Singapore Airlines Case Study

Evaluation of Workforce Management Program

Singapore Airlines Case Study

Singapore Airlines was created in 1972 following a separation from Malaysian Airlines. In the wake of reorganization, Singapore Airlines undertook aggressive growth, investing and trading to maximize profitability and expand market share. Through this change, a new company philosophy emerged, “Success or failure is largely dictated by the quality of service it provides” (Wyckoff, 1989). By reinventing the company infrastructure and introducing new initiatives focused on excellence in customer service, Singapore Airlines became a global leader in the service industry, elevating existing standards among competitors.

Evaluation of Workforce Management Program

The strategy widely utilized by Singapore Airlines to ensure differentiation in an increasingly competitive market was its attention to in-flight service. “Good flight service [was] important in its own right and is a reflection of attention to detail throughout the airline” (Wyckoff, 1989). This statement perpetuated the belief that excellence in service was directly tied to the careful selection and individual performance of in-flight crews charged with the responsibility of fulfilling the needs of individual passengers and exuding the levels of service demanded by the organization. Applicants destined to work as flight stewards were drawn from a very young population, typically spanning the ages of 18-25 years of age with high school equivalency against the English system of education. Selection of applications was competitive largely due to the degree of skill, poise, and experience required of its candidates. These policies led to the on-boarding of a highly skilled and youthful workforce with positive attitudes and a willingness to be trained. Critique of this approach revealed several disadvantages. The most significant being the potential for greater turnover when hiring a younger population as opposed to an older, more experienced crew. Experience alone would play some role in the development of new employees, as greater experience would bring greater poise and confidence. However, in light of the predominant population Singapore Airlines catered to, a younger in-flight crew would remedy the awkwardness likely to be encountered by older clients being served by older crew members. In addition, a younger crew would likely be more accepting of new procedures and less cynical of the requirements of employment.

In light of the young demographic most desired in this role, recruitment, training and “conversion” processes were both stringent and comprehensive. All aspects of in-flight service, including training related to terminology, amenities and food preparation were provided in great detail, as were training for emergency preparedness and response to every potential scenario encountered in the air and on the ground. Formalized on-boarding, training and continued development were the hallmarks of the comprehensive workforce program. Even well into a crew member’s employment, on-going training and cyclical evaluation provided a mechanism for employees to be aware of individual performance and gain exposure to methods of continuous improvement. With an on-going plan of evaluation, communication, and development, the workforce was well-positioned for high levels of performance and quality improvements.

Though it would seem that Singapore Airlines’ work management program suited the organization well, it greatly narrowed the pool of applicants and kept many, well-qualified and experienced candidates from positions that would create diversity among the largely homogeneous workforce and place the organization in a better position to serve populations whose ethnic origins were not of Asian descent. If the organization aims to be the leader in an increasingly global marketplace, the workforce must mirror the diverse needs and perceptions of the greater population.

Advertising Campaign

Singapore Airlines is known in the airline industry for its quality of service. This emphasis on customer service and customer satisfaction is largely reflective of the Asian culture for which the company embodies. Attention to detail, impeccable presentation, and care for others are traits synonymous with countries of Asian heritage. Similarly, Asian countries revere conservatism, organization and hierarchy (Allik, n.d.) so, it would follow that young Asian individuals demonstrate the same gracious, caring behaviors to others. The expectation of “gentle, courteous service” is consistent with these norms and with the approaches taken by the organization. So much are these standards and stereotypes linked to Asian culture and the epitome of service, that the symbol applied to the airline is that of a young Asian woman. This image is resoundingly more beguiling and traditional, recognized by nearly 50% of consumers over typical marketing imparted by competitors, with a marginal recognition of 9.6%. In light of the positive impact and recognition of the existing marketing campaign, it was considered advisable to retain the current marketing strategy.

