Question

A Singapore Airlines case study

Introduction

When you run a large organization, you are likely to have a large number of employees. The Singapore Airlines Group has more than 29,000 employees. This large workforce comprises a diverse mix of people who bring a range of skills, attributes and personalities to the workplace. They are employed in the Group’s home base in Singapore and in as many as 80 diverse locations, all around the world.

Organizational systems

In the most efficient organizations, all employees should know and understand their role and how it fits into the work of the organization as a whole. They will also want to do the best that they can, not only in the interests of the organization that employs them, but also in their own interest. With such a large and diverse group of employees operating in widely differing working environments, giving each of them a sense of belonging to a community with a common goal is a huge organizational undertaking.

Modern organizations like the Singapore Airlines Group need a structure that enables people to work and deal with one another in a coordinated and co-operative way as they work towards the goals of the business. An organization’s hierarchy helps to distinguish between the levels of post as well as the layers of authority and responsibility attached to each post.

Dividing up an organization

A very small business does not really need a formal structure and is unlikely to have one. As it grows, however, some sort of formal structure will be required. As it grows even larger, its ability to construct a proper organizational structure may well determine its fate. Differentiation is the process by which certain activities or parts of an organization are grouped and then assigned to managers and other staff. How this is done depends upon a range of issues related to each organization. Ideally, the chosen structure will:

• include every part of the organization
• relate each part to every other part
• show where the authority and responsibility of different individuals and their departments lie
• enable everyone within the organization to assess their roles and status.

There are five main methods of grouping different parts of an organization.
These are by: Function - Dividing the organization into broad sectors that reflect the specialism or function of each sector. Product - Basing the structure around products, with a different division for each type of product. Process - Creating a structure that mirrors the particular steps or phases of the production process. Geographical area - Relating parts of an organization to the activities they provide for each geographical region. Matrix - Setting up a mix of the above methods.

Running a service business

Airlines operate in a competitive environment. A key area of competition for them is the quality of customer service. Customer service helps to distinguish one airline from another, and to give one an advantage over the other. In order to provide the type of service that customers want; airlines need to be flexible. They must allow employees scope to make decisions that consider changing circumstances in a variety of environments. It is mainly for this reason that Singapore Airlines gives considerable autonomy to each part of the organization.

Questions

Use the course materials to support your discussion about:

• The type of culture
• The business strategy

In Singapore Airlines (450 words ).

Answer 1

Organisation Culture

Organizational culture is a system of shared assumptions, values, and beliefs, which governs how people behave in organizations. It is described as the he values and behaviours that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization. A strong organisational culture serves as an important building block for a highly successful organization and an extraordinary workplace.

Types of Organisation Culture

1. Normative Culture: In such a culture, the norms and procedures of the organisation are predefined and the rules and regulations are set as per the existing guidelines. The organisational rules and policies set are very strict. Employees must strictly follow these rules.

2. Pragmatic Culture: In a pragmatic culture, more emphasis is placed on the clients and the external parties. Customer satisfaction is the main motive of the employees in a pragmatic culture. Such organizations do not follow any set rules.

3. Academy Culture: Organisations following academy culture hire skilled individuals. Work is divided according to the educational qualification and work experience of the employees. This type of organisation culture focuses on training and development of employees. They ensure that various training programmes are being conducted at the workplace to develop the skills of the employees and to improve their professional competence.

4. Baseball Team Culture: A baseball team culture considers the employees as the most treasured possession of the organisation. The employees are considered as true assets of the organisation who have a major role in its successful functioning.

5. Club Culture: Organisations following a club culture are very particular about the employees they recruit. The individuals are hired as per their specialization, educational qualification and interests. Each one does what he is best at. The high potential employees are promoted suitably and appraisals are a regular feature of such a culture.

6. Fortress Culture: The organisation that follows fortress culture does not provide job security to its employees. The employees are terminated if the organization is not performing well. Individuals suffer the most when the organization is at a loss.

7. Tough Guy Culture: In a tough guy culture the organisation gives high importance to performance evaluation. The employees’ performance are closely monitored and measured. Team managers are appointed to discuss queries with the team members and guide them whenever required. The employees are under constant watch in such a culture.

8. Bet your company Culture: Organizations under this culture can be called as risk lovers. They take up decisions that involve high risk where the return is uncertain. The principles and policies of such an organization are formulated to address sensitive issues and it takes time to get the results.

9. Process Culture: As the name suggests the employees in such a culture adhere to the processes and procedures of the organization. Feedbacks and performance reviews do not matter much in such organizations. The employees abide by the rules and regulations and work according to the ideologies of the workplace.

Singapore Airlines is a corporate employing large number of employees all over the world. They follow a mixture of academy and pragmatic culture emphasising on customer satisfaction and employing highly qualified employees.

Business Strategy

Business strategy is a set of decisions which assist the entrepreneurs in achieving specific business objectives. It helps the organisation to take strategic decision to survive in the business world of uncertainties.

In business, there is always a need for multiple strategies at various levels as a single strategy is not only inadequate but improper too. Therefore, a typical business structure always possesses three levels.

Corporate level strategy: Corporate level strategy is formulated by the top management. It is used to ascertain business lines, expansion and growth, takeovers and mergers, diversification, integration, new areas for investment and divestment and so forth.

Business level strategy: The strategies that relate to a particular business are known as business level strategies. It is developed to ensure that organisation achieve its defined target goals efficiently. It is like a blueprint of the entire business.

Functional level strategy: Developed to take decisions at the operational level concerning particular functional areas like marketing, production, human resource, research and development, finance and so on.

Singapore Airlines is a pioneer in their field. They have a strong brand image as a world-class airline renowned for its excellent service quality. They are known for their cost effective strategy creating best in class quality at every point of service.