BRITISH AIRWAYS

“The Effectiveness and Success of corporate responses to environmental issues/challenges”

British Airways

Abstract

Emissions from air travel were not included in the Kyoto protocol, but it was widely expected that the industry would have to be included in any successor agreement - should it be achieved. British Airways is reporting on its efforts to reduce its impact on environmental issues. In recent years, the company has improved fuel efficiency of their fleet and new landing and take-off procedures were altered to help lower emissions. In contributing to the environment, British Airways has been progressively remediating the Harmondsworth Moor, 100 hectors of grasslands and woodlands. British Airways has reduced water consumption, though only by 2.5%. However, the airline struggles with the tradeoff between reducing NOx emissions and acheiving greater fuel efficiency.

Table of Contents

Abstractii

CHAPTER 01: INTRODUCTION1

Background1

Research Questions3

Limitations of the Study3

Assumptions & Limitation4

Theoretical Network4

Ethical Concerns5

CHAPTER 02: LITERATURE REVIEW7

Industry Background7

Company Profile: British Airways7

The Success of British Airways11

Leadership Skills Used Within BA'S Cultural Change13

Leadership Commitment14

Managing Change In BA15

The Role Of Hr Within Cultural Change15

Can it be agreed internationally?21

Society22

Product Responsibility22

Corporate Citizen23

Low-Cost Airlines25

The Outcome25

Current Strategy26

Performance28

The business environment28

Managing Change29

Areas Benchmarked30

Management Style & Leadership at British Airways31

CHAPTER 03: METHODOLOGY33

CASE STUDY33

British Airways34

Proposed change35

Remove35

Add36

CHAPTER 04: FINDINGS AND RESULTS37

1.What are the important environmental issues and sustainability in the aviation industry?37

2.What Polices have been put in place to address all these issues by BA?38

Change Strategies39

Corporate Culture Defined40

3.Do the environmental drivers as reported by BA reflect the important issues as debated in the environmental research literature?41

Unfreezing41

Restructuring42

Ba's Promotion Of Change43

Implementation Of Change Within Ba45

Types Of Change - Incremental47

Types Of Change -Transition48

4.Does research into environmental issues reflect the policies set by BA?48

E.V.R. Congruence48

Developmental Strategy49

5.How does government regulation effect on BA's environmental policies?49

6.And the final questions are BA's environmental policies sufficient and effective? How can they be made more effective?50

7.Do they engage with other companies in the sector to what extend?51

8.Does BA engage with NGOs or other civil society groups to address environmental issues?52

CHAPTER 05: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS54

REFERENCES57

CHAPTER 01: INTRODUCTION

Background

Airlines have agreed that they will aim to cut emissions of greenhouse gases to 50 percent below 2005 levels by 2050. The move, which aims to pre-empt unfavourable attention at the Copenhagen summit in December, is the most radical vision to date of the future of air travel. The plan, launched by British Airways CEO Willie Walsh, will be presented to the UN Forum on Climate Change in New York. If it goes down well there, it will make the agenda at Copenhagen.

In addition to reducing emissions through improved technology, the plan aims to make all industry growth carbon-neutral by 2020, and for aviation to join a global carbon trading scheme within the next year. Emissions from air travel were not included in the Kyoto protocol, but it was widely expected that the industry would have to be included in any successor agreement - should it be achieved. Any effective emissions reduction plan is likely to result in higher fares for passengers.

Environmental campaign groups, however, criticised the proposal suggesting that it still did not go far ...