Managing People in Organizations: Virgin Atlantic Airways Case Study

This report provides an in-depth analysis of the management practices within Virgin Atlantic Airways, focusing on key aspects such as leadership style, management strategies, communication methods, team building, and employee rewards. The case study centers on the leadership of Sir Richard Branson, highlighting his transformational and charismatic approach, which fostered a unique organizational culture. The report examines the company's strategic approach to the leisure market, its focus on employee engagement, and its innovative internal communication methods. Furthermore, it explores the implementation of motivational theories, particularly Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, to enhance team building and employee satisfaction. The analysis also covers the benefits provided to employees, emphasizing the company's commitment to their well-being. The report concludes by underscoring the impact of Branson's leadership on Virgin Atlantic's success and its ability to adapt to the competitive market.

Running head: MANAGING PEOPLE IN ORGANIZATIONS
MANAGING PEOPLE IN ORGANIZATIONS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Executive Summary
The discussion in the report is based on the analysis of the case study related to Virgin
Atlantic Airways and the issues faced by the management related to the strike threats of the
employees. Virgin Atlantic Airways is a British organization that is led by Sir Richard
Branson and has acquired an effective position in the industry with the help his leadership
style. The major factors related to the discussion of Virgin Atlantic Airways are the
leadership of style of Branson, the practices related to management of the company. The
process of communication used within the organization, the process of team building, the
performance of the organization and the benefits provided to the employees are the other
factors of discussion. The report is concluded by stating that the Virgin Atlantic was able to
reach new heights under the leadership of Branson.

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Table of Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................3
Discussion related to various aspects of management...................................................3
Leadership style in Virgin Atlantic Airways.............................................................3
Management practice in Virgin Atlantic Airways.....................................................4
Effective medium of communication in Virgin Atlantic Airways.............................6
Effective building of team in Virgin Atlantic Airways..............................................7
Rewards and benefits in Virgin Atlantic Airways.....................................................7
Organizational performance of Virgin Atlantic Airways...........................................8
Conclusion......................................................................................................................9
References....................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
The report will be based on the analysis of the case study based on Virgin Atlantic
Airways and the issues that were faced by the management of the company related to strike
threats from the management. Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited and Virgin Atlantic
International Limited is an airlines company of British origin and they have head office in the
United Kingdom. The organization was established in the year 1984 under the name of
British Atlantic Airways. The airways were planned by the two co-founders of the company
Alan Hellary and Randolph Fields so that they can fly between Falkland Islands and London
(Virginatlantic.com. 2018).
The shares of the company were sold to Sir Richard Branson after many
disagreements related to the management of the company. The name of the company was
then changed to Virgin Atlantic Airways after the management had changed. This analysis
will be mainly based on the various factors related to the management of the company. The
factors of analysis are, management practice, leadership style, effective building of the teams,
effective building of the medium of communication, organizational performance and rewards
system. These factors will be further analysed based on the systems in the management of
Virgin Atlantic Airways.
Discussion related to various aspects of management
Leadership style in Virgin Atlantic Airways
Leadership style can be defined as the ways by which a leader mainly provides
direction, implements the plans and thereby motivates the employees. Many different types of
leadership styles have been proposed in this context and this relates to the ways the leaders
manage the employees. The five different types of leadership styles are, authoritarian,
democratic, transactional, transformational and Laissez-faire. The different styles of

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leadership are suitable for different organizations and are related to the needs of that
particular company. The style of leadership mainly depends on factors like, nature of the
business, dynamics of the teams within the organization, external environment in the market
and the personalities of the employees (Strom, Sears and Kelly 2014).
The leadership style that is followed in Virgin Atlantic is mainly related to the
organizational culture that was developed by Sir Richard Branson. The founder of the
organization has been successfully exercising the transformational and charismatic styles of
leadership. The leadership of Branson has been described as transformational and the major
reason behind this was his informal style and the lack of hierarchy in the company. The
charismatic feature of his leadership was the linkage between the organization and Branson
which has developed over the years (Holten and Brenner 2015).
The personality of Branson was quite adventurous in nature which has helped in
developing the brand image of Virgin. The encouragement that has been provided to the
employees is based on his transformational style of leadership where the employees are
included in the organizational processes. The market share of Virgin has also increased due to
the transformational type of leadership that has been depicted by Branson. This style of
leadership has also been able to increase innovations in the organizational processes since its
inception (Nguyen et al. 2017).
Management practice in Virgin Atlantic Airways
The success of the management related strategies of Virgin Atlantic Airways was
mainly related to the building of foundations of the company. The strategy was mainly based
on leisure markets and the businesses which drive effectiveness and efficiency. The mission
of the organization was related to the view of Virgin according to the statement “to embrace
the human spirit and let it fly”. The organization had started growing in the early 90s when

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had purchased many planes and expanded their network so that they can increase their
profitability. Branson had sold around 49% of the total shares of the company to the
Singapore Airlines and he also received the knighthood was his services provided towards
entrepreneurship (Choi, Kim and Kang 2017).
Richard Branson had started his working career in the 60s with a magazine that was
started by him named, “Student”. He established himself as an entrepreneur who did not
follow the usual rules related to the business. He started Virgin Atlantic after selling his
records company and thereby he was able to build the business practices that were related to a
competitive marketplace. The development of effective business strategies is based on the
people within the organization and in the external environment as well. The strategy related
to organization can be defined as the plan of action which can describe the allocation of
resources and other activities in an organization (Mittal and Dhar 2015).
The major strategy that was devised by Branson was related to the improvement of
the performance of the company with respect to the profitability and growth. This
improvement will not only benefit the organization; it will also improve the working
conditions for the employees. The major aim of Virgin Airways was to manage their brand in
an effective manner and Branson had devised many plans related to this strategy (Renko et al.
2015). This strategy mainly deals with the way the organization promises the customers about
the offerings of products. The important factor that affects the brand image of the company is
related to satisfaction levels of the customers. The management practices of the company
were related to the ways by which they develop loyalty for their brand and further improve
the revenues of the company (Scott et al. 2017).

