Embellished résumé transcript[music playing]you are the ethics

1. Embellished Résumé Transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING]
You are the ethics officer at Friendly Digits, a respected and
profitable social media company in Colossal Corporation’s
technology group. Friday morning, you arrive at your office to
find you've received a voicemail from Ernst Blofeld. Blofeld
has been a vice president at Friendly Digits for several years,
and was recently considered for promotion to a senior vice
president position. Ultimately, the promotion was awarded to
another long term employee, Tara King. You find it difficult to
make out some of Blofeld's message. The words are
occasionally slurred, as though he may have had a little too
much to drink. I'm in Palm Springs for a conference, he
explains, and I ran into a nice couple here at the hotel bar.
You'd never believe it, but they're old friends of Tara's from
school. I told them about her promotion, and they said she never
finished her degree. She dropped out of the MBA program they
all attended, and they never saw her again. You have to get to
HR to check this out for me.
You check Friendly Digits policy manual, which states that
potential employees must submit transcripts for all degrees
listed on their resumes. But this requirement was not in place 10
years ago when Tara King was hired. King has received
excellent performance evaluations during her time at Friendly
Digits, and her leadership has led to increased revenue and
positive press for the company. Her record of success is what
led to her promotion. After a brief consultation with Mindy Wu,
the director of human resources, you telephone King. Based on
current HR policy, we're asking all employees who don't have
official transcripts on file, to submit them to the human
resources department. There is a silence at King's end, then in a
shaky voice, she tells you that she does not in fact have an
MBA. I was 12 credits away from completing my degree, she
says, but then my dad got sick and I had to drop out. I really

2. needed a job to support my family. I put the MBA on my resume
because I hoped it would help me get hired. I always intended to
go back to school, but I never did. It was a really stressful time.
You tell King that you need a little time to think about the
situation. You promise to call her back as soon as possible. You
know that an MBA was not a requirement for the assistant
project specialist job King was hired for 10 years ago. But four
years ago, it was made a requirement for the senior vice
president position she holds now. Two of the current senior vice
presidents do not have MBA degrees, because they were
promoted before this requirement was in place. Mindy Wu has
asked you to write a memo with your recommendations on how
human resources should handle this issue. King has a record of
excellence with Friendly Digits, and her superiors would be
unhappy to lose her.
Step 1: Ethical Analysis
The ethical aspects of King's situation seem complex, and you
realize that you need a structured way to think through the
various possibilities and their implications. You know that there
are many different schools of ethical thought and a variety of
frameworks or approaches for analyzing ethical problems, but
you decide that the best approach to this particular situation
is Badaracco's Right vs. Right Framework.
Work through the Badaracco ethical analysis, considering the
various options for action and the winners and losers for each
option. What are your recommendations for the best ethical
course of action?
When you've finished analyzing the ethical aspects of this case,
continue to the next step, in which you'll consider any legal
issues that could affect your decisions.
Badaracco’s Right vs Right Framework
There are a variety of ethical frameworks that may be used
instrumentally to analyze those difficult questions that
businesspersons must regularly address. Some ethical issues
present clear "yes" and "no" answers, a clear "right" and

3. "wrong," but other ethical issues are much more difficult to
address.
Professor Joseph Badaracco developed a framework for
addressing those more difficult questions, and particularly those
questions of "right versus right"; that is, when an ethical
dilemma could result in multiple "right" responses, based in
attempted adherence to multiple, conflicting ethical values that
cannot simultaneously be fulfilled. Badaracco's framework aims
to resolve ethical dilemmas involving conflicting yet legitimate
moral values.
Harvard FSS: Defining Moments: A Framework for Moral
Decisions
Abstract:
Joseph L. Badaracco Jr. covers ethical decision-making in
situations where there is no clearly inferior alternative. Such
"right versus right" problems emerge frequently in business, and
can be very uncomfortable to resolve. History provides four
classic questions aimed at helping with such dilemmas, but
circumstances can arise that confound each. The utilitarian
injunction to do the greatest good consistent with the least harm
can produce outrageous violations of human rights, for instance.
Character, experience, hard work, and good judgment are what a
decision-maker must ultimately place his or her trust in.
Step 2: Legal Analysis
In addition to the ethical aspects of King's situation, there may
be legal implications that the human resources department needs
to account for before moving forward with any plan of action.
You realize that you need to review any relevant information
about fraud that might affect what could or should be done
about King, including employment at will.
Now that you've worked through possible legal implications
and arrived at a recommended course of action for Friendly
Digits's HR department, it's time to present your analyses,

