Virgin Air Human Resource Management

Virgin Air Human Resource Management
Virgin Air Human Resource Management

How effective is Virgin Air Human Resource Management in ensuring good Customer Service?

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the topic is :

I chose Virgin Atlantic because it has a problem that is connected to Human Resource Management form the poor performance in customer service. There are over than 58 persons complained about the customer service of the employees (Dudovskiy, J. ,2012).. Firstly, it effect about their reputation among loyal customer. The first cause was about the few years ago on the quality of the employee was unprofessional with customers also this is because the following cases:
1- According to customer Anne on September 8, 2013, she complains about Virgin employees are unhelpful, ignoring customer, rude and arrogant.
2- In addition, there is anther customer complains about the bad services named Bianca’s which he faced a luggage delayed; with no reply about his complaining form the staff.
There are many causes leads to decrease on the customer services on Virgin. There are internal and external changes have direct and indirect relations in these changing for this purpose, the researcher has selected Virgin Atlantic Airline to develop of Virgin’s human resource strategies to promote quality and reliable customer service delivery. The proposed research work is focusing on understanding how airline industry’s human resource practices influence the quality of services provided to the customers.
My job on the report as consultant for Virgin Air’s which might help them to decrease some problems in their environment.

answer the below Questions and each point include in text reference

Executive Summary
1. Introduction:
1.1 Background:
1.2 What is the virgin issue?
1.3 The propose of the report

2. To what extent does Virgin’s HR Management support good customer service?
2.1 How does virgin’s HRM Support good customer service?
2.2 Academic theory might change HRM?
2.2.1 Maslow can be useful & analysis
2.2.2 Taylor theory of management analysis
2.3 How successful these theory on Virgin’s HRM?

3. HR Strategy
3.1 HRM & Virgin leadership forecast some improvements on the HR Management.
3.1.1 Leadership of truism
3.1.2 Leadership of customer services
3.1.2 leadership Recommendations
3.2 HRM & Motivation can change customer services track?
3.2.1 Motivation theories analysis
3.2.2 Motivation recommendations

4. Conclusion

SAMPLE ANSWER

Virgin Air Human Resource Management

How effective is Virgin Air Human Resource Management in ensuring good Customer Service?

  1. Introduction

Virgin Air is an airline that has a global reputation for being a leader in customer service and most of its loyal customers can attest to this, but recently there have been increasing incidents of complaints by customers who have been treated badly by customer service representatives. These incidents have got the attention of the management who are concerned by the same given that this is a new trend that has not been witnessed in the past and may indicate a deeper human resource management problem that should be resolved before the brand loses its good reputation. The report seeks to unearth the underlying HRM problems if they do exist and propose solutions to the problems.
1.1 Background

Virgin Air is part of the Virgin Group of companies started by Sir Richard Branson under the Virgin brand, which is a popular global brand that is associated with values such as being innovative, prioritizing fun in all they do and above all putting their employees and clients first in everything they do (Virgin Atlantic., 2014). Therefore, the airline and the whole group of companies have thrived on their excellent customer service reputation in the extremely competitive airline industry and the events being reported of poor customer service must be investigated. Virgin Air is aware that any damage to its reputation as an airline that addresses and anticipates all the needs of its customers and attends to them promptly would cause irreparable damage to the airline and the brand in general, which is not acceptable.
1.2 What is the virgin issue?

The Virgin issue is that the whole group of Virgin companies is built on its endearing brand image and any issues that threaten the brand image do not just threaten Virgin Air, but rather such issues threaten the survival of the brand and all its affiliated companies. Therefore, this is not merely a human resource issues or a customer service issue, but it is a crucial issue about the future of the whole Virgin brand and should be treated with a lot of significance. It is also important to mention that the founder of the Virgin brand, Sir Richard Branson cannot allow such incidents to occur, not forgetting the Group CEO and the CEO of Virgin Air.
1.3 The purpose of the report

The main purpose of this report is to investigate the reported complaints about customer service so as to ascertain their validity, after which the report shall try to analyze whether these were isolated incidents or there is an emerging trend that needs to be stopped. If it is clear to the consultants that there is a deeper issue, which should be addressed, then the report shall provide appropriate recommendation on what steps the company should take to correct the problems. The report shall mainly focus on whether the problems identified relate to human resource management and advice the executive board and the HR director accordingly.

  1. To what Extent does Virgin’s HR Management Support good Customer Service?

Virgin’s HR is built on the vision that happy employees will result in happy customers, which is what Richard Branson has always championed in all his companies and the group ensures that all their employees understand their customer service culture thoroughly. The HR culture at Virgin is visible through all its employees who go through a thorough recruitment process where the interviewers seek to hire only those employees who demonstrate that they have the personality traits that would fit in with Virgin’s culture. The recruitment process is where the company weeds out all those people who do not have the same values championed by the company and its founder Sir Richard Branson.
2.1 How does virgin’s HRM Support good customer service?

