Still for many avgeeks and former continental employees, the continental name was a nod to an airline that went from worst to first under famed ceo gordon bethune. Before the organisation became the market leader in aviation industry, continental airlines was forced to. By focusing on its hubbased transportation system, continental has redrawn its method for doing business. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Continental airlines was a major united states airline founded in 1934 and eventually headquartered in houston, texas. He is not bragging, but rather sharing the secrets of leadership that can transform other companies.
When united merged with continental, continental was known for friendly service and a customer first culture. The company traced its history to varney airlines, incorporated by walter t. Read part one of our look back at continental the 90s brought major changes to continental. Continental airlines accidents and incidents wikipedia.
In 1996, continental became the first company in any industry to go from worst to first in the j. Jul 22, 2002 five years later, he has transformed continental from the worst of the large carriers to first in its class. They may brag about their most admired status in the industry, but that survey, conducted by fortune magazine, only polled industry insiders, not consumers. Hedge funds escalating attacks on united continental the. Please refer to the current fleet list to see each aircrafts individual age. Sep 05, 2019 fortune magazine named continental the company that has raised its overall marks more than any other in the 1990s. From worst to first is gordon bethunes story of continental airlines turnaround under his command. Request pdf gordon bethunes revival of continental airlines when. At the time, i was a partner specializing in corporate turnarounds in bain.
At the same time, he has set the standard for corporate turnarounds. Continental airlines deal with united marks end of storied. Pdf continental airlines flies high with realtime business. Worst to first is gordon bethunes story of continental airlines turnaround under his command. Joined with dozens of other airlines to create the leading internet portal for booking travel, to be launched in 2000 continued our profitable growth from our underdeveloped hubs drove up online bookings on continentals website by 173 percent, with eticket sales rising to 47 percent of total sales by th e end of the year fund the future. In airplane parlance, continental was in a nosedive. The company was set up in 1934 and for decades had been known for quality of its service and the stability and caring of its governance structure. Venerable airline brands with a commitment to quality, like continental, were prime takeover targets. The united continental merger was announced may 3, 2010 and the merger transaction close date was october 1, 2010. The origin of continental airlines dates to the 1934 formation of varney speed lines which operated airmail and passenger services in the american southwest. The changemaker, ceo gordon bethune, wrote a bestselling book on how he turned around the moribund company, titled from worst to first. From worst to first is gordon bethune s story of continental airlines. Gordon bethunes revival of continental airlines request pdf.
Businesses fail because they want the right things, but measure the wrong things the greatest assets for fixing a business are the people and tools you already have nobody loses when the. To ask other readers questions about from worst to first, please sign up. In 1994, ceo of continental airlines, gordan bethune figure 3 successfully transformed the organisation from worst carrier to fifthlargest airlines klein 2002. After years of seeing united continental struggle, two hedge funds have begun an insurrection against the airline s board and have turned to a. Management advice from the former ceo who saved continental airlines gordon bethune, former ceo of continental airlines, explains triedandtrue lessons in leadership and management he experienced firsthand while working for the airline. Businesses fail because they want the right things, but measure the wrong things the greatest assets for fixing a business are the people and tools you already have. Airline timetables 204 followers dk0 21065 dk0s feedback score is 21065 100.
Gordon bethune emerges as an inspirational leader, by bringing continental airlines back from the brink, in 1994. Five years later, he has transformed continental from the worst of the large carriers to first in its class. Airlines president shares worst to first story with. Continental airlines the full history 19342012 aviation. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback free acces. Continental airlines is the first carrier in the world to utilize this technology on their aircraft. Management advice from the ceo who saved continental airlines. Case study data warehousing continental airlines i. Power rankings, and in 1997 continental became the first airline ever to win the. If youre seeing this message, that means javascript has been disabled on your browser, please enable js to make this app work. Taking the pilots seat of a company that is headed for its third bankruptcy in only 10 years is a tough decision for anyone to make, much less a young professional.
Behind the scenes of continentals remarkable comeback free acces. Bethune wrote a book called from worst to first, about his experience turning around continental airlines in the 1990s. In his new book from worst to first, continental airlines ceo gordon bethune tells how he led continentals transformation into an awardwinning carrier. United shareholders turn to former contintental ceo to. Robert f six, chairmanceo, continental airlines, 19361981 continental airlines had seen a broad expansion of its routes, thanks to a responsive cab and persistent efforts by robert f six, who frequently referred to his company as the airline that needs to grow. The seattle postintelligencerall of gordon bethunes proceeds from this book will be donated to the we care trust, a nonprofit organization that assists continental airlines. Successful firms such as continental airlines 11 or first. In his final year with the airline, fortune ranked continental 2004s no. Continental airlines flies high with realtime business intelligence. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback, in 1999 detailing his time at that carrier. Massive marketing and management blunders almost destroyed continental airlines, but in only a few years, with a remarkable turnaround by new management, continental became a star of the airline industry. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback is a great book. Power rankings, and in 1997 continental became the first airline ever to win the award in back to back years.
Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Gordon bethune chronicles his experience coming to work for continental airlines, a major carrier that consistently ranked last in every measurable airline performance metric, and bringing the failing carrier to the top of the airline industry. United and american received the highest percentages of 1star ratings united airlines american airlines delta airlines southwest airlines alaska airlines 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% a first class delta passenger making a. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback new ed by bethune, gordon isbn. Apr 29, 20 dear continental airlines, i am disgusted as i write this note to you about the miserable experience i am having sitting in seat 29e on one of your aircrafts. The story is about how bethune revolutionized the company from being the worse airline to fly with in the usa and abroad to being one of the first.
