Virgin Atlantic Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Virgin Atlantic - Case Study Example They use a mixed Boeing and Airbus fleet, operating between Australia, Asia, the Caribbean, Middle East, Africa, North America, and the UK from bases at Heathrow and Gatwick airports. Virgin Atlantic also operates domestic flights in the UK from March 2013. Virgin Atlantic had 5.3 million passengers in 2011, which makes it the 8th largest airline in the UK. Political influences Tax policies have influenced the airline heavily over the years. Because of its globalization strategy, the different tax policies used by different countries have had an effect on costs. Increased environmental demands by environmentalists have forced Virgin Atlantic to reduce cargo weight and aircraft weight to reduce pollution. This has made Virgin Atlantic research into bio-fuels. Employment laws have also been tightened following cabin crew strikes. In addition, terrorist threats have made Virgin Atlantic take out insurance policies for their crew. Economic factors There is an increasing trend where major ity of countries are seeing decreasing GDP because high unemployment levels and high living standards. This has seen decreasing numbers of clients for Virgin Atlantic. The recent recession has also affected consumer frequency and forced Virgin Atlantic to reduce flights. High exchange rates have also affected Virgin Atlantic due to increased oil prices, resulting in increased airfare. Finally, the increase of interest rates because of slow economic growth, which has seen Virgin Airlines increase airfare because of increased payments on overdrafts and loans. Social factors Various countries practice different religions, and this has made Virgin Atlantic take their staff for training to handle different clients with differing religious beliefs. With different age groups of consumers, Virgin Airlines has installed entertainment for children going on holiday, for instance. Virgin Atlantic, because of its globalization strategy, has also had to train its staff in different languages beca use of the global nature of its clients. Finally, Virgin Atlantic has undertaken various social responsibilities like slum upgrading in Kenya and home sanctuaries for white rhinos and other endangered species. Technological factors These factors influence the lowering of entry barriers for new services and reduction of minimum efficient production. Some include R&D, for example, because of the increased air pollution, Virgin Atlantic undertaken research on the bio-fuel use. In addition, they have also introduced office equipment with internet facilities to cater for business travelers. Technology has also enabled them to communicate with clients, for example, for booking of flights. 2. At Corporate Level there are alternative strategic options for growth that an organisation can take in terms of choices about products or markets. The Ansoff Matrix can be used to identify various strategies that could be adopted by an organisation to pursue growth. Using the Ansoff Matrix, and making reference to examples, evaluate the various strategies that Virgin Atlantic could consider in order to pursue growth to develop their competitive position. Of the four market/product strategies that Ansoff identified, the strategies that Virgin Atlantic is implementing are market expansion or penetration and development of products. These specific strategies come with low risk levels and medium levels of risk for Virgin Atlantic as; indeed, it does for all other companies. The evidence for the strategy of market