Business Context And Strategic Environment Essay

In the modern business arena, stiff competition has made many companies to diversify their product line in order to retain the existing customers and attract new ones. In addition, firms have established strong ties with their customers through effective fulfillment of ethical and social obligations. This has not only resulted to high profits for such companies but it has also enhanced strong customers’ loyalty and good image to both the government and the general public. This paper keenly discusses the ways in which Easy Jet, an airline company based in London fulfils its ethical and social obligations. Easy Jet Company is a major airline company in Britain which is known for its large number of routes and high number of passengers. With more than 500 routes the company is able to effectively carry its passengers to different regions including North Africa, West Asian and in European countries. One of the major reason as to why Easy Jet Company has been performing well in the market is due to the application of the acquisition strategy. By acquiring other smaller companies, Easy Jet Company has been able to widen its customer’s base leading to higher profits. Ethically the company has been in the fore front in ensuring that passengers have been provided with quality services. In order to ensure that passengers are attracted towards the company services, the management team led by Carolyn McCall, the CEO has reduced the prices of its services. This in turn has created a strong positive relationship between the customers and the company (Dunn and Graham, 2007). Environment conservation strategies are other social aspects which Easy Jet Company has effectively established. This is based on the fact that due to its high number of routes, the company aircrafts emits high amount of carbon which is a major cause of global warming. In order to address noise pollution which is also a major challenge facing the company Easy Jet has adopted ICAO which is a strategy aiming at improving their aircrafts and reducing noise. In the same way, the company has undertaken some major strategies in collaboration with other companies in order to reduce environmental pollution. The first strategy is that the company has reduced unnecessary flights. This has been achieved through introduction of point to point technique. This implies that aircrafts will minimize extra routes in order to reduce the level of carbon emitted in the air. In addition, the company has adopted the policy of taking the shortest distance between any two destinations. As a result, the amount of carbon emitted by the Easy Jet aircrafts has drastically reduced leading to environmental benefits. Secondly, the company effectively utilizes its resources and aircrafts. This entails maintaining an average flight time of 1. 9 hours and 20 minutes turn around time. Thirdly, Easy Jet uses the services of new aircrafts in its operations. By retiring old aircrafts and adopting modern ones the company has been able to maintain environmental friendly policies. This has also been achieved through replacement of the aircrafts after every 10 years of operations. Similarly Easy Jet has adopted modern technology which aims at reducing the amount of fuel used and giving information to the cabin crew about the rate of fuel consumption by the aircrafts. Through the introduction of a modern aircraft referred to as A319, the company has been able to reduce the consumption of fuel by 2%. As a way of showing its commitment in conserving environment, Easy Jet greatly contributed in the formation of European Single Sky regulations which are geared towards reduction of negativities brought about by flight delays. The company has also participated in various meeting with other European based companies in order to ensure that air pollution is effectively addressed. Use of modern technology is another factor which has made Easy Jet maintains a high level of professionalism. This involves adoption of paperless office. Through the use of computers and scanners, the hard copy documents are scanned and then disposed. The company has a well maintained recycling facility which ensures that all the papers used are reused and sensitive company information effectively is properly secured. In the same way the company packaging policies ensures that the materials used in packing its products can be easily recycled. In order to ensure that waste materials from the company are at minimal level, the company has emulated products which are not perishable. Easy Jet Corporations has taken various measures in order to fulfill its social obligations. Open office policy is one of the major aspects which have been adopted by the company in order to create an effective interaction between the employees and the senior managers. In turn, this has enhanced high level of motivation among the employees leading to a rise in their level of productivity. Another significant social aspect adopted by Easy Jet is the use of intranet. This has improved the operations of the company in that the employees and other stakeholders have been able to contribute in the decision making process in the company (Jones and Lois 2007). In addition, the use of intranet has enabled the employees and the customers to be informed about the daily and long term operations of the company. In order to make the employees be part of the company, senior managers have provided opportunities through which employees can publish various issue which affects them during their duties. Such issues include technical, costs of operations and employment aspects. Through regular updates via intranet, customers are able to arrange with the company regarding their journeys. Easy Jet social obligations have also been achieved through the use of online chart forum which is initiated monthly in order to create a strong connection between the directors and the employees. In order to supplement the benefits of the intranet within the company, directors have also introduced magazines which have wide range of information regarding the company. Examples of such magazines are Plane times, Cabin fever and The stable approach. Extrinsic motivation of the employees is also an imperative social issue that Easy Jet Company has initiated. This has been achieved by adopting GoMAD rewards scheme whose aim is to recognize and reward the hard working employees (Brignall and Miles, 2006). This has reduced the rate of employees’ turnover leading to more profits and reduced costs of training new employees. In order to ensure that there is no racial segregation within the company, Easy Jet is an equal opportunity employer. This is based on the fact that anyone can apply for a job in the company regardless of the age, disability or sex. As a result the company employees’ fraternity is comprised of people from different backgrounds. Provision of efficient and safe working environment is another fundamental social issue that Easy Jet has initiated. This has produced positive results in the form of increased productivity by the employees and high level of profits for the company. In addition, the interrelationship between the senior managers and other employees has been positive due to the involvement of all the stakeholders in the decision making process. Conclusion Based on the above analysis, it is clear that Easy Jet Company has successfully achieved its ethical and social obligations. The directors have come up with rules which are geared towards maintaining high level of ethics among the employees. These rules includes keeping accurate and full records, keeping all dealing legitimate and refusing bribes from suppliers or customer. The strict following of these rules and environmental conservation policies has made the company attain a competitive edge in the air transport industry.