Leadership plays a critical role in the success of any organization. According to Friedrich et al. (2010), one of the crucial roles of organizational leaders is creative problem-solving. In the highly dynamic business environment, leaders are expected to lead organizations in creating innovative solutions. This paper aims to analyze the situation at Boeing, apply Michael Kallet’s (2014) critical thinking framework, and provide an evidence-based recommendation to solve the problem. The paper will analyze VUCA considerations that the leadership should consider while implementing the recommendation. The effectiveness of this framework has been demonstrated by the success of the Panera Bread leadership in solving the “mosh pit problem.”
The problem
Boeing, the largest aerospace company in the world, faced two devastating aircraft crashes in 2018 and 2019. The first occurred in Indonesian waters in October 2018, and the second occurred in Ethiopia in March 2019 (Priyanka, 2021). The crashes resulted in 346 fatalities within five months. Following the tragedies, in 2019, Boeing dealt with more than 150 lawsuits brought by the families of those who had perished in the two incidents. The crashes significantly impacted Boeing’s reputation in addition to financial losses and the grounding of its 737 MAX. Further investigation revealed that both incidents were caused by several factors, including design flows, internal pressure to compete with the airline’s major competitor, and lack of transparency and adequate monitoring by the FAA. The company’s leadership had to address the problem to regain customers’ trust and guarantee passenger safety.
Kallet’s Critical Thinking Framework
According to Kallet (2014), critical thinking is the innovative application of the tools of critical inquiry in problem-solving. The capacity to use strategies like active thinking, pattern recognition, and troubleshooting by interpreting and selecting the best course of action are all indicators of critical thinking. According to Kallet, the framework for critical thinking comprises three concepts: Clarity, Conclusions, and Decisions. Clarity involves understanding things that were previously unclear, such as issues, projects, initiatives, decisions, strategies, and goals. Conclusions are remedies and a list of things to do concerning the problem. Decisions refer to the action taken to address the issue. This framework can also be applied to Boeing’s problem-solving.
Clarity
According to Kallet (2014), clarity is the most crucial step involving defining the specific problem or goal. Boeing conducted an investigation into the issue and found several missteps, including design flows, unhealthy competition with Airbus, lack of transparency, and inadequate monitoring by the FAA. These are general issues, and Boeing needs to investigate specific issues such as lack of or ineffective risk assessment. Additionally, the lack of proper monitoring by the FAA reveals ethical issues that lead to safety risks and quality control inefficiencies. According to Herkert et al. (2020), Boeing and FAA had an unprofessional relationship that led to FAA’s reliance on Boeing to certify its own work. The severe implications of self-certification became clear during the crashes, particularly revealing errors in FAA’s safety analysis for MCAS. Having analyzed the specific issues, Boeing needed to come up with conclusions.
Conclusion
The conclusion entails the solutions and actions carried out to address the issue. Boeing needs to develop a culture of quality and passenger safety. This strategy will require improvements in its quality control procedures to prevent technical issues such as design flaws. Additionally, Boeing should foster transparency by informing pilots and engineers of important design changes. Where necessary, they should educate pilots and engineers about the design changes, such as the role of MCAS in the aircraft.
Additionally, Being and FAA should foster professional, ethical behavior by ensuring adherence to regulations in the aviation industry. The organization should prioritize customer safety, which will prevent unhealthy competition. These solutions require the collaboration of a variety of stakeholders, who are identified in the decision step.
Decision
The decision is the final component of Kallet’s critical thinking framework. In this step, one decides to take action. To solve the design flaws, Boeing created a software upgrade for the MCAS that used information from two sensors rather than just one. Additionally, they enhanced pilot training to better inform them of the MCAS’s capabilities (Herkert et al., 2020). The company also had to deal with legal and regulatory issues but remained committed to enhancing operational safety and transparency. These decisions involved many stakeholders, including pilots, engineers, industry leaders, Boeing management, researchers, regulators, and professional societies.
Evidence-Based Recommendation
Boeing should continuously improve the safety of its operations through regular and effective risk assessments. Passenger safety is critical in the aviation industry (Lee, 2006). The company should adhere to the highest standards to enhance its safety practices. Additionally, they should enhance their risk assessment procedures to reduce risks to manageable or acceptable levels. Risk assessment can be improved by using advanced technology and continuously educating and training employees and personnel about risk management.
Applying VUCA
VUCA stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity. The issue with the 737 MAX was unexpected and for an unknown duration. This volatility led to multiple crashes occurring within a short time. While some of the technical issues have been solved, the company is still dealing with the impact. In terms of uncertainty, the cause and effect of the issue have been identified. Changes must be made in order to correct the issue. The evidence-based recommendation, which is regular and effective risk management, will likely improve passenger safety. The situation at Boeing is complex, encompassing a variety of interdependent variables, including legal, technical, and regulatory issues. The leadership should take into account the various stakeholders, professionals, procedures, and industries affected by the situation. The risk assessment should also take into consideration a variety of factors affecting the business. Boeing’s issue also involved ambiguity because of a variety of viewpoints of different parties. Additionally, the multiple stakeholders involved made it hard to determine who was responsible, making it hard to develop a precise and consistent solution.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Panera Bread leadership demonstrated the effectiveness of the critical thinking framework in problem solving. This framework, together with the consideration of VUCA, is expected to improve the outcomes of an innovative solution. Therefore, by applying this framework to Boeing, the company’s leadership is likely to improve patient safety and regain its customers’ trust. This can only be achieved through a comprehensive and collaborative strategy that involves relevant stakeholders and addresses technical, regulatory, and customer issues.
References
Friedrich, T. L., Mumford, M. D., Vessey, B., Beeler, C. K., & Eubanks, D. L. (2010). Leading for innovation: Reevaluating leader influences on innovation with regard to innovation type and complexity. International studies of management & organization, 40(2), 6-29. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.2753/IMO0020-8825400201
Herkert, J., Borenstein, J., & Miller, K. (2020). The Boeing 737 MAX: Lessons for engineering ethics. Science and Engineering Ethics, 26(6), 2957-2974. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-020-00252-y
Jargon, J. (2017, June 2). How Panera solved its mosh pit problem. The Wall Street Journal.
Kallet, M. (2014). Think smarter: Critical thinking to improve problem-solving and decision-making skills. Wiley & Sons.
Lee, W. K. (2006). Risk assessment modeling in aviation safety management. Journal of Air Transport Management, 12(5), 267–273. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0969699706000597
Priyanka I, B. (2021, October 26). What has happened to Boeing since the 737 Max crashes. FRONTLINE. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/what-has-happened-to-boeing-since-the-737-max-crashes/
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