Another critical way in which Virgin’s HR supports good customer service is by engaging in constant conversation with its employees, especially customer-facing people who deliver the airline’s main product, which is excellent customer service. The HR department is always in direct constant contact with its call center where customers can report any complaints of inadequate or poor service as well as with its cabin crews and airports. Another important function of the HR department at Virgin Air is that it reports directly to the CEO and is directly involved in setting strategies at the company, which ensures that only the best HR practices in line with the company’s culture are implemented.
2.2 Academic theory might change HRM?

I do not believe that academic theories might change HRM at Virgin given that just as Sir Richard says, he has never read a HR book and that all the HR practices that he champions at Virgin are based on values that he believes define his company. I strongly think that no academic theories can change HRM at Virgin, but they can definitely help the company improve some of its HR practices given the depth of the HR function within Virgin. Academic theories can be vital in streamlining Virgin’s values and vision to adapt to the global aviation industry and the new challenges brought on by globalization. The increasing competition within the airline industry and the tough economic times can be handled through correct application of some academic theories.
2.2.1 Maslow can be useful & analysis

Maslow’s theory of human motivation based on his hierarchy of human needs can help Virgin motivate its staff in the right way to offer the best customer service in the industry by addressing all their needs as identified in the hierarchy (CoW, 2014; Schneider, 2004). The different people employed at Virgin have different needs that should all be addressed by the leaders in order for them to deliver excellent customer service. People with physiological and safety needs should be paid enough, given incentives and provided with a safe working environment (Methot, 2010; Tzafrir, & Gur, 2007). Employees who have belonging and self-esteem needs should be recognized, given responsibilities and should be involved in the decision-making process, especially for decision directly related to their work. Employees with self-actualization needs should be given interesting and challenging work, and should be offered training opportunities.

2.2.2 Taylor theory of management analysis

Taylor’s theory of scientific management was based on the principle that both workers and managers needed to relate well, which was unheard of at a time where managers rarely interacted with the workers under them (Mind Tools, 2014; Ueno,. 2012). Some of the core principles of his theory included matching the skills, capabilities, and motivations of workers to their jobs, using scientific methods to develop the most efficient ways of accomplishing tasks, monitoring the performance of workers on their jobs and instructing them on where they went wrong, and allocating work between workers and managers (Di Mascio, 2010, p.65). However, Taylor’s theory does not advocate for individual responsibility (Towler, Lezotte, & Burke, 2011, p.401).
2.3 How successful these theory on Virgin’s HRM?

Taylor’s theory is applicable to Virgin Air in the sense that it advocates for the matching of employees skills and abilities to their jobs, which is an important aspect of Virgin’s HRM strategy and has been crucial to the success of the airline. Maslow’s theory is relevant to Virgin as it advocates for the addressing of all the needs of employees, which is also part of Virgin’s HR policy as they always engage with their employees where they listen to the views of the employees and act on their suggestions.

  1. HR Strategy

Virgin’s HR strategy focuses on finding the right employees with the relevant skills and above all the right spirit and personality that is in harmony with Virgin’s values of excellent customer service and innovation (Lebard, Rendleman, & Dolan, 2014). During recruitment, the right candidates are identified and then they undergo extensive training to learn Virgin’s culture and their role in perpetuating the culture. Once the recruits have been trained they join Virgin’s team, but the training never stops.
3.1 HRM & Virgin leadership forecast some improvements on the HR Management.

Virgin’s executive team acknowledges that more needs to be done so as to bring the standards of their customer services to match the brand image that promises excellent customer service to all customers (HC Online, 2003). Virgin’s leadership promises to improve on its overall leadership strategy in terms of leadership truism and more so in the leadership of the customer services department to prevent any further incidents of poor customer service.
3.1.1 Leadership of truism

Virgin’s leadership wants to adopt a leadership based on truisms such as the fact that the culture of the company is a direct reflection of the value of its leaders, and that the culture of an organization is reflected in the stories told by employees (Petrilli, 2011). These truisms are critical in reshaping the culture at Virgin Air to reflect the overall culture of the Virgin Group.
3.1.2 Leadership of customer services

The leadership of customer services will be given a chance to correct the wrong behaviors of employees within the department within a period of two weeks. The department leader should have identified and removed the employees who caused so much damage to the airline’s image given that their actions not only jeopardize the success of the airline, but that of the entire Virgin Group (Brady, 2012). If the customer service leaders do not take the appropriate measures recommended above, they will be removed and replaced with other more effective managers from within the organization.
3.1.2 Leadership Recommendations

It is my recommendation that Virgin Air’s board examines the conduct of all its top leaders it seems likely that they are not congruent with the values and culture of the Virgin Group. Any leaders who are found to have conducted themselves in a manner opposite to the culture of the group should be immediately removed from their positions and replaced with leaders who have proven that they understand and abide by the values of the Virgin Group (Crush, 2012).

