Simulated Making Strategy for Glasgow airport

1. 1

2. 2
Table of Contents
1 Strategy as issue management ........................................................................................... 3
2 Reflective commentary ........................................................................................................ 4
3 SSI from issues management ............................................................................................. 5
4 Strategy as purpose ............................................................................................................. 6
4.1 Laddering up map ....................................................................................................... 6
4.2 Goal system map ........................................................................................................ 7
5 Reflective commentary ........................................................................................................ 8
6 SSI from purpose ................................................................................................................. 9
7 Strategy as competitive advantage ................................................................................... 10
7.1 Map of competencies ................................................................................................ 10
7.2 Basis for DC pattern .................................................................................................. 11
8 Reflective commentary ...................................................................................................... 12
9 SSI from competitive advantage ....................................................................................... 13
10 Aggregate SSI.................................................................................................................... 14
11 Commentary ...................................................................................................................... 15
12 Appendix ............................................................................................................................ 16
12.1 Table of abbreviations ............................................................................................... 16

3. 3
1 Strategy as issue management

4. 4
2 Reflective commentary
The initial task to be tackled was role identification. The team was aware that there was no
specific experience in the industry chosen (aero transportation); however the team has a rich
diversity of backgrounds. The team decided to pragmatically assign roles similar to the
individual experience of each member of the team as defined in MOSS, “agreeing where to
practically focus energy, cash, effort and emotion”1.
The following interaction was associated with raising key issues in which the team set as
purpose to promote two main things, participation and procedural justice. One example was
within the round-robin, in which the team set the goal to accept every point of view from the
members following the recommendations of MOSS. Interestingly, while it is a powerful value
generator, “it is not easy for groups to accept different perspectives”2.
It was further recognised that some issues were not worded specifically enough. This was
consequential of misunderstandings in the round-robin methodology, since by allowing any
issue there were some recommendations in MOSS not followed like “less than six words
might make the issue to cryptic to others”3.This led to confusion later in process due to the
ambiguity of the concepts.
The process resulted in 56 issues, double than the 25 required, and this was in line with the
description in MOSS, “typically 70-90 issues will surface in 30-45 minutes”4.
While defining the interrelations between the issues the group felt that most of the issues
were operational rather than strategic. However while consulting MOSS it was affirmed that
“Operations and strategy must be seen as integral to each other”5.
By displaying the issues on DE helped both clarify and rephrase some of the issues since
the team was benefited of a map projection that permitted the simultaneous analysis of all
members. This projection also facilitated the identification of central issues through
negotiations in ascertaining the priorities as indicated in MOSS "The map, publicly displayed,
acts as a system to facilitate negotiation" 6
Some members were more hands on with the tool and this resulted in them being the
facilitators during the whole process, so the team decided to start the next stage of the
process with those as the ones facilitating the negotiations.
In retrospect the group concluded that the process can be successful only with trade-offs.
The two main one’s are between ‘time and procedural justice’ and ‘time and quality of
identified priority’. Understanding causality leads to different approaches or perspectives all
of which are valid because all discussions are founded in the unique way individuals
perceive the future. Therefore the quality of negotiations and a successful facilitation
process were crucial to get team agreement.
1
Chapter 3, Page 41
2
Chapter 3, Page 43
3
Chapter 4, Page 72
4
Chapter 3, Page 47
5
Chapter 5, Page 132
6
Introduction, Page 3

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3 SSI from issues management
The key objective of Glasgow Airport for the mid-term (five year) period is to increase the
revenue per passenger, increasing the locations which the airport is connected to,
which will, in turn, increase airlines utilising the airport.
One method of increasing revenue per passenger is to increase the amount of time
spent by the passengers in the airside, which can be achieved by increasing the
amount of commercial floor space. However due to the increased time spent in the
terminal, customer satisfaction may be negatively impacted. Finally reinstating the
amount of passenger throughput to 2009 levels will ensure delivery of the objective of
increasing revenue per passenger.
To reinforce the revenue generation it is also important to increase the amount of
destinations which the airport has connections to. This increase in destinations should
also increase the amount of airlines using the airport, which will consequently require
increasing the landing slots in the airport.
Finally and yet surprisingly, a requirement to improve the communications between
departments should be reviewed as there appears to be a need for connection between
them to deliver improved customer services.

