Baggage Blunders Organization Control Mechanisms - Assignment Example

Baggage Blunders Name Course Date Baggage Blunders Introduction The British Airways established a new terminal, Terminal 5 in the Heathrow Airport which was considered to be a state-of-the-art facility. The aim of developing this new terminal was so that the congestion at Heathrow would be eased to in turn enhance the flying experience for the numerous passengers who utilized that means of transport. However, this facility failed to achieve the desired goals since, after days of being operational, there were high congestion levels, and many flights were canceled as well. Therefore, the paper will evaluate the various control mechanisms, how the corrective actions could be helpful in the situation, and what other organizations could learn from British Airways control systems scenario. Question 1 Control Mechanisms Feed-Forward Controls The feed-forward controls are primarily undertaken even before the operations or activities starts. It embraces the proactive approach where they oversee that there are clear objectives and proper directions that are established before the operations start (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). These controls also ensure that there are adequate resources to accomplish the given operations. It is, therefore, evident that the feed-forward controls are a preventive approach which seeks to make sure that there is high performance and that the set objectives are met efficiently (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). The primary advantage of the feed-forward controls is that it usually removes all the likely problems and issues that may come about in the process of being operational which in turn avoid additional costs and enhance the quality of performance of a given system (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). The central concern in the feed-forward controls is the quality of resources which are going to be utilized. This is to mean if high quality resources have been utilized adequately, then there is a low probability of mistakes which may arise in the process of being operational. Concurrent Controls As opposed to the feed-forward controls, the concurrent controls primarily focuses on what is taking place in the process of being operational. This is to mean that these controls play a monitoring role where it seeks to monitor the activities and operations with the aim of ensuring that stuff is being carried out as they were planned (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). Mostly, the concurrent controls give an opportunity for the necessary corrective action to be implemented before the particular operations come to an end. Thus, in this case, the primary focus becomes ensuring that there is quality in the activities being undertaken to minimize the waste that may arise as a result of some unacceptable finished services or products (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). Feedback Controls These are the controls which are typically implemented after given operations or activities have been completed. The primary focus regarding the feedback controls is the quality of the outcome as opposed to the resources utilized or the activities that were being implemented in the process (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). This feedback that is obtained from the feedback controls is important as it offers the necessary information which will be utilized to improve the operations for the better in future. The feedback controls also provide adequate and useful information regarding the potential ways in which things can be enhanced in the future to enhance the outcome of the process (Schermerhorn et al., 2014). Helpful and formal documentation regarding the accomplishments can be made available which may then be utilized to allocate rewards that are based on performance. Regarding the situation in the case study, the best control mechanism would be the concurrent controls tools. This because the activity in the terminal had already started so the feed-forward controls would not have worked since it would be too late for that. On the other hand, the concurrent controls mechanisms would guide the managers of the airport to develop necessary ways to improve the quality of air transport services that they are offering. Additionally, these concurrent control mechanisms create an opportunity for implementing corrective actions if things are not going to plan. In this case, the many services were not going according to plan, therefore; the manager could seek to evaluate what was causing these breakdowns and develop corrective measures to make the situation better. Question 2 Immediate Corrective Action and Basic Corrective Action The immediate corrective measures would be of significant assistance in this case because would strive to undertake damage control. This is to mean that the action would be a quick fix for the problem through ensuring that these problems are contained and cannot become worse whatsoever (Davidson et al., 2009). Many flights had already been canceled, and many luggage was still in the queue something that was frustrating the customers, the workers, and even the ministry of transportation in general with each of these parties expressing their concerns regarding the situation. Therefore, the immediate corrective action would have been used to contain these problems while developing quick ways to solve them. The basic corrective action, on the other hand, would be utilized in the situation to enable the manager of the terminal to evaluate and establish the cause(s) of the problem which has resulted to the deviation from the set goals. During the implementation of this action, the managers typically allow a particular deviation to take place and then carry out an assessment the why and how of the deviations (Davidson et al., 2009). In this case, the deviation was already taking place which means that the manager would now begin the assessment of why these problems were happening and how they were taking place. Although this process would take a long time to be undertaken, it