Emirates Airlines’ Hard and Soft System Changes Essay

System Changes

Introduction

Organisational changes are normally instigated by opportunities or challenges in the manner in which an organisation conducts its business. However, other additional cause of change also exists. This includes instances of organisational management changes in which the incoming management team has new ideas that would enable any organisation to secure better success. Change may also emanate from replacement of a CEO of an organisation. Amid all these triggers of change, Burnes (2009) insists, “The main two are problems and opportunities – current or future – real or perceived” (p.23). One can distinguish and classify all organisational system changes into two broad categories- soft and hard changes.

According to George, “hard’ concerns material assets (things) and ‘soft’ concerns people” (1982, p.91). In design, analysis and implementation of either change, conversation style coupled with the content of the conversation are essential in fostering cute success of various change processes. In many instances, hard change embraces change of organisational technological structures, which are easier to design and implement in comparison to soft changes. This is because “soft problems are hardest to manage” (Burnes 2009, p.27). This makes soft problems predominantly hard to handle and align with the changes to the organisational culture. The purpose of this paper is to discuss and apply hard and soft system changes in an example on Emirates Airlines. The paper approaches this challenge by discussing the stages or phases of both hard and soft changes, changes in Emirates Airlines, and then sums up by looking at how these changes may be implemented in Emirates Airlines.

Hard system changes

Hard system changes are accomplished by deploying a model of change referred to as “hard systems model of change” (Senior & Fleming 2005, p.312). This model entails a methodology for development and design coupled with management of change. Its origin is traceable from “methods of analysis and change associated with systems in engineering, operational research and project management; that is where there is emphasis on means and ends with which particular set goals are to be achieved” (Senior & Fleming 2005, p.312). This approach is critical in permitting systematic mechanisms of determining various organisational change objectives and or goals in a rigorous manner. This leads to the creation of various change options and appropriate actions necessary to facilitate the implementation of change. The process of hard systems change is covered in three main phases that are normally overlapping in nature.

These phases or steps are- description, options phase, and the implementation phase. According to Senior and Fleming (2005), the description phases embrace “describing and diagnosing the situation, understanding what is involved and setting the objectives for change” (p.313). In the options phase, various options that are deemed vital in inducing change are generated, and most appropriate options selected coupled with conducting a thorough scrutiny of repercussion of every option. The implementation phase encompasses “putting feasible plans into practice and monitoring the results” (Senior & Fleming 2005, p.313). However, all the three phases can be subdivided in into a number of stages. Each stage requires a number of necessary actions to ensure that they are successful in aiding to achieve the overall desired change.

Soft system changes

Soft system change entangles changing the culture of doing work for organisational employees. Since people are normally reluctant to change their manner of doing work, in organisational settings, soft systems are hard to implement. Amid these hardships, various models for implementing soft system changes are prescribed by various scholars of organisation system management. One of such models is organisational development (OD). OD is pegged on four principles. The first principle views people as organisms that must operate harmoniously within an organisation. The second principle goes further to assert, “Organisations are occupational and political systems as well as rational resource allocation systems” (Tarr 2009, p.67). This implies that, for an organisation to achieve its goals and objectives, it must be controlled to meet the desired change.

The third principle states that all people working for an organisation function in a simultaneous manner with all the aforementioned systems in the second principle. The forth principle states that a “change is most likely to be acceptable where people are basically successful but have tensions and failure in some part” (Tarr 2009, p.78). To implement OD, a number of change approaches are vital for deployment. All these approaches have distinctive characteristics. They include planned strategy cutting across a range of disciplines such as organisational theory, political science, behavioural science and sociology among others. Another critical characteristic of OD change approaches is that “the fit between the change process and the challenge makes the difference between success and failure” (Tarr 2009, p.78). Lastly, external facilitators are required to ensure that managing and planning the change process is conducted in the most appropriate manner. An OD model is schematically shown in the figure below.

