JET AIRWAYS - SYNOPSIS (Strategic Management-Group 4 ) Indian Aviation Industry got privatized in the year 1993 with the

introduction of the open skies policy by the Government of India. That was when Mr. Naresh Goyal, Chairman Jet Airways, single handedly contributed to its success story. This case study is about the transitional phases that Jet Airways went through since its inception, the strategtic challenges that came its way and how the key decisions made by Mr.Goyal took the success to new heights. It was known that Jet Airways became the favorite airline for travelers because of its friendly approach towards its customers with the help of its up-to-date technology and also with the use of younger planes; and most importantly being able to deliver on-time performance & scheduled flights for seasonal travelers (80% of its customers being business travelers). It oout performed its competitor Indian Airlines on several grounds like the nos. of employees per aircraft at JA was 163 as against IAs 397 thus its main focus was on productivity & cost control as neither did they pay heavily and nor were the increments high. . The strengths for Jet Airways was that it started by using more number of aircrafts on lease rather than buying just one or two aircrafts. The crucial decision was taken to lease the newer 737-300s, since the lease costs for newer ones were at least 40% higher. However, it started with four Boeing 737-300s due to more fuel efficiency (consumed 8 % less fuel). They used only one type of aircraft because it made maintenance & flight crew training simpler, spare parts required were common & inventories were lower. Ensures that service surpasses customers expectations by informing the customers well in advance of the delays and efficient flight servicing. Innovations like JP Privilege cards are the strengths of Jet Airways Although the weaknesses of Jet Airways that comes across through the case is too much concentration only on business class guests. Need to improvise and meet the rising expectation of customers. Jet Airways could grow many folds by grabbing the opportunities available to them like utilizing the information from the SMQs and Shifted focus for international flights which can generate huge profits. This gives Jet Airways an opportunity to build its brand name. The threats that Jet Airways faces is that it may lose on economical class customers due to more focus on business class customer. Over dependence on passenger business could prove fatal. An inevitable threat is the competition in international arena from foreign players like United airlines, Singapore airlines, Cathay Pacific. Micheal Porter provided a framework that models an industry as being influenced by five forces. The strategic business manager seeking to develop an edge over the rivals can use this model to better understand the industry context in which the firm operates. After all the success in no time, Jet Airways would still require to offer more value-added services with much better infrastructure in order to sustain their market share & grow at the same time keeping in mind the thick competition which it would face in times to come.