4. recommendations, and action plan in a memo to Mindy Wu, the
director of HR.
Fraud
Fraud, often called misrepresentation, is a very broad legal
concept that incorporates a variety of types of fraud and
misrepresentation, both civil and criminal. There are
considerable variations across the states as to the specific
categorization of types of fraud as either civil or criminal law
violations, or both. The federal government criminalizes a
variety of types of fraud including mail and wire fraud,
bankruptcy fraud, and securities fraud. These federal laws apply
to everyone in the United States, regardless of the state in
which the fraud occurs. Although there is variation as to which
explicit types of fraud are criminalized within each state, in all
states, some types of fraud unquestionably carry both civil and
criminal penalties.
Résumé fraud is a specific type of fraud that may result in civil
or criminal penalties, or both, depending on which state the
fraud occurs in. In its most primal form, résumé fraud is a type
of common law, civil fraud wherein the intentional
misrepresentations of material facts are made in a résumé, and
justifiably relied upon in the hiring of an individual for
employment. In the absence of any statutory provision
specifically addressing résumé fraud in a given state, the
common law provides the remedy for résumé fraud typically in
the form of damages (monetary compensation). However, many
states have statutorily imposed sanctions specifically for
committing résumé fraud. For example, in New Jersey, both
persons and legal entities are prohibited from intending to
deceive by falsely representing the receipt of a degree,
credential, or certification, which one has not actually acquired
"in connection with any business, trade, profession or
occupation" (N.J.S.A. 18A:3-15.2). A violation of this provision
is treated as a civil law violation, and each instance of résumé
fraud carries with it a $1000.00 civil fine (N.J.S.A. 18A: 3-

5. 15.5). On the other hand, in the state of Kentucky, "fraudulent
use of an educational record" is considered a Class A
misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to 12 months in jail
and fines (KY Rev. Stat. Ann. 434.442). The Kentucky statute
explicitly includes making false written representations for
certain educational achievements, such as a degree, in
employment applications. The states do differ as to how they
treat résumé fraud, but whether it is treated as a civil violation
or as a criminal violation, résumé fraud is a dishonest practice
that should be avoided.
At-will employees should be particularly aware that résumé
fraud provides a justifiable basis for termination that may
undermine otherwise legitimate arguments for wrongful
discharge (or other exceptions to the employment at will
doctrine). For contract employees, résumé fraud is often
considered "just cause" for termination of an employee who
would otherwise be protected from termination by contractual
"just cause" provisions. Finally, in addition to the legal
consequences of résumé fraud, the reputational damage of lying
on a résumé could undermine one’s career prospects as it did for
former Yahoo CEO, Scott Thompson, whose résumé represented
that he had a double major, including a degree in computer
science, from Stonehill College, a degree that was not awarded
from until several years after he graduated. After being exposed
by a Yahoo shareholder, Thompson stepped down from his
position in disgrace (Mackay, 2012).
References
Mackey, M. (2012, May 15). Ex-Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson
and seven other cases of resume fraud. The Huffington Post.
Retrieved from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/15/yahoo-ceo-scott-
thompsons-resume-fraud_n_1516061.htmlWhat is “fraud”?
Fraud is the intentional misrepresentation of a material fact that
is justifiably relied upon by someone to his or her injury. The
false statement inducing the other party’s misunderstanding

6. must regard a material fact about the prospective transaction.
Fraud often involves intentional misrepresentations regarding
ownership of property or one’s financial status.
· Note: Fraud may be an intentional failure to disclose a
material fact that induces another into action which results in
her harm. This may be the case when a legal duty to disclose the
material fact exists.
· Example: Lying about assets or liabilities in order to get credit
or a loan is a common form of fraud.
Discussion: How do feel about the requirement that fraud be
intentional? Should a misrepresentation that is reckless and
unverified be considered fraudulent, even if it is not
intentional? Why or why not?
Practice Question: Daryl is selling a poster bearing the
signature of a known celebrity athlete. Daryl advertises that the
poster is 15-years old and was signed when the athlete was a
rookie. In reality, the poster was signed recently, following the
athlete’s retirement. If someone buys the poster based upon
Daryl’s representations, is there a tortious act? Why or why
not?
https://lti.umuc.edu/contentadaptor/topics/byid/f3d97aa9-6448-
4a84-9550-ef62f7c92201
https://umuc.equella.ecollege.com/file/6aa8bfb8-7053-4fed-
94f6-
2547e454c501/1/web/viewer.html?file=https://umuc.equella.eco
llege.com/file/612a3093-5f74-4ecc-910c-
bbd2fd409f51/1/TheResumeIntroduction.pdf
Employment at Will
Employment at will is a doctrine of common law that allows
either the employee or the employer to terminate an
employment relationship at any time, for any reason, with or
without notice, and even for a morally reprehensible reason, so
long as the ending of the relationship does not fall into an

