Case Analysis of British Petroleum Free-Samples for Students

Questions: 1.How would you apply the four different Ethical approaches for guiding BPs Ethical decision making in the Period before the Explosion?2.From what we know of the Company, how would you Critically Evaluate the Planningfunction of their Management Processes? 3.Apply the Six Decision-Making steps to the decisions BP made during the Crisis and Critically Evaluate where they went wrong.4.Identify and Describe the Corporate Culture Prevalent at BP before and during thecrises.5.Given the details available of the Case, what can you infer about the OrganizationalThe Structure of BP? Can you Identify a link between the Organizational Structure and Corporate Culture of BP?6.If you were asked to assist BP in Managing the Change now necessary to rebuild trustin the Company and its Decisions, what would your Recommendations be?7.Research and find at least one Journal or Scholarly Web article which would Supportany Part of the analysis you presented for this Case. Answers: BP Case Analysis 1.So as to guide the ethical decisions made by BP, I would use the following approaches: The utilitarian approach-In this approach, ethical behavior is guided by what will result in the greatest advantages for the people (Scott-Ladd, PerryWilliams Kinicki 2015). They also took a risky approach to everything so as to save money. In the end, it costed the company its reputation as there was a loss of lives due to wrong decisions and a large oil spill that negatively affected the environment. The individual approach-This approach is for ones self-interest in the long-term but will assist others (Scott-Ladd et al. 2015). This theory was applied by the BP management when cleaning the oil spill. They used a very toxic dispersant, Corexit, in immense quantities. The moral rights approach-This theory aims at the respect of the rights shared by all human beings. Businesses can use international human rights policies to guide their decisions and actions (Scott-Ladd et al 2015). BP did not follow this theory. They totally ignored warnings about leaks, and this resulted in the death of 11 workers due to a methane explosion. The justice approach- This theory tells us that we should respect the right to fairness and equity. It questions whether an organization's policies are administered impartially or fairly (Scott-Ladd et al 2015). BP did not apply this approach as there is no justice for its employees. The company made decisions not considering the consequences to its stakeholders. 2.From the analysis, BP has a poor planning function of its processes. This is evident to the following issues that display themselves in the company(Cardinal, Miller TenBrink 2015) Poor management of the time-The company has poor time management hence the schedules are not followed. The team members do not seem to have a clear picture of expectations during projects. BP has made poor decisions because their venture schedule is behind and they are losing $1.5 million per day. Lack of clear project objectives-It seems that from the onset, there were no clear objectives set out for the project team. Lack of Clear Budget-It seems that there is no clear budget at BP. The company is using short-cuts in its processes. Dissatisfied customers-Planning poorly means poor end results hence dissatisfied customers. BP have greatly affected the environment by causing a huge oil spill. Lack of stakeholder support Poor planning means stakeholders will not support a project. Unpredicted risks and problems-BP did not anticipate an explosion, loss of lives and negative effects of oil clean up. 3.The six-decision making steps are used by an organization to identify a decision, gather information and assess resolutions (Hartman, DesJardins, MacDonald Hartman 2014). The following process might have been used by BP, but they failed in some areas Identification of decisions-The nature of the decision should be clearly defined. BP had various decisions to make, that is, how to drill oil safely, how to finish the project on time, how to effectively clean up an oil spill and how to deal with eventualities. Information Gathering-Pertinent information should be gathered before making a decision. Information can be internal or external. BP is a company with experience in oil-drilling. It should have looked at ways in which oil was safely drilled in other areas. It should have also considered the environment they were going to work in and assessed the dangers beforehand. No information was gathered, and decisions were made abruptly. Alternatives Identification-When gathering information one discovers several paths of action. BP did not consider this. When cleaning the oil spill, they used trial and error assumption until they achieved their goal. Weighing of Evidence-This involves evaluating the company needs and if they will be resolved through the chosen alternatives. The company should use alternatives that will meet its goals and objectives. BP did not weigh their evidence. They did not align their needs to alternatives, and this led them to choosing wrong alternatives. Choosing among alternatives-This means selecting the best alternative. BP did not select the best alternatives that would meet its needs as a company. There was a wrong connection of pipes and equipment to accident preventers. It means there was lack of training on doing this or the staff were just ignorant. Taking action and reviewing decisions-This is when positive action is taken and decisions reviewed against results. They took action by cleaning oils spill using a dangerous chemical rather than researching in a more efficient way to do it. The consequences were fatal, but it was already too late. 4.BP had a toxic corporate culture before, during and even after the crisis. This is evidenced by the following things that are characteristic of toxic cultures: Dictatorship- The manager dictates the employees and everything have to be done his way. The decisions at BP are made at the top level management, and