Strategic Change Management Analysis: A Case Study of Emirates Airline

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of Emirates' change management strategy, specifically focusing on its adoption of GE's Analytics Based Maintenance (ABM) software for aircraft maintenance. The report begins with an overview of Emirates' business activities, highlighting its position as a major airline in the Middle East and its challenges related to aircraft maintenance and timeliness of service. It then delves into the specific change Emirates is undergoing, the implementation of ABM software, and the internal and external factors driving this change. Internal factors examined include Emirates' mission, vision, and organizational structure, while external factors encompass market dynamics and technological advancements. The report identifies key change agents and outlines a strategic plan for implementation, including goals, strategies, monitoring measures, and obstacle removal. It also discusses the functional areas involved in the change management process and concludes with a summary of the findings, emphasizing the importance of effective change management for Emirates' success. The report also provides references to support its analysis.

Running head: CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY
CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY: A CASE STUDY OF EMIRATES
Name of the Student:
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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Overview of business activities of Emirates..............................................................................3
Overview of the Change.............................................................................................................4
Internal Factors for Change within Emirates.............................................................................6
External Factors for Change within Emirates............................................................................7
Identification of the Change Agents..........................................................................................9
Development of Goal and Broad Strategy for the Change......................................................10
Implementation of the Change.................................................................................................11
Implementation Plan................................................................................................................12
Monitoring Measures...............................................................................................................12
Removal of Obstacles..............................................................................................................13
Creation of short-term wins.....................................................................................................14
Functional areas in Emirates’ change management.................................................................14
Conclusion................................................................................................................................15
References................................................................................................................................16

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Introduction
As opined by Bradley (2016), the process of change management had become an
integral part of the modern-day business world and helps the business enterprises to
implement the kind of changes which are likely to improve their prospects or profitability.
Fernandez and Rainey (2017) are of the viewpoint that the process of change management
can be seen as a systematic approach which enables the business enterprises to effectively
deal with the transitions or the transformations which they make within the spectrum of their
workplace. The primary objective of the business enterprises behind the implementation of
different kinds of changes is to facilitate the effective achievement of the enterprise’s goals or
objectives by the enhancement of its performance or productivity (Hayes 2018). The resultant
effect of this is that the process of change management is often considered to be the one
which not only helps the business enterprises to implement different kinds of changes, control
the same and also help the stakeholders of the enterprise to accept or adapt to the concerned
change as well (Lines et al. 2015).
As discussed by Cameron and Green (2015), the prominence that the machinery of
change management holds within the spectrum of the modern-day business world becomes
apparent from the emergence of different kinds of change management models or strategies
like Lewin’s Change Management Model, Kotter’s 8 Step Model, ADKAR and others.
However, the major challenge or issue arises because of the fact that the majority of the
business enterprises fail to use effective change management models or strategies for the
effective implementation of the different changes (Hayes 2018). In this regard, it needs to be
said that the disregard of the change management models or strategies by the business
enterprises during the process of change management can adversely affects or hinder the
effective achievement of the results that the business enterprises were hoping to achieve
through the same. The purpose of this paper is to undertake an analysis of the process of

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change management and change management strategies or models through the usage of the
case study of Emirates which is trying to integrate the GE’s Analytics Based Maintenance
software or ABM for the effective maintenance of its airplanes.
Overview of business activities of Emirates
The enterprise Emirates, founded in 1985, has extensive interest in the airlines
industry of the Middle-East and is headquartered at Dubai, United Arab Emirates
(Emirates.com 2019). In this regard, it needs to be said that the enterprise under discussion
here is a subsidiary of “The Emirates Group” which is owned by the “government of Dubai's
Investment Corporation of Dubai” and thereby seeks to improve the quality of air transport
services or facilities that are available to the people of the Middle East (Emirates.com 2019).
As a matter of fact, it is seen that the concerned enterprise is the largest airlines company of
the Middle East offering more than 3600 flights per week from the Dubai International
Airport to more than 150 different cities located in around 80 diverse nations of the world
(Emirates.com 2019). More importantly, it is seen that the airlines services offered by the
enterprise under discussion here are not just limited to the business class or the economy
class flight services for the common but incorporates cargo or the shipping facilities for the
different business enterprises as well. Furthermore, it is seen that these cargo services or
facilities offered by the concerned enterprise are being offered by a subsidiary of the
enterprise, namely, Emirates SkyCargo and the primary purpose of this is to offer the
business enterprises a cheap as well as a reliable means of air transport for the products
manufactured by them (Emirates.com 2019).
The enterprise under discussion here, that is, Emirates is the 4th largest airlines
company of the world in terms of the “scheduled revenue passenger-kilometres flown” while
being the 4th largest one in terms of the number of the “international passengers carried” by it
to the different international locations (Emirates.com 2019). In addition to these, it is also the