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Effective medium of communication in Virgin Atlantic Airways
Virgin Atlantic Airways has been leading the innovation related areas in the industry
for a long time. The internal communication related processes of the company are also quite
innovative in nature. The company had an ethos related to the trying of new ways and being
brave so that the customers can be benefitted. The company has been using wearable
technologies like Apple’s iBeacon and Google Glass so that the staff can communicate with
the customers. Internal communication can play an important role in the encouraging and
nurturing the corporate culture which can drive innovation in the company. Innovation plays
a crucial part in the strategic narrative and the organization uses the process of internal
messaging in the face-to-face and the digital channels (Karanges et al. 2015).
The perspective of the customers has always been considered most important for
innovation in the company and this encourages the staff in the organization. The staff then try
to play a part in providing feedback and coming up with the new ideas. The senior leaders of
the company also try to connect with the employees and they listen to the issues that are
faced by the staff. This process of communication is essential to inspire innovation in the
workforce. This innovative process of two-way communication helps in ensuring that the
ideas of the staff are heard and implemented in the company. The employee base of Virgin
Atlantic Airways consisted more than 9000 employees which was considered to be a great
force related to sales. The brand of the company is considered as their major asset and this
increases the levels of pride among the staff (Deetz and Eger 2014).
The employees of the company work with the teams related to PR, social media and
marketing so that they can maximize the opportunities related to the building of brands. The
company has been rolling out the process related to the advocacy programs of the employees
so that they can be motivated. The employees are made aware of the ways by which the brand
content can be shared with the help of social channels. The main aim of this process was

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related to the empowering and encouraging of the staff related to the exciting ways of
business. The three major factors related to the future of the internal communications in an
organization are, the high levels related to employee engagement, the holistic view of
communication and the supporting the business with the help of changes (Jing and Avery
2016).
Effective building of team in Virgin Atlantic Airways
Employee motivation is related to the building of effective teams in the organization
which can be divided into two parts mainly, extrinsic and intrinsic. Intrinsic motivation is
related to the motivation related to the absence of external factors like, co-workers and pay
promotion. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation is related to the many compensational
factors in the organization like, career opportunities, financial rewards and co-workers.
Motivation in the various organizations can be further divided into different perspectives
including, process-based, need-based and learning-based (Fila et al. 2014).
The need-based perspective is related to the ways by which humans or employees are
motivated with the help of their deficiencies or needs. The theory of Maslow’s Hierarchy of
Needs is considered as the most popular theory related to needs of employees. This theory is
used by the Virgin Atlantic Airways in an effective manner so that they can motivate their
staff at the various levels of the hierarchy. The implementation of this theory in the
organization is mainly related to the ways by which the motivation and the satisfaction levels
of the employees are increased. The motivation related initiatives of the company have
helped in the effective building of teams so that the organizational objectives can be attained
successfully (Baker and Sinkula 2015).

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Rewards and benefits in Virgin Atlantic Airways
The passion and spirit of the Virgin Atlantic Airways keeps the brand of the company
alive and the rewards are provided to the staff of the company with the help of the
concessionary packages. The organization offers many benefits to the staff so that they can
enjoy their lives to the fullest. The company provides private medical plans to the employees
so that they receive healthcare for themselves and their loved ones. The Employee Assistance
Programme (EAP) is provided by the Virgin Atlantic Airways as a part of their Workplace
Options. This program is related to a confidential and anonymous specialist information
mainly organised for the employees who are UK based. The employees are also provided
with flexible hours of working so that they can manage their work lives and personal lives in
an effective manner (Wang et al. 2014).
Other major benefits that are provided to the employees includes the Defined
Contribution Pension Plan which was contract based. The plan was related to retirement
savings with the help of salary sacrifice so that it can provide income to the employees in the
future. Employees are also provided with bikes in exchange of a part of their salary so that
they get an easy conveyance to work. The employees are given opportunities related to the
purchase of holidays for themselves and their families in exchange of a part of their income
(Bullock, Stritch and Rainey 2015).
Organizational performance of Virgin Atlantic Airways
Richard Branson was able to lead the organization towards huge success with the help
of his different and flamboyant style of leadership. The business values that have been set by
Branson had a remarkable power and this had led Virgin Atlantic towards the position that it
holds presently. The major features that were related to the services or products of the brand
of Virgin Atlantic were, innovative, high quality, value for money, challenging the

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alternatives and having a sense of fun. The major objective of Branson related to the airlines
was to provide high levels of service in affordable prices (Birasnav 2014).
The organization has been able bring a revolution in the airlines industry with the
innovative services provided by them related to entertainment and on-board. The company
also provides benefits to the customers including, lounges which had the quality of a spa and
included services like, haircuts, showers, manicures and many more. It became the first
airlines which offered choices of two types of meals for the economy class customers as well.
Virgin Atlantic was able to become an airline favourite within a short span of time and won
many awards and recognitions for their services (Wang et al. 2014).
Conclusion
The report can be concluded with the learning that the transformational style of
leadership of Branson has been able to bring the organization in the topmost position in the
industry. The benefits that were provided to the employees of the company and the facilities
provided to the customers were the major factors related to the brand image of the company.
Branson had proved himself as a unique and effective leader of Virgin Atlantic Airways by
improving the operations of the company. The effective communication process of the
organization has also acted as the major factor related to the success of the Virgin Atlantic
Airways.

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