no one is allowed to question or raise concerns (Guiso, Sapienza Zingales, 2015)... When employees are warned about leakages in the system, they ignore because if they escalate to management, nothing will be done Ideas are not welcome-Nobody is asked about their opinion. The management has already decided how the employees should work. In BP, employees do not speak out, and they do as dictated by the management despite imminent dangers. Eventually, there is loss of lives(Bolton, Brunnermeier Veldkamp 2013). Secrets Dominate the organization-In a toxic culture, there is no open door policy, and employees have no idea what direction the company is taking (Guiso, Sapienza Zingales 2015). BP seems to work like this. Decisions are made by the top management and staff are not involved. During the oil spill, trial-error methods are communicated downwards, and employees are just expected to adhere. They do not know who is making the decisions 5.The organizational structure of BP seems to be a Matrix Structure. In this type of structure, employees have some bosses and reporting lines. They report to divisional managers but also have project managers for specific projects. This model is prone to complications and confusion as seen in BP. The organizational structure of BP affects its organizational culture. The high performance of a company leads to strong culture (Alvesson Sveningsson 2015). Low performance leads to a toxic culture. In BP, the performance is low, deadlines are not met, and poor decisions are made. This leads to lack of motivation and therefore a toxic culture among the employees. Employees may be good performers, but if the structure is poor, they will adapt to it (Harper 2015). This is because they do not have control over the companys procedures and processes 6.If I were asked by BP to manage change so as to rebuild trust I would recommend the following steps: Increase urgency BP management should increase urgency in all its processes and performance. Employees should be educated on the importance of achieving goals and finishing projects efficiently (Jeston Neils 2014). Build a guiding team BP should have the right people as project managers. They should look at skills and experience and willingness to commit. Having right project managers will ensure that tasks are done correctly, and procedures and processes are followed (Hayes 2014). A committed manager will have his companys best interests at heart. Vision BP should have a vision, mission and project strategy (Jeston Neils 2014). Before beginning a project, all this should be laid down and the same communicated to the project team. Following this ensures efficiency in processes. Communication Communication should be enhanced at BP. The management should involve employees in their decisions and respond to their needs (Jeston Neils 2014). All project requirements should be communicated well to everyone. Empowering action BP should ensure any performance obstacles are removed, and feedback should be encouraged (Hayes 2014). The company can do this by ensuring the project team is well-trained, and feedback is encouraged. Creating short-term wins BP should have short-term targets for its employees. This will make achieving of timelines easier and even more enjoyable for employees. Give employees achievable tasks (Jeston Neils 2014). No letting up BP should encourage and motivate employees. Good work should be praised, and reporting should be encouraged. Making change stick BP should ensure all the implemented changes stick with the employees. This can be done by ensuring that there is employee engagement (Hayes 2014). Changes should be weaved into the organizational culture. 7.The European Journal article, The Role of Strategic Planning in Excellence Management Systems supports the emphasis on the importance of planning in an organization. The journal talks about how strategic issues can bring problems or opportunities to decision makers. It explains how strategic planning aims to build consensus in a company and why organizations should take it seriously. The Journal also explains the strategic planning process and how it influences the decisions that are made by the company (Suarez, Calvo-Mora Roldan 2016). This journal can be used in the BP case as it emphasizes the importance of planning and also guides in the planning process. BP can refer to this and see the decisions it made wrong and come up with ways of rectifying its planning process. This will help it in future to make the correct decisions and hence gain trust once more with the government who banned it from tendering, and with all its other stakeholders. References Alvesson, M and Sveningsson, S 2015, Changing organizational culture: Cultural change work in progress. Routledge. Bolton, P, Brunnermeier, MK and Veldkamp, L 2013, Leadership, coordination, and corporate culture. The Review of Economic Studies, 80(2), pp.512-537. Cardinal, LB, Miller, CC, Kreutzer, M and TenBrink, C 2015, Strategic Planning And Firm Performance. The Psychology of Planning in Organizations: Research and Applications, p.260. Guiso, L Sapienza, P and Zingales, L 2015, The value of corporate culture. Journal of Financial Economics, 117(1), pp.60-76. Harper, C 2015, Organizations: Structures, processes, and outcomes. Routledge. Hartman, LP, Desjardins, JR, MacDonald, C and Hartman, LP 2014, Business Ethics: Decision-making for personal integrity and social responsibility. New York: McGraw-Hill. Hayes, J 2014 The theory and practice of change management. Palgrave Macmillan. Jeston, J and Nelis, J 2014, Business process management. Routledge. Scott-Ladd, KPerry, MWilliams, P andKinicki, A 2015, "Management: a practical introduction:The manager's changing work environment and ethical responsibilities," McGraw-Hill Education, North Ryde, N.S.W. , (Chapter 3, subsections 3.3 and 3.4) Suarez, E Calvo-Mora, A and Roldn, JL 2016, The role of strategic planning in excellence management systems. European Journal of Operational Research, 248(2), pp.532-542.