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4 Strategy as purpose
4.1 Laddering up map

7. 7
4.2 Goal system map

8. 8
5 Reflective commentary
In the process of agreeing goals, the negotiation skills of the participants play a major role.
The fact that a significant agreement is not necessary satisfying all members leaves always
a scar that will often come back in following debates. “If a group raises issues and they are
dismissed then members can fell more disillusioned than if the issues had not been raised at
all”7.While establishing purpose, the team was easily able to distinguish those prime generic
goals from the business goals. However, the team got stuck in finding group criteria to
decide whether the endpoints were goals or not. In this section the facilitator role was mainly
to bring the conducive environment for practical discussions, by which the team could
benefit from the rich diversity of opinion of the team members while following the
recommended timings for the task.“Facilitation is not a compromise but rather a creative
combination of multiple perspectives”8.
The main breakthrough in this workshop was a required ten minutes break. This recess was
crucial since the team reached to a point of "paralysis by analysis". Heated discussions
ensued due to differences of opinion in agreeing priorities/goals and difference in degrees of
pragmatism in team members.. The break released tension among the participants and
promoted a fresh perspective of those already defined goals recusing the teams’ energy, as
suggested in MOSS:“Taking time out mid-forum can also allow a mental and physical break
and supply the facilitator/manager-client with an opportunity for catching breath and
preparing for the next part of the forum”9.
That break also brought a holistic perspective of the goals map since, in the moment the
team entered in the room back again, the complete map was just in front of the team,
sometimes giving one step back is enough find a solution. This global perspective was
enhanced by the addition of the some key goals that the team missed in the catharsis of the
round-robin session. Once decompressed it was easier to link the most important objectives
from the business goals to the most generic ones, as indicated in MOSS: "It can be helpful
to put time aside periodically to 'check the pulse' of the group."10
7
Chapter 3, Page 45
8
Chapter 11, Page 279
9
Chapter 3, Page 58
10
Chapter 11, Page 283

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6 SSI from purpose
Increasing the number of airlines using the airport is a key goal for the Glasgow Airport.
By attaining this goal the airport will increase both passenger and revenues per airline. It
will also benefit the airport to minimise unit costs through economies of scale.
Investments into technology to reduce noise and air pollution are required to gain and
support economic growth in surrounding communities. This investment and community
buy-in will start to drive Glasgow Airport towards a mutually reinforcing engine which will
enhance its international reputation through positive publicity. Becoming Scotland’s
leading airport, as well the promotion of Scottish tourism will further generate increased
interest, thus driving the goals of increased airlines and passenger numbers to 2009
levels.
Increasing the level of traveller satisfaction will help to enhance the image of the
airport, whilst maximising repeat business thus increasing passenger numbers year on
year.
These aforementioned factors will generate greater revenues per passenger and airline.
Furthermore, these increasing numbers will assist in achieving decreasing operating cost
due to greater economies of scale. All these factors will contribute to the airport’s ultimate
goal of increasing total profits.

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7 Strategy as competitive advantage
7.1 Map of competencies

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7.2 Basis for DC pattern

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8 Reflective commentary
Team members found it initially difficult to distinguish between assets, competencies and
competencies outcomes. As suggested in MOSS, the struggle was not only in our case but
in general; “Lack of clarity between (…)the outcomes from competencies and the
competencies themselves”11. The team decided to differentiate assets from the
competences as those goods the organisation have rather than have an “ability to.”
Furthermore, frustration arose while attempting to identify the distinctive competencies for
Glasgow Airport, as stated in the MOSS, “Members of a management team find it difficult to
identify distinctive competences"12. In order to overcome this “paralysis by analysis”, the
group members redefined the benchmark scope of the simulation; it was concluded that
Glasgow Airport was compared against the other regional European airports.
After some discussion we decide that Glasgow Airport does not really have significant
competitive distinctiveness compared with other regional airports. However, one key
differentiator identified was the; “ability to host the new generation aircrafts” this is because it
is a distinctiveness that can be developed and controlled by the airport as MOSS indicates,
“DC are properties of an organisation which can be managed13”.
The whole competency surfacing process was exhausting for some participants. In addition,
a lack of motivation and disengagement of team members was identified. It was clear that
“encouraging members of a team to listen both caringly and analytically to each other is
inevitably consuming of both time and energy”14.The group decided to have a brief feedback
meeting to identify the reasons and define corrective actions.
One particular cause was that the team has not set the rule to produce tangible deliverables
at least twice per day. The implemented solution was to compile the first draft document with
all the previous steps. Clearly, there were still some issues not fully evaluated, but as
highlighted in MOSS; “there is never enough time to evaluate each issue”15.This decision,
allowed members to see the end results of the previous work and estimate the remaining
work to do. Moreover, it was decided to organise the workshops in a manner that results
were commonly agreed before any coffee break, As an example, MOSS states that "It is
important that the statement of strategic intent is produced either at the end of the forum or
soon after (preferably the same day)."16
11
Chapter 7, Page 179
12
Chapter 7, Page 180
13
Chapter 7, Page 179
14
Eden, Jones, Sims and Smithin (1981:43)
15
Chapter 3, Page 58
16
Chapter 8, Page 226