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2nd largest airlines company of the world in terms of the “freight tonne kilometres flown”
which as a matter of fact goes on to show the popularity of the cargo services offered by to
the different business enterprises of the world (Emirates.com 2019). Furthermore, it is seen
that the enterprise under discussion here is trying to enhance the scope or the nature of the air
transport services offered by it in a bid to enhance the amount of profitability earned by it.
However, at the same time it needs to be said that one of the major barriers to this aim of the
enterprise under discussion here is the fact it every year it ends up spending a substantial
amount of the profitability earned by for the repair as well as the maintenance of the airplanes
owned by it (Sieger, 2019). This in turn had substantially enhanced the operations cost of the
concerned enterprise which in turn had adversely affected the net revenue earned by it in the
recent times. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the large amount of time which is needed for
the effective repair as well as the maintenance of the different airplanes owned by it, the
enterprise under discussion here is finding it very difficult to offer timely services to its
customers which in turn had substantially affected the loyalty of its customers and thereby its
annual revenue as well (Hindustantimes.com 2019). In this regard, it needs to be said that
because of the ineffective airplane repair and maintenance process followed by it, the
airplanes end up spending the majority of the time in the repair or the maintenance centres of
the enterprise rather than flying in the ai.
Overview of the Change
As discussed above, one of the major challenges or issues that the enterprise Emirates
presently facing can be attributed to the ineffective repair as well as maintenance practices
followed by it for the repair or the maintenance of the airplanes which it owns. Shmelova et
al. (2018) are of the viewpoint that the profitability as well as the business prospects of the
airlines companies greatly depends on the aspect of the quality of the services which are
being offered by them. As opined by Engelmann, Mourning and de Haag (2017), the service

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quality of the airline services offered by the airline companies greatly depends on the
timeliness of the services, the customer experience, the ambience within the airplanes and
others. These entities are important because of the fact that they greatly determine the loyalty
of the customers towards the enterprises and thereby the financial returns earned by them
(Erkoyuncu et al. 2016). However, as the above discussion makes it apparent that the
enterprise under discussion here is presently struggling with the aspect of the timeliness
which are being offered by it to the customer. In this regard, it needs to be said that one of the
major factors which affect the aspect of the timely services offered to thee customers is the
maintenance or the repair measures used by the airline companies for the maintenance or the
repair of the airplanes (Delcea, Cotfas and Paun 2018). In the particular context of the
enterprise Emirates, it is seen that the concerned enterprise is presently taking the help of the
traditional airplane repair and maintenance measures which in turn had substantially
enhanced the time which is being needed for the repair of the airplanes owned by the
enterprise. This as a matter of fact had reduced the amount of time that these airplanes spend
in air and thereby adversely affected the factor of the timelines of the services offered by the
enterprise under discussion.
The enterprise, Emirates, in order to address the issue or the challenge under
discussion here had decided to take the help of the GE’s Analytics Based Maintenance
software or ABM for the effective maintenance of its airplanes. The above-mentioned
technology enables the airlines companies to substantially reduce the amount of time that
they spend for the repair or the maintenance of their airplanes through the usage of the recent
disruptive technology of automation. As a matter of fact, it is seen that the usage of the
software of ABM enables the airlines companies to detect the faults of the airplanes and also
to repair them in a much lesser time in comparison to the traditional methods that they had
used to following wherein it was seen that the engineers had to manually locate or find the