3.2 HRM & Motivation can change customer services track?

I do believe that proper motivation and HRM is the key to implementing successful change within the customer services department at Virgin Air.
3.2.1 Motivation theories analysis

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is quite appropriate for Virgin Air as all people work to satisfy their needs and these needs are clearly stipulated by Maslow’s theory (CoW, 2014; Bowen, 1986). Frederick Herzberg’s theory is also appropriate as he clarifies that people will only do something in order to gain a benefit or to avoid incurring a loss. These two theories complement themselves in their application to Virgin Air and may lead to significant changes at Virgin Air.

3.2.2 Motivation recommendations

I recommend that Virgin Air should motivate its employees by satisfying all their needs according to Maslow’s theory and to ensure that their work with the airline results in the employees benefitting according to Herzberg’s theory. The airline should also adopt the general Virgin Group motivation strategies in their motivation programs.

  1. Conclusion

In conclusion, I have found that the incidents of poor customer service at Virgin Air were not isolated and that the leadership was culpable in the emerging negative trends as reports by customers had indicated. Therefore, I have recommended that the leaders in charge of customer service be censured and given a chance to correct his mistakes or be removed from his position. I have also made recommendations on how the company can implement change throughout its ranks moving forward from this point. The airline should implement my recommendation for there to be lasting change in the organization and to save the brand image from irreparable damage by customer service agents.

References

Bowen, D. E. 1986, Managing Customers as Human Resources in Service Organizations. Human Resource Management. 25(3), 371-383.

Brady, J., 2012. HRD interview with Jill Brady-HR Director-Virgin Atlantic Airways. [Online] Available at: http://www.thehrdirector.com/hr-interviews/hrd-interview-with-jill-brady-director-of-hr-virgin-atlantic-airways/>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Call of the Wild., 2014. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs-how to motivate your staff. [Online] Available at: <http://www.callofthewild.co.uk/library/theory/maslows-hierarchy-of-needs-how-to-motivate-your-staff/>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Crush, P., 2012. Exclusive: Sir Richard Branson talks to HR magazine about leadership. [Online] Available at: <http://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/hro/features/1018119/exclusive-sir-richard-branson-talks-hr-magazine-leadership>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Di Mascio, R. 2010, ‘The Service Models of Frontline Employees. Journal of Marketing 74(4), 63-80.

HC Online., 2003. Breaking in a new culture: The Virgin Blue Story. [Online] Available at: <http://www.hcamag.com/profiles/breaking-in-a-new-culture-the-virgin-blue-story-110539.aspx>.  [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Lebard, P., Rendleman, K. and Dolan, K., 2014. Viewpoint: Delivering the brand promise through employees. [Online] Available at: <http://www.mmc.com/knowledgecenter/viewpoint/archive/lebard2006.php>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Methot, P. L., 2010. Motivation theories. [Online] Available at: <http://methotology.com/Motivation_Theories.html>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Mind Tools., 2014. Frederick Taylor and scientific management. [Online] Available at: <http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_Taylor.htm>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Petrilli, L., 2011. 5 truisms about leadership and corporate culture that leaders cannot ignore. [Online] Available at: <http://www.lisapetrilli.com/2011/03/07/five-truisms-about-leadership-corporate-culture/>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

Schneider, B. 2004, Welcome to the world of services management. Academy of Management Executive. 18(2), 144-150.

Towler, A., Lezotte, D. V., & Burke, M. J. 2011, ‘The service climate-firm performance chain: The role of customer retention. Human Resource Management, Vol. 50(3), 391-406.

Tzafrir, S. S. & Gur, A. B. A. 2007, HRM Practices and Perceived Service Quality: The Role of Trust as a Mediator. Research & Practice in Human Resource Management. 15(2), 1-16.

Ueno, A. 2012, Which HRM practices contribute to service culture? Total Quality Management & Business Excellence. 23(11/12), 1227-1239.

Virgin Altantic., 2014. Virgin Atlantic Airways Limited SWOT Analysis.Virgin Atlantic Airways SWOT Analysis. p1-8.

Virgin Atlantic., 2014. Who, what, where, when, why? [Online] Available at: <http://www.virgin-atlantic.com/en/gb/allaboutus/ourstory/forstudents.jsp>. [Accessed 25 July 2014].

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