Advertising Campaign

Systems for Measuring Service Quality

Singapore Airlines has two primary components involved in measuring service quality. The first is a system to measure customer complaints and compliments for every 10,000 passengers. The second measurement is a comparative rating of airline services prepared by the International Research Associates (INRA).
The first component, customers’ complaints and compliments, stayed relatively the same despite rapid organizational expansion. This type of analysis has shown a generally high satisfaction level, but could be skewed due to the vast areas the complaints and compliments could cover; from ticket sales and baggage areas to in-flight crews. To address this concern the complaints were split between the areas. However, to get an accurate barometer of customer satisfaction, it was recommended that the airline conduct routine surveys of customers. Often, customers submitting comments fell into one of two categories; those having complaints or those having compliments.

The second component to gauge customer satisfaction involved the INRA surveys. The airline executives paid particular attention to these scores as they indicated levels of satisfaction among the general consumer population and identified areas requiring continuous improvement. In 1973 Singapore Airlines scored 68, in 1974 the company scored 74 and in 1979 they scored 78. The scores of 39 other airlines demonstrated that two other competitors, Cathy Pacific and Thai International, were improving rapidly. This provided one indicator of competitive advantage. In order for Singapore Airlines to stay ahead of their competitors they would need to evaluate their position against industry leaders and determine if changes would be needed to stay competitive, particularly with respect to customer service and customer satisfaction (Wyckoff, 1989).

Plan to Introduce Slot Machines

Singapore Airlines has responded to many changes in order to differentiate itself within an increasingly competitive market place. One responsive action was to remove sleepers, replacing them with a business class section. Reactions from consumers were less than favorable. The move strayed from what consumers came to expect of elite levels of customer service, which were in large part, due to the attention paid to the personal needs of its elite customers. Although intended to be innovative and distinctive, the inclusion of slot machines on transatlantic flights was another idea met with considerable consumer dissatisfaction. While potentially generating a new stream of revenue, the idea only worked to incite passengers with a new category of charges. In addition to generating cost for the consumer, the machines took valuable space away from seats and posed problems in light of weight restrictions (Time, 1981). These changes only compounded issues and introduced new problems such as the potential for in-flight injury, rather than improving in-flight services. While there was some opportunity for revenue, initially, the gains would last for a season and were not expected to extend out into the long-term.

Conclusion

The Singapore Airlines Case Study highlights both effective as well as ineffective management approaches within the company. The subsequent analysis and evaluation of company operations and strategies offer a compelling glimpse of organizational design and leadership amid change, as well as provide a platform for future discussions of organizational development and change management. Group evaluation of organizational design, organizational decision-making, and organizational process at Singapore Airlines yielded some recommendations for new approaches to address complaints, become more mainstream in an increasingly diverse market space, and become more innovative without losing sight of the customer service focus that has made Singapore Airlines so successful.

Systems for Measuring Service Quality

This paper critically examines a health care organisation and intends to assess the readiness of the selected organization in addressing the health care needs of citizens in the next decade. It also intends to include a strategic plan that addresses issues pertaining to network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction. The health organisation being chosen for this paper is Banner Healthcare. The organisation is a non-profit health network based in United States. Banner Healthcare operates about 23 hospitals and medical facilities. As per reports, Banner Healthcare is second largest employer of young graduates in world, Walmart being first. One of the plus points of Banner health is that the health care network offers diverse range of medical services including outpatient services, emergency services, surgery services, health plans, and nursing registry etc (James, 2013). Due to diverse services offered by health network, people across USA take services from Banner Healthy. The wide-acceptance of Banner Healthcare across USA has made it an effective health model for other health systems also (Hopkins, 2011). Elements such as network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction are crucial for the attainment of health care across world.

In order to analyse the readiness of the Banner Healthcare, it is crucial to examine various perspectives. Some of the crucial elements of Banner Healthcare include diversity of the services offered by it and its presence across various states in USA. Since Banner Healthcare is present in different states so it is a clear indication of the success of the health network to meet the needs of the citizens. The health care needs of the people keep changing in 21^st century. Some people might require critical care due to chronic illnesses. Hence, such patients require emergency services. However, some people are not serious and can therefore; outpatient services can be suited for them. Second thing to examine the readiness of the Banner Healthcare is the availability of resources for future generations (Walsh, 2013). In coming times, healthcare network will be requiring plenty of resources to meet the needs of the people. Banner Healthcare has the capacity to meet the needs of patients in future by effective resource mobilisation. The availability of resources will enable the network to integrate numerous changes in the Banner Healthcare effectively. In terms of human resources, Banner Healthcare is considered second largest employer of young men and women after Wal-Mart in USA. In future, the health care system requires highly efficient workforce to cater to the needs of patients and provide them appropriate medical help. This is clearly possible with the magnificent human resources possessed by Banner Healthcare. Hence, the above discussion proves that Banner Healthcare will be effectively able to cope with the growing needs of the patients in future.