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faults or the defects in the different airplanes and then fix them (Sieger, 2019). Thus, it is
likely that through the effective usage of the software of ABM the enterprise under discussion
here would be able to substantially improve the quality as well as the timeliness of the air
transport services offered by it through the reduction in the time which it used to require in
the earlier times for the maintenance or the repair of their airplanes.
Internal Factors for Change within Emirates
Harmon, Green Jr. and Goodnight (2015) have articulated the viewpoint that the
different kinds of changes that the business enterprises integrate within their framework are
propelled by both the internal factors and the external factors of change. As opined by Clegg,
Kornberger and Pitsis (2015), some of the most important internal factors which propel the
business enterprises to undertake different kinds of changes are the mission, vision,
leadership, organisational structure, leadership process, learning, workplace or organisational
culture and others that are predominant within the framework of the enterprises. In the
particular context of the enterprise Emirates, it needs to be said that the mission of the
concerned enterprise is to offer the best quality cost-effective airline services to the customers
which will take into account the environmental as well as social factor as well (Emirates.com
2019). However, it is seen that the traditional repair and maintenance methods used by the
enterprise is hindering the effective fulfilment of this mission of the concerned enterprise. On
the other hand, it is seen that the vision of the enterprise under discussion here is to become
the largest airline company of the world (Emirates.com 2019). However, at the same time it is
seen that because of the gaps in the services offered by it, the customers of the enterprise are
switching over to its rivals or competitors which in turn is adversely affecting the attainment
of the vision of the enterprise under discussion here.
Emirates follows a hierarchical organisational structure which greatly compliments
the continuous learning environment or workplace that exists within the spectrum of the

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concerned enterprise (Emirates.com 2019). However, the traditional method of repair and
maintenance for the airplanes which the enterprise under discussion here for the servicing of
the airplanes that it owns is completely contradictory to the organisational structure or for that
matter the organisational or the workplace culture which is being followed by the concerned
enterprise. In addition to these, it is seen that the leaders of the enterprise Emirates try to take
the help of the situational leadership approach so as to effectively handle the different
situations that arise within the enterprise. However, despite the fact that the enterprise takes
the help of the situational leadership approach it is seen that they have failed to effectively
manage the situation caused by the ineffective airplane repair and maintenance process by the
enterprise. These in short are some of the internal factors which have led to the emergence of
the need for the integration of the usage of the ABM software within the enterprise for the
effective repair and the maintenance of the airplanes owned by it.
External Factors for Change within Emirates
Al-Haddad and Kotnour (2015) are of the viewpoint that the external factors are the
ones which hinder or facilitate the achievement of the strategic goals or the objectives
formulated by the business enterprises and the resultant effect of this is that the business
enterprises often take the help of the different kinds of changes so as to cope with the external
factors. Some of the most important external factors which had made the usage of the ABM
software for the repair and the maintenance of the airplane a compulsory one for the
enterprise Emirates are the social factors, political factors, economic factors, environmental
factors, technological factors, legislative factors and others. In this regard, it needs to be said
that the primary political factor which had made the usage of the ABM software an
imperative one for the enterprise under discussion here can be ascribed to the fact that the
national government of UAE is presently giving active support to the different airline
companies of the concerned nation so as to bring about its economic development unlike the

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earlier times when Emirates the primary recipient of the different governmental benefits
(Sieger, 2019). The resultant effect of this is that competition or rivalry within the airline
industry of UAE had increased in a substantial manner and this is turn had forced the
concerned enterprise to take into account the service quality of the airline services offered by
it to the customer (Uijt De Haag, Engelmann and Mourning 2019). On the score of these
aspects, it can be said that the concerned enterprise would be able to enhance the quality of
the airline services offered by it in an exponential manner if it takes the help of the ABM
software.
As per Sieger (2019), the different airline companies end up losing more than 400-600
hours of flight time a year because of the ineffective airplane repair as well as maintenance
techniques followed by them. The resultant effect of this is that they lose a valuable amount
of capital which they could have made had the airplanes flying or carrying customers or
cargos because of their ineffective repair or maintenance measures or policies. Thus, it can be
said that through the usage of the ABM software the enterprise under discussion here would
not only be able to increase its profitability by increasing the amount of airtime of its
airplanes but at the same time would be able to substantially enhance the quality of the
services offered by it as well. On the other hand, it is seen that the customers generally like to
opt for the airline services offered by the enterprises which are more regular or timely in
nature and in the present times because of the increase in the number of airline companies the
number of options that are available to the customers have also increased (Kashyap 2019).
The resultant effect of this is that it is no longer enough to hold monopoly in the airline rather
the enterprises also need to effectively focus on the attributes of quality and timeliness as
well (Salem and Voskoglou 2015). This social trend in turn had made it imperative for the
enterprise Emirates to take the help of the ABM software for the repair and the maintenance
of its airplanes.

