IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/h/zbw/hiclch/249638.html
   My bibliography  Save this book chapter

Organizational flexibility of airlines during COVID-19: A study on the airline companies in Turkey

In: Adapting to the Future: How Digitalization Shapes Sustainable Logistics and Resilient Supply Chain Management. Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL), Vol. 31

Author

Listed:
  • Demir, Sercan
  • Aktas, Ersin
  • Paksoy, Turan

Abstract

Purpose: COVID-19 caused a highly uncertain environment and introduced a radical change in the airline industry. In that time, idle capacity due to drastic decline in passenger traffic, change in travel rules, and increases in air cargo demand have emerged as the main challenges. Effective responses to these issues became a fundamental requirement for airlines' survival and sustainability of supply chains. Organizational flexibility plays a vital role in dealing with those situations. Flexibility allows airline companies to adapt to changing environmental conditions and take advantage of opportunities. This study aims to explain the strategies of airline companies in Turkey to the COVID-19 crisis based on organizational flexibility. Methodology: This study is structured on the qualitative research method. We interviewed five experts and compiled information by reviewing various publications on COVID-19. We analyzed obtained information within the framework of organizational flexibility. Findings: The results indicated that airlines mitigate the effects of COVID-19, mostly through protective and exploitative maneuvers of organizational flexibility. Airlines focus more on cost reduction and saving strategies as protective maneuvers, while exploitative maneuvers focus more on the cargo market. Originality: This study is novel in that it examined airlines' responses to COVID-19 within the framework of organizational flexibility.

