Understanding Change Management at British Airways: A Report

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of change management within British Airways, examining the company's evolution and adaptation to various challenges. It begins by outlining the change processes undertaken, particularly focusing on the period marked by significant financial losses and operational inefficiencies. A SWOT analysis is conducted to identify the key drivers of change, highlighting the company's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The report then evaluates the impact of these changes on British Airways' organizational strategy and operations, including the shift towards a customer-centric approach and improvements in employee relations and operational efficiency. It also explores the effects on leadership, individual, and team behavior, noting the transition from hierarchical management to employee engagement. The report further investigates models applied to minimize the impact of change, specifically mentioning Kurt Lewin's model, and offers recommendations for effective change management, such as improved communication and training programs. The report also includes force field analysis, identifying supporters and opponents of change, and discusses barriers to change and their influence on decision-making. Finally, the report critically evaluates leadership approaches and change management models to assess the successes and shortcomings of the implemented strategies.

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.

 With access to the advanced technology in the form of large fleet sized aircrafts and fuel
efficient plane has also contributed to the achievement of the organisational objectives.
Weaknesses:-
 One of the most significant weakness for the company was the underutilization of the
efficient resources. This was due to employment of the over staff, operating at a lower
capacity etc.
 Another shortcoming was the inefficiency at the top level management of the company
which led to conflicts, lack of initiatives and non- profitability of the business.
Opportunities:-
 The opportunity that can be capitalized by the business was related to the digitalization
and technological advancements in the operations of the business. This shall help in
attaining the economies of scale and reducing the cost per unit (Domingues, Lozano,
Ceulemans and Ramos, 2017).
 Another initiative could be taken in respect of financing expansion and growth prospects
for the business. It can be in the form of diversifying the service portfolio of the company
in order to build customer satisfaction through meeting their changed needs and
expectations of travelling.
Threats:-
 The competitive pressure in the industry was one of the major threats that was posed on
the business from the external environment. Due to the financial inefficiencies of the
company the market share was being assumed by the competitors leading to constant
losses
3. Evaluating impact of change on the organization’s strategy and operations
The impact of the change was felt on the company’s organizational strategy and the
operations undertaken governing it. The strategies were completely altered by the new
management of the company that was appointed within the change process. The management of
the company decided to direct the focus of the company towards the customers’ expectations and

preferences and to have the customer centric approach so that their satisfaction level is achieved
by the business. Apart from that the employee relations were sought to improve by removing
their cultural differences and improving coordination and teamwork in the company.
Also the operational efficiency was improved by the technological advancements,
initiative and the leadership approaches that were applied in the business. So in accordance with
the following policies the strategic formulation took place and as a result the operations of the
company enhances (Galli, 2018). The strategies like putting people first and managing people
first have been successful in bringing significant change in the business and its operations.
Strategies in respect of training and developmental practice, leadership programmes and human
resource management have been developed in the company. This has further contributed to the
increase in the morale of the employees and have increased the operational performance
significantly. Also the company’s financial performance and future growth prospects could be
developed by the newly constructed plans and strategies of the business.
4. Change affecting the leadership, individuals and the team behaviour
The changes that were undertaken in British Airways has surely affected its leadership,
individual and the team behaviour. The leadership capabilities in the company were developed as
part of the changes in the top management of the company. Earlier there were lot of
inefficiencies and the hierarchical and military leadership at the top which just focused on getting
the things done by using the authoritative tone.
The new leaders that were established focused on building good employee relations in the
company and have a customer centric approach in the company to satisfy their needs related to
the business (Cameron and Green, 2019). The management post the change followed the
employee engagement policies by involving them in the process of decision-making, motivating
them to take initiative in the business etc.
This approach of leadership also affected the individual and team behaviour of the
employees in the company. Since earlier there were cultural differences, overstaff and no
employee relations in the company. But now this state has improved as through the various
employee training programmes generating the awareness about the various cultures and its

importance. This has lead to unity, coordination, better communication and the team building
which has further evolved the process of operations in the company.
5. Models applied to minimize the impact of change and undertake the process
efficiently
In order to undertake the change management process smoothly and efficiently in the
organization there are certain approaches and models that needs to be followed by the company
and its management. The best suited model at that time for the airline industry was Kurt Lewin’s
model of 1940. This model believes that the change processes are systematic in nature and so
must be undertaken in the various stages like unfreeze, change and then refreeze.
The unfreeze stage involves informing the employees prior hand about the change that is
to be done and why it is required and the cost-benefit analysis of the change. This shall help with
understanding the requirement to change and also provide the time to the employees to adapt to
the changes that are undertaken in the organization. This step was missed by the management
officials of British Airways because they directly changed the existing policies without any prior
information. This lead to havoc in the company and many employees walked out of the business
due to the cutting the wages and the overall cost of the organization.
Once the change is digested and absorbed by the members of the company, then the
management is free to execute the processes. These changes now also won’t be resisted by the
employees in the organization but shall be whole-heartedly welcomed so that the efficiency level
in the company can be derived.
The final stage is to refreeze and this takes place post the execution of the change in the business.
The new plans, goals and objectives are designed so that the necessary changes in the business
can be made. Betterment of the employee relationships and reallocation of the job profiles is one
of the significant steps that were taken at the time of execution of change in the organization.
6. Recommendations for the change management
There are some recommendations that needs to be undertaken in the process of change
management which are as follows:-

