways tried their best to minimize the
cost of their services and providing better services at a low cost. This attracted many travellers to

the airlines as they were having more and better services than any other airlines (Tahanisaz,
2020).
Order winners and order qualifiers
Order qualifiers- These are the attributes of an organization that creates the product of
any company to be qualified enough to enter the competition market. These attributes make the
organization to work hard and make their products or services competitive enough so that the
organization can compete with other brands.
Order winners- These are the attributes of an organization that differentiate the products
of the organization from others. The uniqueness of the product force a customer to buy their
services. This creates a mindset of the customers to always buy the services and makes them
loyal to the brand.
The British Airways manage to compete with many big rivals who are providing high
class services to the customers. They have many winning qualifiers services that forces the
customers to choose the British Airways.
Order qualifier- The British Airways have many flights that carry passengers from one
country to another. This makes them to compete with many airlines that gives the same services.
They are competing in the market by providing the services of lounges and hotel
accommodation.
Order Winner - The British Airways provides many special services that differentiate
them from others and makes the customers to buy their services (Ho and Wu, 2019). They
provide variety of services that makes the customers to give priority to their airlines such as
Entertainment on flight, Wi-Fi services in flight. They have an excellent record of providing
premium services to the customers in many areas such as:
 Variety of lounges- British Airlines provides a variety of lounges ranging from normal to
business lounges. They started this service with a view that the passengers who want their
experience of waiting in lounge to be premium and comfortable.
 Family travel- British Airways provides its customers with family travel that creates a
package of tickets and accommodation for relentless experience. The British Airways
provide this service so that the travellers do not face problems of multiple paper work.

 Entertainment and Wi-Fi onboard- The British Airways provides the services of internet
usage and digital newspapers and magazines on the flight. The company provides the
service with a motive that the travellers will not be bored in the flight during the travel
(O’Connell, 2018).
 Premium meal service- The British Airways always provides tasty and premium food in
their flights and in their lounges. The food service of British Airways is premium, and
they always keep hygiene as their first priority.
Task 2
Recommendations to improve everyday operations of British Airways:
 Recruiting highly qualified staff and cabin crew : The British Airways should hire
highly qualified staff in their organization so that the operations of the organization can
be handled more efficiently. This can benefit the company in many ways as in the airline
business the creativity of the employees is highly required. The creativity of the
employees and the staff can help in making decisions in sudden situations where the mind
presence of the employees and staff is required. The cabin crew also plays an important
role in the day to day operations of the British Airways. Organization by hiring the highly
qualified cabin crew can improve their operations as the flight experience is the main
impression on the travellers (Dožić, 2019). The reputation of the company depends upon
the flight experience and the services provided in the flight. This experience of the
travellers can be improved by appointing the qualified and capable cabin crew. They can
give better organization by giving the travellers trouble free experience of services. This
will help in improving the reputation of the organization and will create a positive image
in the mind of the travellers. This recommendation will be helpful for the future
improvement also as many airlines faces this problem of non skilled staff. It creates many
problems in performing day to day operations of the organization as for successfully
handling the operations highly skilled staff is required.
 Giving seasonal discounts and offers: The British Airways can provide various offers
on the ticket pricing based on the season and festivals. The company can achieve high
numbers of growth by implementing this idea. Most of the travellers prefer to travel in

seasonal time such as festivals and other times. The tourists also prefer to travel in the
holiday time so that they can enjoy their holidays without any burden of work. This can
be a great opportunity for the British Airways to maximize their sales and attracting a lot
of travellers to the company. The organization can offer discounts on the flight tickets or
free accommodations to the travellers for a specific period (Kılıç, Uyar and Karaman,
2019). This will make the travellers to think that it is a better deal for their budget as most
of the travellers travels with a tight budget. The main concern of a traveller is the
expenses because he is always unaware that how much the travel will cost. British
Airways can decrease this problem of budget by providing offers so that the traveller will
not hesitate in spending on the flight ticket. The airline can also provide meal services to
their travellers who face problems of long waiting times at the airport.
CONCLUSION
Thus, it can be concluded as the operational and project management can be an important
exercise for improving business performance. This helps in making proper strategies for the
organizations to improve their day to day operations. It helps an organization in understanding
the necessary changes regarding planning and organizing. The changes help in achieving the
specific goals of the organization. Various models and strategies can be applied to the day to day
operations of the organization so that the performance can be improved. The various specialities
of the organization is explained that differentiate it from others.
Concepts of transformation model is used to provide better services to the customers. The
theory of 4Vs Typology of operations explained the various factors and aspects of expertise.
Objectives of operations performance is used in explaining the design of the organization and its
strategies so that the company can make necessary changes accordingly. The order winners and
order qualifiers of the organization will help in analysing the expert areas of the company. The
various recommendations are given to the organization for hiring qualified staff and providing
better offers on their services. Recommendations will be helpful for the organization to improve
their every day tasks and their future performance.

REFERENCES
Books and journals
Dožić, S., 2019. Multi-criteria decision making methods: Application in the aviation industry.
Journal of Air Transport Management. 79. p.101683.
Ho, C.W. and Wu, C.C., 2019. Using job design to motivate employees to improve high-quality
service in the airline industry. Journal of Air Transport Management. 77. pp.17-23.
Kılıç, M., Uyar, A. and Karaman, A.S., 2019. What impacts sustainability reporting in the global
aviation industry? An institutional perspective. Transport Policy. 79. pp.54-65.
O’Connell, J.F., 2018. The global airline industry. In The Routledge companion to air transport
management (pp. 11-28). Routledge.
O’Neill, B., 2018. Developing future leaders at British Airways. In The Photofit Manager (pp.
72-89). Routledge.
Sharma, A., Kohar, A. and Jakhar, S.K., 2021. Profit maximizing hub location problem in the
airline industry under coopetition. Computers & Industrial Engineering. 160. p.107563.
Slack N. and Brandon-Jones A. (2018). Essentials of Operations Management (2nd Edition),
London: Pearson. Core Chapters: 1, 4 & 5
Slack N. and Brandon-Jones A. (2019). Operations Management, (9th Edition), London:
Pearson. Core Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 7 & 8.
Slack, N. and Lewis, M., 2019. Operations strategy. Pearson UK.
Tahanisaz, S., 2020. Evaluation of passenger satisfaction with service quality: A consecutive
method applied to the airline industry. Journal of Air Transport Management. 83.
p.101764.
Online
British Airway., 2022. [Online] Available through
<https://www.britishairways.com/en-in/information/about-ba>
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