Business weekfrom worst to first outlines gordon bethunes. Airline s president shares worst to first story with students. In 93, when greg brenneman as a bain vp started working at continental airlines, it was the most dysfunctional company he had ever seen. From worst to first by gordon bethune, 1998, wiley edition, hardcover in english. Sep, 2015 continental was one of the first airlines to pioneer the addition of live tv onboard, and audiovideo on demand, to all of its fleet, and refining the business first cabin with the addition of the lie 180 degree lie flat seats.
Continental was in dire straits because the deregulation of the commercial airline industry in 1978 ushered in a new era focused on mergers and acquisitions and bitter employeemanagement relations. Among the top five airlines, consumers rated delta and alaska the highest for their food and were largely split on southwest. Gordon bethunes story of continental airlines turnaround under his command. Jeffery smisek was a houston lawyer with standing orders with his secretary to avoid continental airlines. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers.
Pages in category continental airlines accidents and incidents the following 11 pages are in this category, out of 11 total. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading from worst to first. The product, prekote, manufactured by pantheon enterprises, eliminates hazardous chemicals that are usually used in the pretreatment phase before painting an aircraft. Make reliability a reality, or its time to act like a real airline. Continental airlines, airlines, corporate turnarounds publisher new york. United airlines airline tickets, travel deals and flights. Passengers have become disillusioned and left united as their carrier. Feb 04, 2020 fortune magazine named continental the company that has raised its overall marks more than any other in the 1990s. Will never forget my first flight from dallas to houston on continental airlines. First off, its no secret, when it comes to customer service, united is commonly regarded as one of the worst airlines in the business. Its been five years since united airlines and continental airlines combined to form what was at the time the worlds largest carrier, and the merger hasnt. The airline was in terrible shape, worst among the u.
Gordon bethunes emphasis in turning continental airlines around from worst to first, as he explained in his 1998 book of the same title, was in satisfying customers and employees and. Fly to win, or you can make a pizza so cheap nobody wants to eat it. Power award for customer satisfaction for flights 500 miles or more. Continental airlines is a major american airline based in chicago, illinois. It is a fascinating story about continental airlines written by the ceo gordon. Continental started out as one of the smaller carriers in the united states. Established practices that passengers had come to expect were discarded.
In a widelycited example of the cab process at its worst, it took the board eight years to give continental airlines permission. What do you do if youre running the worst airline in. Further, the process was expensive and timeconsuming. Gordon bethune left his post as an executive in operations at boeing in february 1994 to become the president and chief operating officer of continental airlines. My personal favorite book on management is gordon bethunes classic from worst to first, in which he weaves the saga of his work at continental airlines from 1994 through 1998 into a comprehensive guide to management. Teaching note for continental airlines realtime bi case continental airlines flies high with realtime business intelligence is a comprehensive example of how an organization used realtime data warehousing and business intelligence applications in its turn around from a poorly performing to an industry leading organization. Pdf gordon bethune from worst to first semantic scholar. Apr 27, 2019 the merger with continental was the beginning of a decline. It has received numerous awards for its work, including in 2004, the data warehousing institutes best practices and leadership awards. The seattle postintelligencerall of gordon bethunes proceeds from this book will be donated to the we care trust, a nonprofit organization that assists continental airlines employees and their families in times of need. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback.
He said united needed to perform better than its three main rivals. Executive summary table of contents i ii iii iv v executive summary the decision to invest implementation new business strategies roi 2 4 6 9 19 20 technical appendix a continental s comeback from worst to first is an airline industry legend. Teaching note for continental airlines furman university. From worst to first outlines gordon bethunes triumphs.
The investor relations website contains information about united airlines holdings, inc. Behind the scenes of continentals remarkable comeback kindle edition by bethune, gordon. Executive summary table of contents i ii iii iv v executive summary the decision to invest implementation new business strategies roi 2 4 6 9 19 20 technical appendix a continentals comeback from worst to first is an airline industry legend. Only supported aircraft types that are active with this airline are included in the calculations. With his own downtoearth style, bethune improved employee morale, made. When bethune became chief executive at continental in 1994, the airline was considered one of the worst in the industry. It had been through 2 bankruptcies and 10 presidents in ten years. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback kindle edition by bethune, gordon. Continental airlines president 1994 continental airlines coo 1994 boeing vp commercial airplane group 198894. From first to worst continental in a post united world, lessons in next gen customer experience r ray wang contributor opinions expressed by. Frank lorenzo resigned as president, in 1990, after 18 years in charge. The new united has been established through a financial transaction, but the real merger takes place in the operation. The 21 worst airlines in the world based on skytrax ratings.
The atlanta journalconstitution from worst to first is gordon bethunes story of continental airlines turnaround under his command. From first to worst continental in a post united world, lessons in next gen customer experience r ray wang contributor opinions expressed by forbes contributors are their own. Gordon bethune, the ceo of continental airlines, has written from worst to first, an account of how he turned that airline from lackluster to leader, in just ayearand ahalf. Continental ceo a risk taker, blunt talker reuters. Dear continental airlines, i am disgusted as i write this note to you about the miserable experience i am having sitting in seat 29e on one of your aircrafts. Leading up to 1994, it ranked last among the ten largest airlines for on time percentage flights landing. Behind the scenes of continental s remarkable comeback book on our website in any convenient format. Fund the future, or if there aint no funds, there aint gonna be no future. From worst to first by gordon bethune 1999 the turnaround of continental airlines in the 1980s is one of the most remarkable stories of the corporate world. He also sold his controlling share to scandinavian air system sas. I will never forget my first flight from dallas to houston on continental airlines.
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