Suggested Citation

  • Demir, Sercan & Aktas, Ersin & Paksoy, Turan, 2021. "Organizational flexibility of airlines during COVID-19: A study on the airline companies in Turkey," Chapters from the Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL), in: Kersten, Wolfgang & Ringle, Christian M. & Blecker, Thorsten (ed.), Adapting to the Future: How Digitalization Shapes Sustainable Logistics and Resilient Supply Chain Management. Proceedings of the Hamburg Internationa, volume 31, pages 801-823, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:hiclch:249638
    DOI: 10.15480/882.3965
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/249638/1/hicl-2021-31-801.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.15480/882.3965?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Raghu Garud & Praveen R. Nayyar, 1994. "Transformative capacity: Continual structuring by intertemporal technology transfer," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 365-385, June.
    2. Akbar, Yusaf H. & Kisilowski, Maciej, 2020. "To bargain or not to bargain: Airlines, legitimacy and nonmarket strategy in a COVID-19 world," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    3. Henk W. Volberda, 1996. "Toward the Flexible Form: How to Remain Vital in Hypercompetitive Environments," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 7(4), pages 359-374, August.
    4. Albers, Sascha & Rundshagen, Volker, 2020. "European airlines′ strategic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic (January-May, 2020)," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    5. Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph, 2020. "Note: Mayday, Mayday, Mayday! Responding to environmental shocks: Insights on global airlines’ responses to COVID-19," Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).
    6. Scheiwiller, Stephanie & Zizka, Laura, 2021. "Strategic responses by European airlines to the Covid-19 pandemic: A soft landing or a turbulent ride?," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    7. J. Stuart Evans, 1991. "Strategic Flexibility For High Technology Manoeuvres: A Conceptual Framework," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(1), pages 69-89, January.
    8. David J. Teece & Gary Pisano & Amy Shuen, 1997. "Dynamic capabilities and strategic management," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(7), pages 509-533, August.
    9. Anderson, Philip & Tushman, Michael L, 2001. "Organizational Environments and Industry Exit: The Effects of Uncertainty, Munificence and Complexity," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 10(3), pages 675-711, September.
    10. Carlsson, Bo, 1989. "Flexibility and the theory of the firm," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 7(2), pages 179-203, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Garaus, Marion & Hudáková, Melánia, 2022. "The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on tourists’ air travel intentions: The role of perceived health risk and trust in the airline," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 103(C).
    2. Justin J. P. Jansen & Michiel P. Tempelaar & Frans A. J. van den Bosch & Henk W. Volberda, 2009. "Structural Differentiation and Ambidexterity: The Mediating Role of Integration Mechanisms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 797-811, August.
    3. Justin Tan & Yong Zeng, 2009. "A stage-dependent model of resource utilization, strategic flexibility, and implications for performance over time: Empirical evidence from a transitional environment," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 26(3), pages 563-588, September.
    4. Liao, Maozhu & Wu, Chuntao & Yan, Hongmeng, 2022. "Recovery of Chinese low-cost carriers after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    5. Matsuno, Ken & Kohlbacher, Florian, 2020. "Proactive marketing response to population aging: The roles of capabilities and commitment of firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 93-104.
    6. Tan, Justin & Wang, Liang, 2010. "Flexibility-efficiency tradeoff and performance implications among Chinese SOEs," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 63(4), pages 356-362, April.
    7. Golden, William & Powell, Philip, 2000. "Towards a definition of flexibility: in search of the Holy Grail?," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 28(4), pages 373-384, August.
    8. Baldwin, Carliss Y. & Bogers, Marcel L.A.M. & Kapoor, Rahul & West, Joel, 2024. "Focusing the ecosystem lens on innovation studies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 53(3).
    9. Christiana Müller & Stefan Vorbach, 2015. "Enabling Business Model Change: Evidence from High-Technology Firms," Journal of Entrepreneurship, Management and Innovation, Fundacja Upowszechniająca Wiedzę i Naukę "Cognitione", vol. 11(1), pages 53-75.
    10. Brion, Sébastien & Mothe, Caroline & Sabatier, Mareva, 2007. "What impacts more on innovation : Organizational context or individual competences ?," MPRA Paper 10595, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Jacques Bughin & Francis Hinterman & Sybille Berjoan, 2022. "A Good Crisis (not) Wasted: How Exploiting and Expanding Dynamic Capabilities Shape Corporate Performance During the Covid Pandemic," Working Papers TIMES² WP2022-051, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    12. Hamed Ali Al Azzani & Normal Mat Jusoh & Aamir Abbas, 2024. "Market and Supply Chain Orientation; Dynamic Capabilities Leading to Innovation and Operational Capabilities," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(2), pages 21582440241, June.
    13. Côrte-Real, Nadine & Oliveira, Tiago & Ruivo, Pedro, 2017. "Assessing business value of Big Data Analytics in European firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 379-390.
    14. Henk W. Volberda & Nicolai J. Foss & Marjorie A. Lyles, 2010. "PERSPECTIVE---Absorbing the Concept of Absorptive Capacity: How to Realize Its Potential in the Organization Field," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(4), pages 931-951, August.
    15. Volberda, H.W. & van den Bosch, F.A.J., 2004. "Rethinking the Dutch Innovation Agenda: Management and Organization Matter Most," ERIM Report Series Research in Management ERS-2004-009-STR, Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM), ERIM is the joint research institute of the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and the Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
    16. Chen, Yuting & Fuellhart, Kurt & Grubesic, Tony H. & Zhang, Shengrun & Witlox, Frank, 2024. "An analysis of the context factors influencing the diverse response of airports to COVID-19 using panel and group regression," Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice, Elsevier, vol. 179(C).
    17. R. Duane Ireland & Jeffrey G. Covin & Donald F. Kuratko, 2009. "Conceptualizing Corporate Entrepreneurship Strategy," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 33(1), pages 19-46, January.
    18. Arie Y. Lewin & Henk W. Volberda, 1999. "Prolegomena on Coevolution: A Framework for Research on Strategy and New Organizational Forms," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 10(5), pages 519-534, October.
    19. Halkos, George Emmanuel & Tzeremes, Nickolaos G., 2007. "Productivity efficiency and firm size: An empirical analysis of foreign owned companies," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(6), pages 713-731, December.
    20. Srikanta Acharya, 2019. "Beyond Learning Outcomes: Impact of Organizational Flexibility on Strategic Performance Measures of Commercial E-Learning Providers," Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Springer;Global Institute of Flexible Systems Management, vol. 20(1), pages 31-41, March.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:zbw:hiclch:249638. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hicl.org/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.