Change in Emirates Airlines

Emirates Airlines encompass one of the reputable airlines organisations operating in the Asian continent. The organisation has been in operation for more than two decades. The government of Dubai owns it. The “company flies to ninety destinations found throughout the world and manages to reach about sixty different countries in the world” (Butler & Keller, 2000, p.5). Throughout the years, the company has encountered a myriad of changes. These changes include environmental, legal political, economic, social, and technological changes. Economic and technological changes act as strikingly significant changes that have enhanced rapid growth of the company. It is important that they be discussed further in this section in the attempt to propose some system changes in the emirates airlines. This is necessary since many of effective changes that may enhance performance of an organisation, whether soft or hard systems changes, capitalise mostly on opportunities.

Economic changes

Asian pacific area, especially, the United Arab Emirates has been experiencing a constant growth of economy. Many of the countries that are located in this region have their economies maturing up. The fact that these economies are growing at a fast pace implies that the income per capita is also increasing. Consequently, many people are able to afford air transport. This truncates into the tremendous growth of the airline. In this context, Tayeh (2006) reckons, “Markets are changing rapidly and more governments in the region are streamlining their economic policies so as to suite the Airline industry” (p.2). Economic challenges associated with global financial crisis experienced in the recent past have resulted to a tremendous decline in the world airline traffic. Nevertheless, “the middle eastern regions have improved especially for emirates” (Doganis 2001, p.7). This growth is associated with the incredible growth of the city of Dubai as both tourism and business hub. This growth is enhanced by creation of international iconic projects such as the theme park that takes after Disney world.

Technological changes

In 1990’s, the whole world experienced an ardent technological boom that was accompanied by sophistication of many organisational systems. This technological improvement has had the impact of making clients more informed about their air transport service quality. Therefore, as Doganis (2001) notes, “Airline companies have to deal with the advent of better informed clients since most people are now more knowledgeable about the reputable companies” (p.3). For example, the availability of internet to many of the people across the world enables them to understand the weaknesses and strengths of various companies, airline companies included. This impact on airline industry is exemplified by the fact that “many clients tend to shy away from airlines with numerous stopovers in comparison to those with one or have direct routes” (Doganis 2001, p.). Clients can have ample knowledge of all these issues simply by a click of a button on the personal computers or mobile phones. This issue has affected the emirates airlines. Tayeh (2006) ascertains this impact and further argues, “Emirates Airlines has been affected by this issue because it needs to ascertain that it offers better services to its clients and that it can meet future demand “(p.11). To enhance the performance and continued success of the Emirates Airlines, it is crucial to consider further investment in technological systems as part of hard systems changes.

Hard system changes

Stemming from the above discussions, the fact that most people have access to improved communication gadgets such as personal computers and internet enabled mobile phones, the Emirates Airlines can take advantage of this fact and conduct changes on its communications or public relations. This change being hard system organisational change needs to be methodologically developed in three phases: description, options, and implementation.

Description

The technological situation facing the company is that, with the creation of social media such as Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook among others, people can share their experiences much more easily. Where the experiences are in disfavour of the organisation, it is likely that such commentaries may shy off potential clients who have not had a firsthand experience of the company’s flight experience. Additionally, with the growing demand for better services, the Emirates Airlines invest in infrastructures and planes that meet the requirements of various clients. While the company may be doing this practically, the same information may not be following to the potential clients who rely heavily on the internet information searches.

The difficulty of enhancement of a better flow of information about the most current attempts of the organisation to provide infrastructure that meets the most recent needs of clients is evidenced by conducting a search of the Emirates Airlines. A lot of information pops up. This information does not directly start by addressing the most recent acquired technologies at the organisation. The objective of communications changes is to ensure that the company leaps most from the easiness of acquiring organisational information to enhance the improvement of the company’s clientele levels. The performance measure for this objective is the number or percentage increase of the clientele upon implementation of various possible options to tackle this organisation’s system change.

