Analysis paper: WestJest Airlines -The culture that breeds a passion to succeed - Case Study Example

?WestJet is a low cost airline operating in Canada and its success in business can be attributed to its corporate culture. However, tremendous growthat the airline is likely to pose a challenge on its unique culture which can be problematic in the day to day operations of the company. As such, a critical analysis of the case study of WestJet Airlines is mainly concerned with identifying and discussing the problems likely to be encountered by the airline in its bid to maintain its unique culture. The analysis of this case study will also seek to suggest alternative solutions that can be adopted by the airline in order for it to remain viable while at the same time enjoying the same competitive advantage it currently has. The main problem facing WestJet Airlines is that the founders of the airline believe that the company’s culture is the only major factor that has contributed to its success since inception and cannot be changed under whatever circumstance. However, the major problem with this strong conviction is that it has to be noted that organisations operate in a dynamic environment which can change at any time. It is the role of the leadership to monitor the factors obtaining in the environment in which the organisation is operating in order to come up with an effective strategy that can enable the company to keep pace with such changes. Gaining a competitive advantage in the market requires the leadership of the organisation to continuously scan the environment so as to generate necessary knowledge that can be used in making strategic decisions that can positively contribute to the performance of the organisation as a whole. In this case, the founders of the airline wish to maintain their culture since they believe that it plays a pivotal role in the success of the company. Basically, organisational culture can be defined as a system of shared assumptions held by the members which distinguishes one organisation from the other (Schultz 22). The culture at WestJet can be described as a very relaxed, youthful, environment in which creativity and innovation are rewarded. For instance, representatives in the call center have the authority to override fares and they can also make decisions not to charge fees for bookings and cancellations. On the other hand, pilots are also treated as managers and they can make decisions on their own. However, the main problem with giving too much power to the employees to make decisions on their own is that some of the decisions made may not conform to the organisational goals. Essentially, all the efforts of the employees should be directed towards the set organisational goals and there ought to be a defined system to monitor compliance in order to improve effectiveness of the organisation in its operations. Without clearly defined duties and responsibilities as is the case with WestJet Airlines, there is likely to be a problem of duplication of duties which may negatively impact on the overall performance of the organisation as a whole. Another notable problem with the culture at WestJet Airlines is that the founders sought to create a company that was managed from the bottom. The organisation gave the employees a high degree of flexibility to operate without interference from the supervisors. The other problem which is of notable concern is that the founders of the airline had no previous experience of running a scheduled airline. As such, one of the industry’s biggest problems was dealing with absenteeism by the workers. This problem was spread all over the country and was a cause for concern. This can be attributed to the high degree of flexibility and responsibility vested in the workforce. The airline has no clearly defined line of authority in place whereby it becomes difficult to enforce rules and regulations among the workforce. As it stands, everyone is his or her own boss and is not answerable to anyone. This negatively impacts on the performance of the organisation as a whole since chances of losing business will be high as a result of staff shortages due to absenteeism. As noted above, organisations operate in a dynamic environment that is characterised by changes which can be attributed to market forces in this particular case. Against this background, it can be noted that change is inevitable in order for the organisation to remain viable. Though to a lesser extent, competition is likely to impact on the performance of WestJet Airlines. There are also competitors like Air Canada, CanJet as well as Skyservice. It is always important for every organisation to put measures in place that will ensure that it can gain a competitive advantage in a market that is characterised by the other rival competitors. There are other market forces such as rising fuel costs and they ought to be taken into consideration by the airline in order to remain viable while maintaining its approach to business. It can be seen in this case that Smith who was hired in 1999 to take over Beddoe’s job as CEO suddenly resigned which became apparent that he did not fit WestJet Ailines’ culture though he denied it. For instance, he would override decisions made by WestJet employees who for four years have been empowered to make decisions which impacted on their morale. Smith had a top down management contrary to the espoused bottom to top management structure at WestJet. Against this background, the following alternatives are suggested for the airline: Organisational structure should be redefined There is need to monitor the environment and make necessary changes There is need for leaders to implement change The best alternative solution is to restructure the organisational structure of WestJet Airlines. Basically, part management’s task is to organise the organisation into a structure of positions (Hierarchy), ranging from the most senior general manager at the top management level to the lowest position (Swanepoel 87). Duties and responsibilities will be clearly defined though there is need to decentralise authority to enable the subordinates to make decisions as well. The management structure at WestJet is too liberal as it gives too much power to everyone such that it becomes difficult to enforce rules and regulations. The problem with the structure at WestJet Airlines is that no one is answerable to another person within the organisation the reason why there are reported cases of absenteeism. This negatively impacts on the operations of the organisation. On the other hand, though there is need to include everyone in the decision making process, there is need for the responsible authorities to approve the decisions to ensure that they conform to the set goals of the organisation. If everyone is given the autonomy to make personal decisions, it may be problematic to the organisation since they may not reflect the ultimate goals of the company. References Schultz, Helen. Organisational behaviour. Pretoria: Van Schaick Publishers, 2005. Print. Swanepoel, Ben. Human resources management: Theory and practice. London: Oxford University Press, 1998. Print. Read More