History of the company
Jetstar Airways is an Australian air transport company with its headquarters in Melbourne. This low-cost airline was created in order to counteract the competition brought by the Virgin Blue airways to the Qantas. This airline was indented to offer cheap air transport to the Australians.
It is worth noting that jetstar is a subsidiary of the Qantas and faces competition from a several air transport providers in the region. Other airlines associated with Qantas, the mother of jetstar airways include Jetstar Asia Airways, Value Air and Jetstar Pacific Airlines. The major competitors of Jetstar airways are Virgin Australia, Tiger Airways Singapore and the Tiger Airways Australia (Eagleeye, 2011).
Having been launched by its parent airways provider the Qantas in 2001, Jetstar Airways started offering its services to the Australians on the 25th of May 2004. The company was received well in the market and this motivated it to start offering international services in 2005.
Although the company originated from the Qantas, it should be noted that it has an independent operating system from that of its mother company. The diagramed below gives a summary of Jetstar Airways indicating the type and number of crafts owned by the company in 2001, the number of passengers in each type of craft and their destinations.
Figure 1
Issues affecting Jetstar Airways
Jetstar Airways is currently facing management problems. This is evident from the feed back given by travelers after using Jetlink Services. For instance, customers have for a long time companied about the challenges they face when seeking to buy tickets.
A case in point occurred on the Friday of 4th April 2011 when a customer complained that he called the companies management several times seeking to buy a ticket in vain. Responding to this challenge, Jetstar management published a report that the company would not follow up on any cases concerning customers’ complaints.
This move by the company’s operator is a major drawback to the company’s operations given the stiff competition in the market (Sandilands, 2011, 57).
Another customer claimed that he was not satisfied with the treatment customers receive when they board crafts belonging to the Jetstar Company. According to this customer, the company has a tendency of overloading passengers. He added that reporting to the company’s management yields no fruits because the management does not follow up customers’ complaints. Customer’s dissatisfaction is a serious issue affecting Jetstar Airways because it retards the company’s growth (France-press, 2011).
Jetstar has also faced political managerial influence from its mother company, the Qantas. For instance, the pressure exerted on the company’s management to increase profits has led to Jetstar increasing its prices. This has in turn led to the company losing a considerable percentage of its customers.
SWOT Analysis of the company
This is an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of the strategies adapted by a company. This analysis goes ahead to look at the opportunities and threats facing the company in its efforts to grow. The importance of conducting SWOT analysis is to give a recommendation on the areas that a company needs to rectify in order to succeed in its operations.
Despite the challenges facing Jetstar Company, it still has a potential to grow. Among the strengths that guarantee the company future growth includes the huge net profits made by the company. For example, the company registered a $10.4million profit in its fourth quarter in 2009 from a $ 55.1 million net loss in its previous period. The diagram below summarizes the performance of the company in 2009. It indicates the company’s marginal growth in the 2008-2009 financial years (Eagleeye, 2011).
Figure 2
The major weaknesses facing Jetstar Company include poor management and brand confusion. The many companies associated with jet have made it difficult for the company to sell its brand in the market.
Mission statement: To establish Jetstar airways as the low-cost air line of choice for both local and international passengers.
Value statement: As a company, customer satisfaction is our priority. We value confidentiality, honesty, continued self-improvement and accountability. We are fully committed to adding value to our customers.
Strategic objectives:
- To extend our market to cover the international community.
- To improve our service provision for customers.
- To enhance modern technology in the overall management of the company.
Key strategies for the next five years:
- To embrace CRM in our customer management department.
- To invest more money in establishing international routes.
Conclusion
Jetstar Company was established by the Qantas to provide low-cost domestic services. The company faces stiff competition from the virgin blues and tiger airways among other companies. The company faces several managerial; and political issues but the huge profits made by the company gives it an opportunity to grow. An analysis of the company’s financial records indicates a positive growth. The many companies that use the name jet have made it difficult for Jetstar Airways to sell its brand effectively in the competitive market.
References
Eagleeye, (2011). Jetstar will not follow up on any case about customer complaints. Web.
France-press, (2011). Airline Jetstar under Investigation. Web.
Sandilands, B. (2011). The carefully avoided issues in a tiny Jetstar Asian profit. Web.