British Airways

CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN BRITISH
AIRWAYS
[PPT-Presented at 3rd National Conference on
Competition in Corporations, IIM, Lucknow -
29-31/5/2008-Aurnob Roy & Brijendra Singh]
Udaipur, Chittorgarh and Banswara
Senior MBA Faculty, Amity Business School

Lessons needs to be drawn from Change
Management in British Airways as even
after 26 years of publication of “In search
of Excellence” ; the Cultural Change in
organization continues to excite, stimulate
and enlighten us.
Cultural interventions offer practitioners
and business analyst solutions to
organizational ills and academicians, an
explanatory framework with virtues of
gloriously simple and true.
In the British Airways Story, we attempt to
rescue a fairy-tale as it is the authentic
inspirational account of cultural change.
• PSP- People → Service → Profit
This model (Charles Handy, 1983) holds good.
Service People Power
4 P’s
PSP
People Profit Politics Practicalities

“Putting People First” model holds good.
Extrapolating the future needs of the
customers to delight them holds good.
Training of the staff to serve the
customers to surrepetition holds valid in
Competitiveness of Airlines Industry.

Peter & Waterman – In Search of
Excellence, 1982 – 8 Key Management
Mantras shared by all 43 firms Case Study
holds true :
• A Bias for Action – Do it Try it – Don’t Waste
Time studying it with multiple reports and
committees.
• Customer Focus – Get Close to the Customer
(KYC).
• Entrepreneurship – Even Big Companies think
and act small by giving people, the authority
to initiate initiatives.
• Productivity through people – Treat you
people with respect and they will reward you
with productivity.
1. Values Oriented CEO’s – The CEO should pro-
actively propogate Corporate values
Vertically and Horizontally in the
organization.
2. Stick to the knitting – Do what you know well.
3. Keep things Simple and Lean – Complexity

encourages waste and confusion.
4. Simultaneously, Centralize and Decentralize

– Have tightly centralized control while also
allowing maximum individual autonomy.
Strategy needs to be more interactive and
proactive. Less arm-chair planning is
needed (Hamel & Prahlad, 1993).
Adding Value – Central Purpose of
Business Activity (John Kay, 1993).
Japanese practice originated at Honda of 3
G’s GENBA
(Actual Place)
3 G’s
GENJITSA GENBUTSU
(Actual Situation) (Actual Thing)
This is similar to “Management by Walking
Around” (MBWA). HP Corp., Senior HR
Managers were seldom at their desks,
they spent most of the time in meeting
suppliers, customers and visiting employs
to find their problems and solutions.
• When Management Experts turn case
studies of Corporations in to fiction, it is
worrying as it encourages people to
believe in the new initiatives, the magic
wand and not the power structure, the
strategies, context, economics/Industrial
relations. The magic facilitates turnaround
of unproductive workers, work place into
enthusiast productive knowledge based
Everyday intervention in management is
presented as new – research into
management becomes research into
fads and fashions. TQM, BPR and
Benchmarking grabbing attention.
Change is termed as magical – The Jadugar
Management to Jalebi Management – In
Search of Excellence, Built To Last theme of
change in culture at BA (Robert Heller, 1992
Editor – Management Today, London U.K.) in
1980’s and 1990’s was compatibility of
pleasure with profits (Georgiades and
Macdonnell, 1998, Leahey and John Kotter,
1990, Goldsmith and Clutterback, 1984,
Dana, 1998, Schneider and Bowen,
1995).Cultural Change is the only explanation
for BA’s Transformation.
British Airways – A Snap Shot
Founded - 1924 as Imperial Airways
Hubs - i) London Heathrow Airport
ii) London Gatwick

Ariport
Frequent Flyer Programme- Executive Club Premier

(Invitation)
Key People - Willie Walsh (CEO)

Member Lounge - Galleries First
Galleries Club
Galleries Arrivals
Terraces Lounge
Arrivals Lounge
Concorde Room (LHR &

JFK)
British Airways Group - Formed in 1972 – BEA +

BOAC
Tense Relationships - Virgin Atlantic, Formed 1984
Richard Branson
Destinations - 147 in 75 Countries (March

2007)
Privatization - BA Privatized in 1987
HQ - Waterside, Harmondsworth,
England, U.K.
Website -
http://www.britishairways.com
British Airways – Problems
Plagued by many difficulties in recent years.
AEA reports that BA is the worst airline for lost
and delayed baggage, bring over twice as many
bags as the average.
Worst Airline for punctuality of short/medium
haul flight departures and arrivals (Ranked 17
out of 21 Airlines for long haul delays).
BA’s Problems stems at being Heathrow-based
over-crowded and subject to delays in airport.
In 2007, Heathrow was voted world’s Least
Favorite Airport.
Potentials & Pitfalls-
Willie Walsh took over as CEO
British Airways in 2005-till date
BA won SKYTRAX AIRLINE OF THE
YEAR 2006 AWARD.
BA won OAG AIRLINE OF THE YEAR
AWARD-2007.
Best Airline Based in Western
Europe Award-2007.
Best Trans-Atlantic Airline Award-
2007
Potentials & Pitfalls-Willie
Walsh Era 2005-Till-Date.
Best Europe-Asia/Australasia Airlines-
2007.
The aim of Willie Walsh in taking
over as CEO BA was to save £300
million by 2008 by announcing
changes in management of BA.
Heathrow Terminal-5 was built
exclusively for use of BA at a cost of
4.3 Billion Pound & Officially opened
Potentials & Pitfalls
Heathrow Terminal-5 was opened to
passengers on 27-03-2008.
Problems faced were –Staffs unable to

find Car Parks, Not enough Space
Available,Confusion,delays in getting to
work,long ques for security checks,belts
carrying bags clogged, Baggage
Handling System Malfunctioned.
Potentials & Pitfalls
At one stage BA were forced to stop
checking the Bags as large ques formed
at the fast Bag Drop & 7 Flights
Departed with no Baggage Loaded.
In First 5 Days, a Backlog of 28,000
Bags built up & over 300 Flights
Cancelled.
BA initially handed out leaflets to
passengers of cancelled/delayed flights
offering upto 100 Pounds Compensation

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CHANGE MANAGEMENT IN BRITISH

Udaipur, Chittorgarh and Banswara

Senior MBA Faculty, Amity Business School

Service People Power

People Profit Politics Practicalities

Extrapolating the future needs of the

customers to delight them holds good.

Training of the staff to serve the

customers to surrepetition holds valid in

Competitiveness of Airlines Industry.

2. Stick to the knitting – Do what you know well.

3. Keep things Simple and Lean – Complexity

4. Simultaneously, Centralize and Decentralize

Founded - 1924 as Imperial Airways

Hubs - i) London Heathrow Airport

ii) London Gatwick

Frequent Flyer Programme- Executive Club Premier

Key People - Willie Walsh (CEO)

Concorde Room (LHR &

British Airways Group - Formed in 1972 – BEA +

Tense Relationships - Virgin Atlantic, Formed 1984

Destinations - 147 in 75 Countries (March

Privatization - BA Privatized in 1987

Problems faced were –Staffs unable to

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