7. exception to the employment-at-will doctrine.
Employment at will is the prevailing legal doctrine concerning
employment relationship termination in 49 US states (not
Montana). In the overwhelming majority of the United States,
employment at will and its exceptions govern the rules by which
one may legally terminate an employee.
The generally accepted exceptions to employment at will
include
· express contract
· implied contract
· promissory estoppel
· public policy violations
· good faith and fair dealing
We discuss these five exceptions below.
Express Contract Exception
If an employer terminates an employee in violation of the terms
of an express contract between the employer and employee, then
the employee can sue the employer for breach of contract (and,
in some states, wrongful termination).
Examples: An employment contract guarantees that the
employee will be employed by the employer for a definite
duration of time, with cognizable boundaries, such as a "one-
year period" or "for six months." The employer terminates the
employee before the stated period has expired, and that
termination is not otherwise permitted by the contract.
A similar case: An employment contract states that an employee
can be terminated only "for cause" or "for just cause." The
employee is terminated without cause.
Implied Contract Exception
Implied contracts are contracts created by the conduct of the
parties, which include any representations or assurances made
by the employer prior to or during the term of employment. In
some states, an implied contract is an exception to the
employment-at-will doctrine.

8. Example: If an employer provides an employee handbook to a
new employee, the provisions in the handbook may be
considered part of the contractual relationship. Often, such
handbooks outline a procedure for performance review,
discipline, and discharge of the employee. An employer who
fails to live up to procedural obligations prior to discharging an
employee could be liable.
Promissory Estoppel Exception
In many states, promissory estoppel acts as an exception to the
employment-at-will doctrine. That is, when an employer makes
a promise to an employee of employment or a period of
employment, and the employee relies on that promise to his
detriment, and it leads to injustice, then an employee may be
able to have that promise enforced regardless of employment at
will.
Example: John is offered a job with Widget Co. He discusses
with Widget's manager that, to take the job, he needs to move
from California to New Jersey and give up an already lucrative
position with benefits. The manager assures John that he will
have gainful employment and a substantially larger income with
Widget Co. for at least a year if he makes the move. In reliance
on this promise, John quits his job and moves to New Jersey to
begin work at Widget Co. After one week, John is laid off.
Despite being an employee at will, John may be able to recover
under the theory of promissory estoppel.
Public Policy Violations Exception
Most states in the United States prohibit an employer from
firing an employee if the reason for the action violates some
readily accepted public policy. This prohibition prevents an
employer from terminating an employee for exercising a legal
right, including a right contained in state and federal laws; or
for failing to perform an illegal act for the employer.
Examples: Firing an employee for performing some public duty
(showing up to jury duty), for exposing illegal conduct (such as

9. reporting violation of some law to the employer or a
government agency), or for exercising her rights as a US or
state citizen (such as voting) are all against public policy.
This exception to employment at will encompasses the inability
to terminate an employee if doing so would violate her state or
federal statutory rights. If an employee is terminated because of
her race, this may be a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1964, and so an otherwise at-will employee would have a
claim against the employer for violating a federal statute.
Moreover, it is against public policy to terminate an employee
for refusing to commit an illegal act, such as a crime.
Good Faith and Fair Dealing Exception
A minority of states impose upon the employer a duty to
exercise good faith and fair dealing in regard to all employees.
This doctrine, to varying degrees, means that an employer must
treat an employee fairly in the decision to fire her. This
generally means that an employee would violate these duties in
firing an employer without due cause or justification.
The preceding five generally accepted exceptions to
employment at will allow injured parties to seek recovery even
in the face of the employment-at-will doctrine. As such, they
limit the circumstances by which an employer can terminate an
employee.
Business Law: An Introduction by TheBusinessProfessor.com,
Jason M. Gordon & Colleagues has been adapted with
permission from Jason M. Gordon. © Business Professor,
LLC.Step 3: Write Your Memo
First, review how to write a memo. Once you have a sense of
memos in general, use your outline and research notes to
prepare your memo. Be sure to meet the following requirements:
· Using the Badaracco framework and your legal analysis,
prepare a memo for HR.
· Format your memo following the library’s example. You must
also include APA-formatted in-text citations and an APA-
formatted reference list (do not format the body of the memo

10. using APA style, just the reference list). See references and
citations for details.
· Include a specific recommendation on what actions, if any, HR
should take based on your analysis and conclusions.
· The memo should be no more than 10 pages (double spaced,
12-point font; the reference list does not count towards page
limit).
· Title your file using this protocol: yourlastname_King_date.
Relationship Between Consumer Branding and the Choice for
Airliners
(A Case Study of Effectiveness of Branding in Air China)
Student's Name
Course Code and Name
Professor’s Name
Institution’s Name
City, State
Date of submission
Declarations
Declaration by the Student
I declare that this work is original since I compiled it after
conducting research on Air China Company through the analysis
of data obtained from the questionnaires.
Student’s Full Name
Registration Number