Options

Attempting to resolve the challenge of enhancing better information flow to potential clients, a number of options are available. For the case of unfavorable commentaries in the social media, the company may need to follow commentaries of its clients through these social media in an attempt to develop policies that will ensure and enhance customers’ satisfaction. Another option is to consider ensuring that the company’s wiki pages remains updated all the time. The company may also consider setting certain keywords that guide search engines into producing the recent endeavour of the organisation to improve customer service and customer service satisfaction as the first search results whenever the words ‘the Emirates Airlines’ are keyed in into any search engine.

In these options, active involvement of the communications or public relations people within the Emirate Airlines is required. The option involving following the commentaries of clients on the social media works by embracing the concepts of two-way communication system. This is because social media permits people to give their feel about certain issues that are of public interest. For the case of internet search results, no such feelings can be expressed between differing people through enabling media opposed to social media. To implement the option requires just the input of public relations personnel within the Emirates Airlines to work. Based on the objective performance measure identified before, it is likely that considering the provision to changes of search results about the company to appear first in the search engines is likely to produce more impacts. This is because many people acquire information about an organisation they would like to contract for service provision this way.

Implementation

In the implementation of the system change, it is important to note that the rate at which people enroll and participate in information exchange across the social media is increasing. Consequently, even though many people would perhaps treat individual commentaries about their experience with the Emirates Airlines flights as personal, provision of company position about these feelings is vital. For this reason, the implementation of this option requires a company to maintain an up-to-date page or a wall on social media. This way, the company may make it possible to make clarifications and reduce volatility of inaccurate information that may circulate across social media and plunge it into organisational crisis. For the case of improvement of precedence of search engines results, all that is required is a committed communications staff. Both of these options require resources commitment for their successful implementation. It follows then that they are both constrained by financial availability. Thus, their degree of attractiveness is plausibly measured by percentage gain in terms of profitability of the organisational financial performance. This is dependent on the magnitude of rise in clientele when they are implemented by the Emirates Airlines.

Soft system changes

Soft system changes the hardest change to implement within an organisation. This is because they involve changing the manner in which people do work or even think about an organisation. However, when such changes are implemented, they increase the chances of success of an organisation in multifold. This is accomplished in a number steps. These are “diagnosis of the current situation, development of a vision of change, gaining commitment to the vision, development of an action plan, implementing change, and assessment and reinforcement of change (Senior & Fleming 2005, p.353). These steps are discussed in this section coupled with their application in the context of the Emirates Airlines.

Current situation diagnosis

Lots of complains have been raised by people terming themselves as clients of the Emirates Airlines who have had bad experience with the company. Some people claim that they have lost their baggage with some citing bad experience with the airlines cabin crew while others complain of flight delays. A further treatment of these complains is given by Asghah (2012). Many of the people raising these complains cite poor or relaxed management as being the cause of the reasons why they are made to go through humiliating situations (Asghah 2012, Para 16.). To make sure that the clients understand the contexts and various capacities of the company to satisfy their demands and have them understand that not every demand that they place on the airline customer service can be honored. It is critical that soft system change be designed and implemented.

Vision of change

Accruing to the economic advantage it has, the Emirates Airlines has incredible opportunities of growth if it rectifies the challenges it is facing currently related to customer service. Consequently, a vision of change is required to “give the organisation a picture of what the future looks like after the change is implemented” (Tanner 2011, p.125). To manage the customers’ complains and turn around them to act as strengths as opposed to acting as threats, the vision of change needs to reflect a picture of airline clientele, which ardently appreciates and recognises that the company handles people of valid cultural background. Hence, it is not every food or beverage that they would want that could actually be supplied to them. In the vision of change, it is also crucial to articulate the perspectives of ensuring ardent communication to clients to make them understand that, apart from cultural perspectives that may influence what clients consume, the airlines may not also satisfy all the cliental demands based on demographic factors such as age. This is particularly significant for people travelling with their infants.