would be the most efficient in the long run. This is because the core of the problem would have been found and resolved and therefore the probability of it reoccurring would be very minimal. Question 3 Effectiveness of Controls The controls of British Airways could have been effective on various parameters. This could happen if they could be integrated to oversee the following aspects have been taken into account and considered; Uncertainties One of the primary mistakes that affected the controls of British Airways is that they were not prepared in the ways that they could handle uncertainties (Bartol et al., 2011). Various unforeseen problems were sprucing up, and they were not in a position to cope with these problems; for example, the failure of the baggage-handling system, and understaffing among many other problems. The controls could have been effective if they incorporated alternative ways to handle uncertainties and unforeseen events if they came up so that they could not jeopardize their operations in the way that they did. Handling Complex Situations British Airways controls could have been effective if they could be designed flexibly to accommodate the complex situations as they came about. Doing this would also be helpful to the managers where they could track the primary elements to oversee that there is synchronization of all the activities and operations at the airport (Bartol et al., 2011). Additionally, since the terminal was to handle numerous passengers from across the world, it could have been easily foreseen that the operations would be complicated. Consequently, the control systems ought to have been made with a lot of flexibility to incorporate this important element which could easily jeopardize the operations of the terminal as it did. Comprehensive Controls British Airways could have developed or adopted comprehensive controls which would ensure efficiency in queue management, flow management, and capacity forecasting. Regarding queue management, the controls could have been more effective in that they could oversee the provision of adequate information flow, dwell time, and queue time (Robbins et al., 2012). There would also have been proper flow management where the managers and customers could be in a position to understand the unexpected changes and the way the disruptions impacted the standard behavior of the employees and the passengers as well. Controls that accommodate the aspect of capacity forecasting would provide the management with some useful information which will then assist them to scale the staffing resources accurately and in line with the demand of the passengers (Robbins et al., 2012). Controls which would have encompassed all of these issues could be useful in reducing the customer frustrations and inconveniences that were witnessed at the terminal. Question 4 Lessons for other Organizations One of the lessons which other organizations could learn from the British Airways regarding controls is the need to integrate the various types of control mechanisms to be on the safe side from the start to the end of its operations. This is to mean that they need to implement the feed-forward controls to be proactive in its operations, concurrent controls to monitor their ongoing operations, and the feedback controls to ensure that there are quality results. Integrating these control mechanisms will provide the organization with the safest environment for its operations while at the same time reduce the risks involved and the costs as well (Waddell, Jones, and George, 2012). Another valuable lesson for organizations is the need to develop comprehensive and flexible controls which can be readily adjusted according to the situations at hand. The problem with the British Airways controls is that they did not offer alternatives which could be implemented in case something failed which then jeopardized its operations. Therefore, organizations need to develop controls which cover such uncertainties. For example, the Singapore Airlines have implemented the feed-forward control mechanisms where they have focused on being proactive in their operations. This is evident through the provision of various alternatives in case of uncertainties like prompt refunds, addressing the needs of all people including the disabled, quick responsiveness to matters which may arise, among others. The British Airways could learn best practice from the Singapore Airlines as well as how to develop plans which could enable them to tackle uncertainties. Another example is the Qantas Airline which has some well-structured guidelines for the employees and clients that guide their behaviors and those which they can bring with them on the airplanes. Qantas has focused on ensuring there are quality results from their operations which are an indication of implementing the feedback control mechanism. Focusing on customer satisfaction is essential; something that British Airways could focus on. Conclusion Terminal 5 of the British Airways has been experiencing problems several days after it has been operational. The feed-forward, concurrent, and feedback control mechanisms focus on the quality of resources, activities, and results respectively. The most appropriate control mechanism, in this case, would be the concurrent controls. The immediate corrective action would help contain the problem while the basic corrective action would help to find long-term solutions to the problems. The various ways in which BAA’s controls could be made effective have been discussed as well as the lessons that other organizations could learn from the case. References Bartol K. Tein, Mathews G., Sharma P and Ladd B 2011, Managemennt Functions, McGraw Hill. Davidson P., Simon A., Woods P and Griffin, R 2009, Management; Core Concepts and Applications, Sydney, Wiley. Robbins, S., Decenzo, D., Coulter, M and Woods, M 2012, Management: The Essentials, Sydney Pearson. Schermerhorn, J., Davidson, P., Poole, D., Woods, P., Simon, A and McBarron, E 2014, Management, 5th Edn., John Wiley and Sons Australia, Limited. Waddell, D., Jones, G and George, J 2012, Contemporary Management, Sydney, McGraw Hill. Read More