Bp in the News

In the textbook Information Technology Management by Efraim Turban and Linda Volonino, a case is presented describing the operating climate at BP Global (British Petroleum) as well as changes that have been made to improve the company’s performance (Turban & Volonino, 2011). BP has made headlines in the last couple years for the disaster that is the oil spill and fatalities at their Deepwater Horizon. After a significant change in management, commitment to restore the environment and economy impacted by the spill, and using a strategy that takes a different approach than their competitors, the company has made a significant turnaround.

In 2010 there was a massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico at BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil rig at the Macondo exploration well. 11 workers were killed in an explosion as massive amounts of oil were dumped into the ocean. The company was immediately criticized for its safety standards, and many Americans blamed then CEO Tony Hayward for multiple breeches of the safety protocols that had been set in place to prevent an accident like this. The public did not have a good opinion of BP, and according to Christopher Helman, a reporter for Forbes Magazine, comments made by Hayward, only made BP fall further out of the public’s good graces (Helman, 2012). BP made a huge management change, bringing Bob Hadley, who had been running BP’s operations in Asia and the America’s, to the forefront to take Hayward’s position as CEO, and he has done a remarkable job. Helman (2012) goes on to say “The scope of this turnaround ranks among the more incredible corporate comeback stories in business history. Since last year BP has risen a remarkable 379 spots to 11th place in The Forbes Global 2000 survey”. Hadley was seen by the public as a fresh face who didn’t have anything to do with the accident. He brought a fresh perspective, had the respect of the public because he had performed well in high stress situations in the past, and has proven he is in...