Commitment to the vision

In a service sector, a company such as the Emirates Airlines deals with people who have valid altitudes and way of interpreting issues. In the communication process between the airline employees and the clients, it is likely that detriments to effective communication occur. On the other hand, employees feel undermined by rude customers or over demanding customers. Consequently, for successful commitment to the vision, it is necessary that the organisation commits resources to educate and train its cabin crew on cultural perspectives of various people especially when the Emirates Airlines acquire new destination as the company furthers its attempts to make global flights. This is an attempt to inculcate a strong spirit of multiculturalism in customer service, which needs to be accompanied with the perception that ‘customer is always right’ among all service providers in the airline.

Action plan

To realise the vision of change discussed above, the following action of plan is proposed.

1. Ensure that customers are in immediate contact with the clients. Management is responsible in creating policies that may immensely improve customer service and reduce complains raised by the clients. Consequently, in all management levels, it is vital that managers are exposed to customers and chat with them constantly. This action plan is inspired by the argument that work normally takes place at the point where the customers encounter with service providers. Where a manager spends some time with the customers awaiting to board a plane, the customers can develop a great deal of confidence and adequacy of the services provided by the cabin crew on board the plane with.
2. Involve the cabin crew in planning standards of customer service. The Emirates Airlines cabin crew is the people who are in daily contact with the customers. They are the ones who really know what is required on the ground by the customers. Whenever business changes occur, they are the first ones to know. Thus, they can bring all these changes on board when customer’s services policies are being designed and assessed.
3. The top leadership needs to portray to all people working in the company that customers are the first priority in the organisation and that they are always right. The direction of an organisation is stipulated by leaders in a manner that is consistent to the culture of the organisation in question. In this context, Morrison and Winston (1997) reckons, “If the top leaders expect great service for every customer every time, then they will naturally do what it takes to create a culture that breeds such service” (p.34). This insight is significant for the Emirates Airlines since to deliver high quality customers service in a consistent manner, leaders of the organisation needs to make this quest a priory and then the employees can follow suit.

Implementing change

At the heart of implementation of change, it is crucial that every customer, a mid his or her cultural background and attitude, to be an important asset of the Emirates Airlines. Convenience, safety, and comfort of these customers need to constitute the paramount concern of the organisation. Safety here does not only imply the capacity of the airline to move the customer from point A to B, but also the belongings of the customer including their baggage. For the case of long delays, a rapid mechanism of providing essential services such as accommodation at the cost of the company is vital. Other critical issues for implementation include mechanisms of guaranteeing the baggage liability to the clients, ticket refunds, and improvement of a two-way form of communication while handling issues of concern about the service provisions of the company by customers. Management must take proactive roles in ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of these changes.

Assess and reinforce change

The system changes, as discussed in the prior sections, demand the leadership arm of the Emirates Airlines to take proactive roles. In the assessment process and in the reinforcement process, it is crucial to provide a mechanism of evaluating the effectiveness of the responsible persons with the implementation of the change plan. For this purpose, performance management and contracting is suggested for assessing changes upon their implementation. To do this, customers need to be provided with mechanisms of giving feedback on what they feel about the quality of the service provided by the airlines on arrival.

Conclusion

The Emirates Airlines immensely believes that the adoption of concepts free market strategies is the cutest drivers that may make the company succeed in the future uncertain world. Consequently, it has refrained from mergers coupled with acquisitions. However, since the company plans to expand and reach global markets, it is significant that it embraces global operation rules adopted by the companies in the industry across the globe. In this light, the paper has proposed changes of customer service provision as soft system changes and technological changes as hard system changes.

References

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George, Y 1982, ‘Gateways to Entry’, Harvard Business Review, vol. 60 no.1, 85–93

Morrison, S & Winston, C 1997, The fare skies: air transportation and Middle America. Brookings Fall, New York, NY.

Senior, B & Fleming, J 2005, Organisational Change, Financial Times / Prentice Hall, New Jersey, NJ.

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