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... Jet Airlines. The company attempts to position itself as the most reliable company in the airline industry on the North American continent. The WestJet Airlines Ltd on time performance is currently the best in North America that runs at 86 % on a month-to-date basis. West Jet runs regularly at 86 % on time performance, whereas Delta, which is the best airline in the United States Of America, ran at 79 % in the second quarter of 2002. The WestJet Airlines Ltd dispatch reliability runs at 99. 1 %, which is extremely good compared to the US number of only 97 %.
The company prides itself that if the customer is delayed by only two hours, he or she will receive a full credit for the ticket they had purchased. WestJet Airlines Ltd is to my mind a very customer conscious company that creates a lot of customer loyalty that once again contributes to its constant-growing profitability. As an example according to the Airline Today magazine May, 2002, Air Canada received one complaint for roughly every 25, 000 passengers, Canada 3000 received one complaint for every 30, 000 passengers, and WestJet Airlines received only one complaint per 1 million passengers, which is quite incredible. Speaking about the company threats one should not forget about the oil price fluctuations that immediately are reflected on the companys profitability, yet WestJet Airlines Ltd seems to have thought over is as well. WestJet Airlines Ltd in order to efficiently operate the airline in the current fuel rate environment had hedged about 50 % of its fuel in a fixed price, fixed volume contracts in Canadian dollars at an equivalent price of $ 18. 51 /barrel, which expires in June 2003. That contract represents 50 % of the corporate fuel needs for the year 2002 and it locks in the prices, thus creating some stability with the possibility of the fuel price fluctuations.
Impact of success-on employees / on local community The company has remained environmentally-friendly since the day of its inception of 1996. In the year 2000, the company has made another important decision to acquire Boeing newly designed 737 - 700 planes that have a longer utilization life, are almost 25 % more fuel efficient than the planes the WestJet had previously had and causes less environmental pollution. Although I would personally argue the fact that the company had acquired them only for the environmental safety reasons (rather than cost reduction), it should be still given credit for the attempt to keep the environment safe. The WestJet Airlines attempts to maintain its culture and structure as entrepreneurial as it was in the very beginning when four Canadians decided to create their own airline company that turned out to be the second most profitable airline company in Canada (after South Western Airlines) The organization has a lean structure with only 4 levels of management, that encourages its employees to feel themselves important members of the team who can always provide the best solutions to the company problems. Communication is highly valued and encouraged from all levels of the organization, in keeping with the WestJet Airlines Ltd. commitment to being sincere and open with the company workers and the community it operates in.
People work with their teams to make decisions and solve problems and are encouraged to be innovative in finding ways to solve problems because of their remuneration being directly linked to their productivity. As for some material contribution to the community, WestJet Airlines has done that as well. In the year 2002 it has established a program CARE (stands for Create a Remarkable Experience) that was intended to improve the corporate image in the Canadian community as well as to benefit those people who need support. Among the well-known activities was the West Jets donation of USD 25, 000 to the Kids Cancer Foundation and the volunteering work of the WestJet employees at the Habitat for Humanity building Houses for those in need in Canada and with the Salvation Army raising money and distributing baskets to the lower strata of Canadian society. Plans for the future The company prides itself for the strength that comes from the corporate innovative and energetic culture that was established by its four founding fathers in 1996 and for the commitment that the people of WestJet Airlines Ltd have to their company. Due to the fact that the company hires only one person out of one hundred, the company would not be interested in the human capital that would arrive should any acquisition occur.
It should not be surprising that the WestJet Airlines Ltd strategy is not to acquire any new companies, yet go into the future by the means of organic growth, that seems to be the most likely strategy for the company. The technology at the WestJet Airlines Ltd is not underestimated and therefore, Internet is very significant contributor to the corporate cost savings initiatives. The company adopts various technology developed primarily in the USA that proves to lower costs and to improve the corporate service. As one of the 4 entrepreneurs said in his interview to Reuters We spend capital very readily on the technological improvements, but the most significant technology for us would have to be the Internet (from the Interview of Cleve J. Beddoe to Reuters, May 10 th, 2001, Reuters paid archive). The company besides recent expansion to the new facilities throughout Canada has started to pay more attention to the role of technology to improve the current skills of its personnel.
WestJet Airlines Ltd is known to have acquired several flight simulators of Boeing 737 from Japanese and domestic firms that ones again should reflect in the increased safety of their flights and the overall efficiency of the whole company (Smith, 2001). The local training facilities developed by WestJet Airlines Ltd removes the need for the pilots to travel to large cities for numerous trainings thus saving a lot of time and precious resources. Speaking about the company financials I would like to note that WestJet Airlines Ltd has USD 180 million in equity and no debt on its balance sheet. The company owns 90 % of its air-fleet and has a USD 1. 5 billion credit line from the major US banks that can be used at any time should the company decide to further expand or engage in any merger activities. The company stock, being the ultimate indicator of the financial health of the company according to the efficient market theorists has grown from $ 10 in 1999 till $ 22 in 2002, also making the public cash markets available to the company at the time of need. The company maintains friendly relations with its investors on a friendly basis.
Conclusion In conclusion, I would like to say that WestJet Airlines Ltd is a successful entrepreneurial company that uses its human and material resources to benefit not only the company but also the community and the Canadian environment. Built with the energetic competitive spirit and taking into consideration the needs of those who cannot afford expensive airline tickets, the company seems to have found its perfect niche on the Canadian market with its stock being the best indicator of it success. I also would like to add that constant cost cutting, technological innovations, and exclamation about the corporate numerous donations to community together with superior service and reliable and motivated personnel make WestJet Airlines Ltd a truly new and efficient company of the XXI century that is bound to survival and success. Bibliography: Verburg, Peter. Prepare for takeoff - WestJet Airlines is on the way up.
Canadian business 73. 24 (2000): 94. WestJet business plan appears unaffected by CEO's dismissal. Aviation week & space technology 153. 15 (2000): 58. Verburg, Peter.
Reach for the Bottom Canadian business 73. 4 (2000): 42. Flint, Perry Airlines: WestJet Defies the Odds Air transport world 36. 6: 82. Verburg, Peter The Little Airline that Could. Canadian business 70. 4 (1997): 34. Verburg, Peter. Dogfight: Air Canada has WestJet Airlines in its sights.
But can it win the discount carrier war? Canadian Business 74. 17 (2001): 23. Meter, Marc S. The Impact of Discount Airlines on Domestic Fares in Canada. Transportation Journal 39. 4 (2000): 35. Brooke, James.
An upstart rattles Air Canada. International Herald Tribune (2000): 19. Knife, David. Sole survivor. Airline Business 13. 11 (1997): 38.
Schuster, Eli. Air war moves west. Report Newsmagazine (National Edition) 29. 1 (2002): 30. Ramage, Norma. Clive's flight plan. Marketing 106. 36 (2001): 14.
Smith, Sarah. Flying cluttered skies. Marketing 106. 14 (2001): 10. Ramage, Norma.
WestJet fuels up advertising effort. Marketing 106. 10 (2001): 3. Jetelina, Margaret. Jetsetter. CGA Magazine 34. 5 (2000): 38. Katz, Helena. 'Peanuts and pretzels' fly east.
Marketing 105. 9 (2000): 22 - 3 Byfield, Mike. Cheap fares for the East. Report Newsmagazine (Alberta Edition) 26. 47: (2000) 26. Bergman, Brian. WestJet charts a new direction. Maclean's 113. 4 (2000): 46.
Johnson, Tracy. High jinks and low fares. Report on Business Magazine 16. 6 (1999): 70. Ramage, Norma.
WestJet Flies with a new strategy. Marketing (1999): 4. Verburg, Peter. Air contrarian. Canadian Business 72. 13 (1999): 24. web (general company news) web (paid subscription archive) web (paid subscription archive) Appendix A Modern day coverage of the West Jet Airlines Ltd. (taken from the WestJet Airlines website on Nov, 13 th, 2002)
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Research essay sample on Company Research Westjet Airlines Part 2