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The national government of UAE in the present times in a bid to control the air traffic
had stipulated or mandated the number of flight hours that they are required to maintain
(Shmelova et al. 2018). However, because of the ineffective repair and maintenance practices
followed by the Emirates it is seen that the concerned enterprise is really struggling to
maintain the flight hours stipulated or mandated by the national government. In addition to
these, it is seen that the traditional repair and maintenance practices used by the enterprises
like Emirates and others are not environmentally sustainable and thus the concerned
enterprise in order to contribute in an effective manner towards the improvement of the
condition of the environment and the planet needs to take the help of the ABM software
(Sieger, 2019). These in short are some of the major external factors which had necessitated
the usage of the ABM software for the effective repair and the maintenance of the airplanes
of the concerned enterprise.
Identification of the Change Agents
Prochaska, Redding and Evers (2015) have articulated the viewpoint that the change
agents can be defined as the individuals either within a particular business enterprise or
outside the same who are responsible for the promotion as well as the effective management
of the changes which the concerned enterprise is trying to implement within its framework.
As discussed by Hornstein (2015), there are various change agents within the spectrum of the
contemporary business enterprises like the project managers, managers, leaders, government,
stakeholders and others who in one way or the other promote as well as control the different
kinds of changes which are being implemented within the enterprises. In the particular
context of the enterprise Emirates, it can be said that the said change agents would be the
Project Manager (PM) of the concerned enterprise. In this regard, it needs to be said that the
PM of the enterprise under discussion here would have to work in conjunction with engineers
of the concerned enterprise for the formulation of the blueprint of the change that it intends to

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implement, that is, the integration of the ABM software within the repair and maintenance
process followed by it for the repair and the maintenance of the air planes owned by it. More
importantly, the PM of the concerned enterprise would also have to work in close association
with the management team of the enterprise to ensure the fact that the change under
discussion here would be implemented in an effective manner within the spectrum of the
concerned enterprise.
Development of Goal and Broad Strategy for the Change
Lines et al. (2015) are of the viewpoint that one of the most important factors which
greatly affects the success or the failure of the different kinds of changes is the kind of goal or
objectives that they develop related to the changes that the business enterprises are
implementing. As a matter of fact, it is seen that in the majority of the cases, the business
enterprises fail to develop effective goals for the changes that they are implementing and this
in turn substantial affect the success or the effectiveness of the changes that they are
implementing (Booth 2015). In the particular context of the enterprise Emirates, the goals
that it can formulate for the implementation of the change under discussion here are listed
below-
 Improvement of the repair and maintenance process used by it so to enhance the
flight time of the airplanes owned by the concerned enterprise
 Improvement of the service quality of the airline services offered by the concerned
enterprise through the improvement in the timeliness of the services.
The broad strategy that the enterprise under discussion here can follow for the
implementation as well as the management of the change is the use of the different change
management models or frameworks (Burke 2017). In the particular context of the enterprise
Emirates, the change management model that the concerned enterprise can take the help of

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for the implementation of the change under discussion here is the usage of the Kotter’s 8 step
change management. It is pertinent to note that the effective usage of this model would not
only enable the concerned enterprise to create the need or the awareness for the change which
is being implemented but at the same time implement the change and also regulate it in
likewise manner as well (Hayes 2018). More importantly, the adequate usage of this change
management model is likely to also help the concerned enterprise to offer the required or
desired training to the employees or the related stakeholders which in turn is likely to
facilitate the effective implementation or the management of the change (Fernandez and
Rainey 2017).
Implementation of the Change
As discussed above, the enterprise Emirates for the effective implementation of the
change under discussion here needs to take the help of Kotter’s 8 step model of change
management. For example, in the first step it would have to create urgency for the change
which is being implemented and also build a team whose primary role would be to implement
and manage the diverse aspects of the concerned change. In the next step, the management
team and the PM would have to formulate the goal of the change and communicate the
purpose, goal and others of the change which would be implemented to the employees and
other stakeholders. In the next stage, the enterprise would have to remove obstacles like
resistance from the employees and others and also if possible, launch a pilot project to see the
effectiveness of the change. Furthermore, the results that will be obtained from the pilot
project would have to be integrated within the actual change that had been planned and the
final step would be the integration of this change within the organisational or the workplace
culture of the concerned enterprise.