Case Study

Case Study Analyses

OL 440 Strategic Change

Dana Willard

December 21, 2014

Case Study: The British Airways Swipe Card Debacle

Questions:

1. From each change perspective, what are the key issues to understanding the wildcat strike?

The British Airways, was trying to bring change by introducing a swipe card system to modernize and improve the way they managed people. Key issues would be discomfort of the employees, the imposing power of management, and the impending busy season that coming. The employees were scared for their jobs with one and four jobs being cut, management imposing their power made the employees feel even more discomfort. Although when they implemented the new system, the management team did not communicate or inform their workers about the new policy, making them feel not respected by the organization and harassed by the new swipe card system that kept track of employees work times. Management neglected to convince workers about the importance of the new policy and why this change was needed in the organization. Change management was not factored in with the employees, nor was a contingency plan on making these changes. If British Airways took time to follow Kirkpatrick’s seven step-by step change model as a systematic approached, it might have been better received by the employees. (Palmer, I., Dunford, R., & Akin, G., 2009) The employees felt the change was insensitive and created an even poorer relationship with management.

Although the company made changes after the employees went on strike, if the company would have took the time to have an incident plan in place the strike could have been prevented, or trying to restore their image quicker after the strike.

3. Is there one change perspective, or a combination of change perspectives that provides the best way of understanding the swipe card issue? Why?

The employees perspective is that management should have consulted and eased them...