11. (Student)
Signature………………………………..
Date………………………………………
Supervisor’s Declaration
This project was done and handed to me as the university
supervisor in an original version by the student signed above.
Name of the Supervisor
(University Supervisor)
Signatures………………………………..
Dates……………………………………….
Dedication
I have the requisite opportunity to dedicate this research my
family and friends for their continued support and
understanding that I have been receiving pursuing this course.
May they receive blessings appropriately.
Acknowledgement
I would wish to thank people who made their contribution
towards my research project and made it successful as
planned.Firstly, I’m thankful for the right to the Almighty who
allowed me to have good health during this project.
Secondly, my sincere gratitude goes to my project supervisor
for devoting his time, valuable knowledge and resources while
guiding and supporting my initiative from the primary steps of
constructing a proper guide for this project to its completion
stages.
Thirdly, my thanks goes to my family members, my friends and
relative for their financial, emotional and material support they
have provided to me throughout entire research project. I also
wish to acknowledge my classmates for maintaining quality
intellectual discussion throughout our course.
Thank You Blessings to All of You
Table of Contents

12. i
ii
iii
iv
vii
viii
1
1
2
2
3
3
3
3
3
4
4
5
5
7
7
7
7
7
8
8
8
8
9
9
9
9
10
10
10

13. 11
11
11
13
13
15
15
15
15
15
16
16
16
16
18
18
18
19
21
22
24
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
28
28
28
28
28
28

14. 28
29
29
34
35
Lists of Table
Table 3.1: Population’s
Sample…………………………………………………………………
16
Table 4.1: Response
Rate……………………………………………………………………
…...18
Table 4.2: Customer Care services as a criterion for the choice
of an Airliner…...…….……...19
Table 4.3: Responses on the question on main criterion that
customers use to choose Airlines...20
Table 4.4: Factors on consumers’ current perception of Air
China’s brand……………………..22
Table 4.5: Responses on the future expectations of service
delivery by Air China……………..23
Table 4.6: The Preferred future Improvements at Air
China……………………………………25
Table 4.7: Regrets on the possibility of the management failing
to implement changes………..26 List of Figure
Figure 2.1: Conceptual
Frameworks…………………………………………………………
…14
Figure 4.1: Response’s

15. Rate……………………….…………………………………………
…18
Figure 4.2: Regrets for encountering ineffective customer care
in Airlines…………………..20
Figure 4.3: Benefits from services that Air China
Provides…………………………………..21
Figure 4.4: Regrets for using Air China’s
brand………………………………………………22
Figure 4.5: Entire Online Booking
Process…………………………………………………….24
Figure 4.6: The Need for Expanding the
Runways…………………………………………….25
Abstract
This project provides analysis of the results of data collected
from flight consumers’ perceptions on Air China’s brand. The
study was set to evaluate the relevance of consumers’
perceptions for the choice of Airliners. The specific Airliner
researched was Air China Company. The main objective was to
find out if the activities of branding undertaken by Air China
are effective for its brand promotional activity. The scope of the
study was the Shanghai International Airport. This Airport
provided a perfect scope for encountering respondents who use
Air China’s flight services both domestic and international.
Respondents were issued with closed-ended questionnaire that
were essential in testing the relevant hypothesis set on the
importance of branding on Air China’s services. The study
revealed that there was a direct relationship between effective
branding and consumers’ perception of Airliners. Furthermore,
the factors that influence the consumer behavior in the choice of
Airliners were identified. These behaviors includes the use of
appropriate customer care services, Improvement of the runways
and training airport staff on better handling of the flight

16. consumers. Most respondents had a view that an airliner can
attract more customers if it offers quick and effective online
booking system. Air China has the mandate to implement
effective online booking to boost its chances of success in
future. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTIONS
Airline Carriers adopt consumer branding as a strategy for
attracting and sustaining adequate number of customers. The
precepts of competition in Airline industry can be sustained is
carriers applies unique consumer branding strategies. The
adoption of unique consumer branding needs is advantageous to
Airliners because customers can identify with different brands
and services associated to such brands (Button, 2015, p. 5). The
management of various Airlines carriers can evaluate the
potential success of their branding strategies by determining the
level of loyalty that customers have concerning their brand. In
case customers have a higher level of loyalty to a particular
brand them the management can conclude that the brand has
positive perception in the market. However, if the number of
customers loyal to a particular Airline Carrier drops over time,
then the management can assume that their branding strategy is
not acceptable to their potential customers. An issue such as
customer satisfaction must be taken into consideration when
adopting and executing a consumer brand in an Airline Carrier
(Kimay & