SWOT Analysis: JetBlue Airways
DeVry University Online by Keith Escher
Organizational History
Known as one of the very few airlines which has actually managed to make a profit since the downturn in the travel business, which was a result of the
September 11th attacks, JetBlue Airways continues to pride itself by living up to its dedication of “bringing humanity back to air travel”(JetBlue Bill of Rights).
JetBlue was incorporated in Delaware in August 1998 and was founded by David
Neeleman, a former Southwest Airlines employee and practicing Mormon man with nine children in February of 1999(JetBlue Airways). The vision of the airline was to provide low cost air travel with certain amenities, including TV’s on
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The company learned early on that it was more of a cost effective approach when employees are used in a variety of job roles, as opposed to having employees who are specialized in one area only and that are not permitted to work outside of their job expertise.
In addition to their wonderful staff and customer service, JetBlue also offers their passengers “comfortable seating, with lots of leg room. They actually are able to offer their taller passengers some extra leg room with 4 more inches of space available”(JetBlue’s Bill of Rights Info). Along with the seating options,
JetBlue also operates with a fleet of newer jets, as compared to some of the other budget airlines.
Now, the weaknesses of JetBlue happen to be first of all, that they continue to expand, however, at a slow rate. They currently only offer flights to 61 cities in the US and to a few other countries, with their home base airport, JFK, having the highest congestion in the country. Plans for global expansion are also on the drawing board, however, this is also happening at a slow pace. In order for the airline to remain competitive, they must expand their horizons and soon.
Another issue which came up recently and happened to be a weakness, is that
JetBlue received some negative press. “What had happened was that in May of
2010, one of their pilots threatened to harm himself a few hours before takeoff.
Also, in August of 2010, one of
The skill emphasis needed in a service industry such as airlines is mostly interpersonal. Recognizing the need for interpersonal skills, JetBlue designed the employee selection process to make sure the hired crew members fit into the culture and understood the values and mission. Decision making is another important characteristic of the service industry and the crew members were also identified and selected on their decision making capabilities as the customer related decisions are made at the lowest level of the organization. JetBlue designed the orientation process to highlight the different core values to the employees and made them identify with the mission. Expected behavior of the employees and their contribution to the success of the
Governmental regulations and legalities are another key threat for JetBlue. Airline regulations can increase expenses and potentially create inefficiency in operations in order to meet regulation requirements. Additionally, restrictions related to international trade, tax policy, and competition can thwart expansion efforts.
A major operational cost saving involved entering the major air industry with a new fleet of Airbus aircraft. Although European made, Airbus was chosen due to their fuel efficiency, easier maintenance, and five-year warranty (Gajilan, 2003). Neeleman realized that quick turnaround time was a crucial factor in maximizing profits by simply keeping the new planes in the air longer than the competition. Because JetBlue worked largely out of secondary airports (Midway vs. O’Hare), its flights avoided more
JetBlue is an American airline company whose headquarter is located in the New York City. They are a low-cost airline who is rapidly growing in the Unites States. According to Wikipedia, “David Neeleman founded the company in February 1999, under the name "NewAir.” Many of their approach come from Southwest Airlines include low prices airfares. However, they differ in the amenities offered to the customers.
JetBlue Airways has been affected by key external factors. The political factor that has affected JetBlue is the resentment towards union formation. Currently, JetBlue is a non-union company. This helps it keep its fixed costs low. Further, there are positive
JetBlue has always identified itself as a customer service company first, focused on providing customers a unique experience on every flight and with every interaction with JetBlue. (Annual report, 2005)
JetBlue Airlines, a low-fare commercial airline, has planned to go public towards the end of 2001. During the process the firm had restructured their initial price from $22- 24 per share to $26 – 28 per share.
JetBlue has been one of the most successful airlines since it first entered the industry in December of 1999. Founder, David Neeleman, set out to succeed by offering low-cost air travel in hopes of perpetuating his services to as many people as he could across the US. He was very adamant about having a very customer oriented business that catered to the needs of all. In doing so he wanted to emphatically promote his obligation to safety, caring, integrity, passion, while allowing the customers to have fun while traveling. There motto helps portray Neeleman’s belief stating “You Above All”. His primary goals had been to follow Southwest’s objectives of offering low rates to customers, focusing on customer’s needs and comforts while distinguishing itself with their amenities. Neeleman’s other goal was to establish his low-cost leadership strategy by concentrating his airline in a large popular metropolitan area that already is already correlated with high airfare (Peterson, 2004). He then began operating based out of the New York metropolitan area at John F. Kennedy International airport with his secondary locations in Washington D.C., Boston and Los Angeles.
JetBlue Airways Corporation was formed in August 1998 as a low-fare, low-cost but high service passenger airline serving select United States market. JetBlue's operations strategy was designed to achieve a low cost, whilst offering customers a pleasing and differentiated flying experience. JetBlue has had a successful business model and strong financial results during that period, and performed well in comparison to other airline companies in the US during the period between 2000 and 2003. It had been the only other airline apart from Southwest airlines, to have been profitable during the aftermath of the September 11, 2001
Jet-blue Airways is American low cost airline head quartered near New-York city. It’s foundedin August 1998 by David Neeleman with Joel Peterson as a chairman and David Barger as apresident and CEO. By late 2006,like some other airlines, JetBlue faced some softening demand and high cost due to the increase in fuel prices. Barger realizes that JetBlue needs to take further steps to slow its rate of growth. Barger was not sure about the reductions across E190 and A320. The E190 showedpromising growth opportunities and challenges for JetBlue. At the same time, the A320 wasconsidered as proven plane that had succeededover past 6 years. Most of the airline industries were using hub-and-spoke system and point-to-point services. Due to this service, South West Airlines showed consistent profits. After September 11th, the airline industry experienced trouble due to attack. Looking at the history of Jet-blue, it started with just 10airplanes in 2000 and by 2011 the company planned to have 290 planes in service. To support customers, Jet Blueprovided
Jet Blue set up its main head quarters in New York's JFK which is one of the biggest airports in the world. This was a strategic plan due to the lack of domestic flights going in and out of JFK, that minimized there competition which allowed them to continue on a path which led them to there success. Through targeting specific markets and concentrating their efforts on those markets they gained a loyal
New technology: Internet (60% of seats were booked on-line), paperless operation, computerized, Reservation operation (not using call center)
JetBlue had made significant progress in establishing a strong brand by seeking to be identified as a safe, reliable, low-fare airline that was highly focused on customer service and by providing an enjoyable flying
JetBlue is a low cost US airline. The firm was founded by former Southwest Airlines employee, David Neeleman, and incorporated in 1998 in Delaware. The firm was not originally known as JetBlue, the initial name was NewAir. The plans for the new airline were announced by Neeleman in February 1999, and in April an order worth $4 billion was given to Airbus for up to 75 new A320 aircraft, at the same time leases were arranged for 8 aircraft. The firm gained exemptions for 75 take off and landing slots at JFK Airport in September, takes delivery of the first aircraft in December, and officially starts flights on 11 February 2000 (JetBlue, 2012). The first was being between JFK
JetBlue is related to three types of the management concepts in my personal understand, they are: product and marketing. First of all, in product concepts the company focuses on offer the best to fulfill their customer’s expectation “holds that consumers will favor products that offer the most in quality,