 Effective channels of communication must be designed so that the flow of information
can be efficiently directed.
 Another important suggestion is to develop training and developmental programmes for
the company that shall help to learn the various competencies that are existing in the
external environment of the company.
 Proper organizational structure should be defined and the roles and responsibilities
should be clearly defined so that no confusion or scope for the conflicts in the institution
takes place.
 Before the actual execution of the processes to change the company must intimate the
employees regarding such change and the need to execute it.
 Minimizing the impact of change and also successfully undertaking it for that the
employees have to be optimistic and have a clear sense of direction.
PART- 2
1. Force field analysis determining opposition and support for change
The force field analysis of Kurt Lewin have been used to consider the various factors that
are acting in the business moving opposite to the operations. In the change management of
British Airways there are factors that are supporting this change and the other factors are the
ones that are opposing the same. For example the management, shareholders, customer groups
are the supporters to such movement of change in the business organization (Management
Changes within British Airways, 2021). Whereas on the contrary there are factors that are in the
opposition like the employees that resist the change, competitors generate competencies to retain
the benefits in the market.
This approach further helps the company know about the whether the change must be
initiated in the company or not and whether the members in the organizations shall cope up with
the changes or not.

2. Recommendations for meeting the organization’s objectives
The recommendations for the business in order to fulfill the organizational objectives can
be that they should before initiating any change first focus on the force field analysis and post
that should be able to know that which are the factors that shall be the opposing the change and
who all are going to support the change management. The leaders of the business should be able
to capitalize on the supportive ones and drive strategies using them effectively. On the contrary
the opposing people or factors of the organization must be handled with care such that they do
not cause conflicts and negativity in the organization (Shelygov, Filonova and Gorlova, 2019).
They should be tackled by providing training, incentives etc. so that they remain in the favor of
the change and contribute towards its success.
3. Barriers to change influencing the decision-making and leadership
There are some barriers or the hindrances that impacts the efficiency with which the
change management is undertaken in the business. British Airways also faced some of these
barriers while it was executing the change processes in the business. One of such barriers was the
poor communication among the employees of the organization which was due to the cultural
differences that were there among them. Because of this the newly appointed leaders were facing
the difficulty to implement the change in the business organization. They had to provide training
and developmental services so that the cultural awareness can be developed and they are ready to
accept the change.
Another such barrier to the change was the inadequacy of the resources in terms of
availability of the finance. Since from past long time the company was facing serious issues as to
the profitability and the business became stagnant this imposed severe challenge to the company.
Apart from that the negative attitude of the employees as they are resistant to the changes in the
organization (CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN BRITISH AIRWAYS, 2021). Also the leaders of the
company has no idea regarding how the change management shall be undertaken. So they has to
form decisions related to the various models and the approaches that are to be used and the back
up plans that can be if the change does not work for the company.
4. Success and accomplishment of change
The implementation of change in the company was a successful deal that was undertaken
in order to come out of the crisis and derive the financial results for the company. Also, it can be

ascertained that the company framed effective policies that were able to govern the satisfaction
of the consumers as well as the employees of the business (Janićijević, 2017). The policies like
managing people first or putting people first helped the company in resolving all the issues
related to the employee relationship in the business. The change had brought the customer
centric approach of management which helped it revives from the tough times of the business.
The issues like cultural disagreements got resolved, the resources of the business were
more efficiently used by reducing the unnecessary wastages, competitive advantage was
developed and the financial results were derived. All this indicates that British Airways had a
successful change management in the company.
5. Advantages and disadvantages of the leadership approaches in dealing with the
change
There are different leadership approaches that are used in the process of change
management of the company and also different leadership approach causes some advantages and
disadvantages for the business:-
 Transformational leadership approach is one in which the leaders are highly skilled and
influence the subordinates of the company (Shafiq and et.al., 2018). These leaders believe
in motivating the employees regarding taking initiatives and build growth prospects for
the company. In managing the change in the company they shall be very effective as they
can motivate the employees to be innovative and take the first mover advantage in the
industry.
 Another approach is the participatory where the leaders of the business will be
conducting the employee engagement policy and shall be involving the employees in the
decision-making process of the company. This will also help in the change management
process as already the employees are resistant to change and if in that case they are
contacted regarding their feedback and opinion, then they shall be highly motivated and
lead to the change effectively by contributing their best to the performance.

6. Critical evaluation of the leadership approaches and models of change
management
If the leadership approach used in the business is situational in nature then it shall be
demotivating the employees and will make them resist the change in the organization. So it is
better for the company to use an approach that is helpful for the change management like the
participatory or the transformational.
CONCLUSION
It can be summarized from the above project that changes are the necessary part of the
business which needs to be undertaken in response to the factors in the external environment and
the key drivers from the internal business environment. Due to the stagnation in the operations of
British Airways it has to execute the process of change management so that the differences could
be made. It can also be understood that managing the change in the firm is a difficult task as the
members of the company are resistant towards it. But this can be successfully incorporated with
the help of various change management models, theories that govern the behaviour of the
individuals of the business. There can be certain barriers that needs to remove so that the
profitability of the business can be derived. The different leadership approaches that are used by
the business also cause the variations in the impact of the change in the organization.

REFERENCES
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Galli, B.J., 2018. Change management models: A comparative analysis and concerns. IEEE
Engineering Management Review. 46(3). pp.124-132.
Cameron, E. and Green, M., 2019. Making sense of change management: A complete guide to
the models, tools and techniques of organizational change. Kogan Page Publishers.
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Janićijević, N., 2017. Organizational models as configurations of structure, culture, leadership,
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Online
CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN BRITISH AIRWAYS. 2021. [Online] Available through:
https://myassignmenthelp.info/assignments/change-management-in-british-airways/
Management Changes within British Airways. 2021. [Online] Available through:
<https://ukdiss.com/examples/management-changes-within-british-airways.php>