The strategic plan intends to include network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction for the Banner Healthcare.

Network Growth: As of now, Banner Healthcare is available only in seven states. Hence, there is huge requirement of the health care system to expand in other states of USA also. Since USA has 50 states so it is crucial for the Banner Healthcare to expand in these states also so that it is able to cater to the health care needs of the people. Initially, the organisation must targeting expanding its framework in half of the states (Bond, 1994). This can be achieved by partnering with other health care entities. Also, government and non-governmental entities can finance Banner Healthcare to meet the funds requirements required for network growth.

Plan to Introduce Slot Machines

Nurse Staffing: It acts as an important component for the strategic growth of the organisation. Presently, Banner Healthcare is considered second largest employer of young men and women after Wal-Mart in USA. In future, the health care system requires highly efficient workforce to cater to the needs of patients and provide them appropriate medical help. Nursing is a primary requirement for every healthcare system (Simmons, 2009). For this, Banner Healthcare should train nurses that can help them attain high level of efficiency in their work. The organisation can also partner with other educational institutions to educate their nurses. Banner Healthcare can recruit nurses from those institutes only in future. It will help cope up with the nurse staffing needs of Banner Healthcare (Hussain, 2012).

Patient satisfaction: For any healthcare system, patient is the primary concern. It is indeed crucial for a patient to be satisfied of the medical services being offered by the healthcare organisation. Banner Healthcare should follow an efficient mechanism where patients don’t have to wait for their check-ups and instant medical help is given to them. Besides this, regular follow up of the patient is important to ensure he is satisfied. This will also help the patients to recover within a given time. A reliable health care system can only keep patients satisfied (World Health Organization, 2003).

Resource management: Resources are crucial for the strategic growth of any health care organisation. Also, with advancement in technology, the need of resources also increases. The management of financial and human resources can only make Banner Healthcare efficient. Mitigation of operational cost is also one of the crucial factors for increasing the efficiency of Banner Healthcare (Tulenko, 2012).

An efficient strategic plan will address all the issues pertaining to network growth, nurse staffing, resource management, and patient satisfaction of Banner Healthcare.

In nutshell, this paper has evaluated the readiness of Banner Healthcare to meet the healthcare needs of the citizens in future. As per analysis, the Banner Healthcare is exceptionally positioned and is capable to meet the needs of patients across different states in USA. The extensive framework of Banner Healthcare, diversity of the resources available with Banner Healthcare, professional competence provides a clear indication that the organisation is capable to grow strategically in future.

References

1. James, R. (2013). Accountable care organizations, Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press

2. Walsh, K. (2013). Oxford textbook of medical education, Oxford: Oxford University

3. Bond, J. (1994). Sociology and Health Care. Churchill Livingstone.

4. Hussain, A. (2012). Sentic PROMs: Application of Sentic Computing to the Development of a Novel Unified Framework for Measuring Health-Care Quality. Expert Systems with Applications, Elsevier.

5. World Health Organization, (2003). Quality and accreditation in health care services. Geneva https://www.who.int/hrh/documents/en/quality_accreditation.pdf. Retrieved 1st April, 2015.

6. Tulenko, A. (2012). Framework and measurement issues for monitoring entry into the health workforce. Handbook on monitoring and evaluation of human resources for health. Geneva.

7. Simmons, J. (2009). Primary Care Needs New Innovations to Meet Growing Demands. HealthLeaders Media.

8. Hopkins, J. (2011). Medicine. Patient Care: Tertiary Care Definition. Retrieved 1st April, 2015.