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9 SSI from competitive advantage
The key competency of Glasgow Airport is the ability to build Scotland’s primary
international hub. This competency is driven by utilisation of the landing strip which is
able to take large aircraft. Furthermore, being part of the wider BAA family will assist in
exploiting regulation and processes thus gaining an ability to build a robust regional
route hub.
Building relationships with local business, communities and the provision of efficient
cargo operations will lead to enhanced customer service and powerful customer
relationships being built.
These factors will mutually reinforce and strengthen one another to culminate in an efficient
customer service to airlines using the airport as well as ensuring higher customer
satisfaction.
These aforementioned factors will contribute to the airport’s critical competency of building
Scotland’s best international hub.
An additional strategy to maintain competitive advantage is to develop the airports rail link
to Glasgow and other major cities.

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10 Aggregate SSI
In its quest to be the leading airport of Scotland and achieve higher total profits,
Glasgow Airport aims to increase the level of traveller satisfaction and to increase the
number of airlines using the airport. To achieve these goals, Glasgow Airport will put all
efforts into enhancing its international reputation and attracting the major airlines of
the world. Furthermore, through its already strong commitment to the environment and
support of local communities, it will be able to promote its growing stature as a socially
responsible airport. These efforts will mutually reinforce one other and will help to achieve
the required increase in passenger numbers thus leading to greater profits.
Powerful customer relationships are achieved by a reinforcing set of competencies that
leverage the tacit abilities such as building Scotland’s best international hub, the ability
to build relationships with the local businesses as well as the ability to build regional
routes. Glasgow Airport aims to utilise favourable assets, such as being a part of BAA and
possessing a landing strip which is able to take large aircraft to develop these abilities
further in order to build powerful customer relationships.
Increasing the number of destinations that the airport has connectivity to is crucial for
Glasgow Airport to both enhance its international reputation, as well as to nurture its
ability to build Scotland’s best international hub. In order to improve on its ability to
host the new generation of aircraft, there is a need to increase amount of operating
personnel. Furthermore, a strategic measure that the airport needs to undertake is to
develop the airport rail link connecting the airport to Glasgow and other major cities.
The achievement of such a strategy not only helps the airport to fortify its ability to build
Scotland’s best international network but also helps the airport to promote Scottish
tourism through commercial alliances.

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11 Commentary
After the confusion and friction within the team during the issue and competency stages the
process of combining the SSI was smoother and more productive. The earlier stages had
been more animated, it is also important to observe that it was largely driven due to the
association of the person with the issues and their point of views. While the friction has to be
managed in any team routine, the absence of any friction can also mean lack of involvement
or buy-in of the process as stated in MOSS “Rather than the common presumption that
organisational politics are a bad thing, on the contrary, organisational politics will often be a
sign of real debate- a fight for what is believed to be best for the organisation”.17
The display of the issues, competencies and goals on a single screen allowed the team to
both see the obvious linkages as well as debate the ambiguous ones. The process was
more amicable for the fact that the goals and the competencies brought by the team
complemented each other and thus easier to merge into a single SSI.
While each of the SSI’s describes a snap shot of discussion of a particular process, they
were not as meaningful individually when the next step was finished. Combining the three
SSI’s issues, goals and the competencies gave a holistic and more complete picture of the
firm’s current strengths and the fittingness for the organisations goals.
Comparing the final SSI with the earlier one’s brought out a crucial learning of the process;
the need to ensure the description of the SSI at every stage on completion of that particular
stage as suggested in MOSS “Writing it (SSI) at the end of the forum acts as a take-away
that gives a sense of closure to the forum”.18 The inability of the group to chalk out the SSI at
the prescribed stage resulted in the SSI not giving a snap shot of the mentioned activity but
also mentioning elements of the next stage. However, analysis of all the SSI’s also pointed
out the flow of the process right from the first stage of issues till the final stage of linking
competencies to goals and the progression of a simple outburst of emotions through issues
to a convergence of competencies and priorities with goals.
The conflicts at this stage were less also due to the fact that the team was mentally drained
by the whole process. The lessons learnt at the competencies stage also ensured the team
was more receptive to others views and thus contained intergroup frictions.
17
Chapter 3, Page 41
18
Chapter 8, Page 227

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12 Appendix
12.1 Table of abbreviations
Abbreviation Expansion
DE Decision Explorer
SSI Statement of Strategic Intent
MOSS Mapping Out Strategic Success
BAA British Airport Authority
DC Distinctive Competency