Singapore Airlines: Global Challenges

By R. McKern, Margot Sutherland
2004 | Case No. IB34
In March 2002, Singapore Airlines (SIA), recognized internationally for quality, profitability and management, was faced with the most difficult operating conditions it had ever had to face. Dr. Cheong Choong Kong, deputy chairman and CEO, gazed out his office window at the activity at Changi International Airport. He considered how he and his management committee would respond to the forces of globalization, regulatory adjustment, and the impact of terrorist attacks in America on the airline and the industry. Their challenge: to position the airline for continued growth in a globalizing industry while maintaining the airline’s loss-free record. The airline’s continuing challenges would stretch SIA’s people far beyond the demands of its previous history. Was the company’s strategy right for the more turbulent times ahead, and was the organization durable and flexible enough to ensure its success?
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