MGT426 Summary Paper
United Airline Policy Change
Organizational change entails a process of modifying the organizational structure, operations, corporate culture, and strategies for continuous improvement of the organization performance. Change plays a critical role in today's changing business world. Organizations face various rapid changes due to the impact of the globalization, advanced technologies, and unexpected factors. Therefore, change is essential to ensure continuity and competitiveness of an organization in the market. Adopting positive change helps business to compete successfully and gain substantial share in its market domain. These changes often rise depending on the issues facing the company by taking the necessary strategies to address the problems and ensure efficiency of processes (Pollack & Pollack, 2015). However, the change is associated with high risk of resistance thus it is important for the management to manage the change and adopt suitable techniques of communicating the change to the company stakeholders.
Concerning United Airlines, the company is committed to safety and security of the customers. It operates approximate of 45000 flights daily to 337 airports across five continents. It has the most comprehensive airline network, and some of their market share includes, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Denver, and Washington (Zhang, 2017). The United Airlines current policy changes were effective from April 17. The changes were announced after evaluation of various policies and procedures and its commitment to take action after an unconscionable incidence whereby a passenger was dragged off the plane. This took place in Chicago airport that already affected various customers, and some had changed their preference for United Airlines and substituted with the American airline. Therefore, the United Airlines management acted faster and made various changes concerning customer travel to build the reputation of the company and maintain existing and attract prospective clients. Several changes have been made on the United Airlines regarding its operation policy on how it operates its flights, serves, and respects customers (United Airlines, 2017).
Various types of change are driven by different forces from the organization to make the reforms. These factors include the technology, social factors and trends, regulatory forces and economic condition. Regarding the United Airlines, the policy change concerning the displacement of a customer on their paid seats was an unplanned change. This is because it was triggered by the customer-dragging incidence at Chicago airport meaning that if the incident did not occur the policies will not have been modified. It involved an immediate change of the policy and legal agreement that included the process management and rules in a bid to ensure customer safety and customer relationship (United Airlines, 2017).
The United Airlines chief executive officer Oscar Munoz communicated the new changes of its travel policy to the clients and the general public through broadcasting media and the newspapers such as TMZ which published the policy change. This was to ensure that all audience are targeted and ensure that the customers don't move to the competitors. The CEO apologized for the incidence following his earlier remarks whereby he blamed the passenger and defended the employee responsible for the dragging (Wattles, 2017). Additionally, members of the United Airlines mileage and the frequent fliers program were informed of the changes through a written letter signed by the Munoz. In the letter, he apologizes for not living up to the standard values. The new policies include, first, the customers already seated on the plane should not give their seats involuntary unless they are at risk of the safety. Second, the compensation fee incentive increased up to $10,000, for a customer who voluntary is denied boarding the plane. Third, the policy established customer solutions team to ensure customers get to their final destinations safely (Zhang, 2017). Fourth, the crew should be booked onto the plane in time before the departure of the aircraft, and no crew will ask for a paid seat from the customer. Fifth, empowering the employees to solve the problem arising with the customers immediately and in the right manner to avoid such incidents happening in future. Sixth entails a reduction of the overbooking and creation of an automated system to ensure that volunteers change their travel plans at their will among other policies changes (Zhang, 2017).
United airline changed its policy to ensure the safety of its customers. This is due to the incidence of the customer dragged out of the plane due to the impact of overbooking. The company had lacked public trust and relation. The management wanted to restore its reputation in the United States and overseas where it operates. This was to prevent loss of the customers by ensuring that the measures necessary are taken to avoid future occurrence of certain incidence. However, its principal aim was to apologize to the public and ensure that it does not suffer losses due to lack of customers who threatened to substitute United Airline services with America airline (Wattles, 2017).
The change of policies of the United Airlines by the CEO Oscar Munoz applied Kotter's change model. This was due to the urgency needed to make the newly established policies to ensure customer loyalty and satisfaction. This model involves eight steps essential to attain change acceptance. First, it entails the establishment of urgency. United Airlines management created the sense of urgency for making changes to the travel policies concerning the customer's services and displacement. It identified the crises arising because of lack of strong measures regarding the travel rules leading to high impact on the safety of the customers and customer-employee relationship. Therefore, they created a catalyst for change to meet the market competitiveness.
The second step entails forming a powerful coalition that involves assembling a dominant team that can facilitate the change. Concerning United Airlines, CEO formed a group of both the frequent travelers and the management to ensure that the changes are established and goal of the reforms achieved.
The third step, they developed a vision that was to achieve the customer's satisfaction and safety while consuming the United services until they reach their final destination. The fourth step is communication of the vision (Pollack & Pollack, 2015). The CEO Oscar Munoz communicated the change of United Airlines operation policies to all stakeholders and the public. This was to create public awareness of the new measures for safety and ethical operations of the company. CEO used various channels such as TMZ press and the broadcasting channels to ensure that the change vision reached critical target group (United Airlines, 2017).
Fifth entails the empowerment of the staff to take action through the removal of possible barriers. The management created a staff rule, which the crew to been onto the plane in time before the departure to ensure that matters arising primarily pertaining overbooking are solved amicably.
Step six entails the creation of short-term goals. This involves planning for the visible improvement in the performance through the division of the goals. This was applied by Munoz by dividing the general travel policy changes into constituents ten parts all aiming at providing and improving customers safety and experience in United Airlines (United Airlines, 2017). Thus, this enabled the company to achieve its changed goals with minimal pressure despite public crisis regarding the incidence.
The seventh step entails persistence. This is aiming at achieving the vision of the change and full change without giving up (Pollack & Pollack, 2015). United Airlines management is ensuring that the policies changes are active. Some of the policies are already enforced, but some will be put in action in future. Therefore, the company is promising to continuous improving the customer's safety without giving up on the challenges and criticism from the competitors and the members of the public.
The last step entails making the change permanent; this is through the United management training its staff and stakeholders on the importance of the new policies and reinforcing the change through offering training to the employees to make it the culture of the workplace (Pollack & Pollack, 2015).
In conclusion, the change is essential in any business setting, and the airline industry should not be overlooked. The aviation sector is prone to impact of expected and unexpected forces which ay led to planned or unplanned changes. Therefore, the management should be well versed with the modification models that they can adopt in a case if urgency ad makes changes to its existing policies or establish new policies. This ensures success and achievement of the organization's goals and the company gain competitive advantage thus occupying substantial market share.
References
Pollack, J., & Pollack, R. (2015, February). Using Kotter's Eight Stage Process to Manage an Organisational Change Program: Presentation and Practice. Systemic Practice and Action Research, 28(1). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.contentproxy.phoenix.edu/docview/1650847035/abstract/DA2E1C6CCB6048D0PQ/1?accountid=458
United Airlines. (2017). United Airlines Announces Changes to Improve Customer Experience. Retrieved from http://newsroom.united.com/2017-04-27-United-Airlines-Announces-Changes-to-Improve-Customer-Experience
Wattles, J. (2017). United Airlines issues a new policy requiring crews to be booked sooner. Retrieved from http://money.cnn.com/2017/04/15/news/companies/united-airlines-crew-member-boarding/index.html
Zhang, B. (2017). United Airlines just announced ten significant changes to avoid another violent passenger-removal incident. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/united-airlines-ceo-major-policy-change-dao-2017-4
