Size in the market
The 426 fleet size of the company along with the numerous travel destinations it offers to the travelling public makes the company a formidable force in the airline industry. United Airlines can further uplift its competitive status in the industry by maximizing the use of its resources. For instance, the company can decide to increase its travel destinations by using its hundreds of airplanes to cater to the needs of the travelling public.
By doing so, the company can expect a larger return of investment, thereby translating to an increase in the company’s financial resources which can then be used to purchase more assets in the form of airplanes and manpower. Strength: United Airlines provides approximately 3,200 flights on a daily basis. Justification: The large volume of flights rendered daily can be used to optimize the travel destinations serviced by the company. United Airlines can pinpoint the destinations that are usually taken by its passengers based on available data.
In turn, the company can secure a steady flow of passenger loyalty by offering flight incentives to those who will travel to the frequent destinations identified. The company can also take advantage of the volume of flights by offering other flight services to its clients such as in-flight entertainment or food packages and other similar services, thereby increasing the revenue of the company based on flight volume. Strength: The Company is a founding member of Star Alliance, an alliance of airline companies.
Justification: United Airlines can provide connecting flights to its large volume of passengers with other airline companies, thereby securing the comfort of the travelers and, as a result, gaining the confidence and trust of its clients. With the capability to make connecting flights, the company can accommodate more passengers travelling to destinations which are not yet included in the available destinations in the company’s flight services.
In effect, the company generates additional revenue which the company can later use to finance flights to destinations which were once unavailable depending on the accumulated revenues and other resources. Strength: The 55,000 employees of United Airlines reside in each American state and in many different countries across the globe. Justification: The variations in employee composition only signifies that the company can render services to almost every individual in the world regardless of language and other cultural barriers.
As more clients are given service, any expansion in the services provided will more likely translate to higher revenue. The company can further refine its revenue generation by targeting which among the class of passengers across the world are purchasing more of certain types of services such as flight class, booking services and extra luggage charges, to name a few. With more than fifty thousand employees in its manpower, the company can do more in a shorter time. Weakness: Employee-size
Justification: The fact that the company employs 55,000 workers suggests that there is a difficulty in terms of managing its human resources. The company is therefore prompted by the circumstance to make sure that its 55,000 employees are working appropriately and are also well-compensated so that there will be no issues and hindrances to the operations of the company. The company should also see to it that there are no duplications of tasks among its tens of thousands of employees so that no resource will be put to waste.
Otherwise, if a hundred employees or so are working on tasks that can be executed even with twenty employees, the company might lose a certain amount of finances in terms of wages. Weakness: Number of hubs Justification: The number of hubs can be a company weakness in terms of regulating the operations and making sure that each of the five hubs are functioning properly according to plan. The cost of maintenance of the five airline hubs can run by the millions on a monthly basis, indicating that there is a need to allocate a significant amount of the revenues generated to the upkeep of its numerous facilities.
During off-peak seasons, there is the possibility that the company may experience lower revenues; the challenge, then, is to make use of the facilities in each hub only when needed. Weakness: Maintaining client patronage Justification: Since the company needs a huge amount of passengers in order to obtain revenue for its maintenance and operation costs, the company is in a vulnerable position if it is unable to either maintain the patronage of its clients or acquire more patrons. In order to maintain client patronage, the company is required to advertise and to make appealing offers to its clients.
However, these steps do not come without a price. The company is therefore required to make certain adjustments with their fares and fees for other services in order to preserve the patronage of its clients without sacrificing its task to finance its advertising ventures. Weakness: Streamlining of intercontinental and local operations Justification: With its hundreds of international flight destinations, the company is in a vulnerable position of coordinating its daily operations from within the country and abroad.
Its international operations basically include air control, securing that all passengers are accommodated with seats and seeing to it that all baggage are distributed to their respective owners, to name a few. One mistake in any one of these factors could translate to a disaster, either minor or major, although even a minor glitch in the company’s operations could endanger the lives of the passengers or could make the passengers distrusting. The most probable result is a loss in revenue.
References
“About United Airlines”. 2008. October 6 2008. <http://www. united. com/page/middlepage/0,6823,1276,00. html? jumpLink=%2Faboutunited>.
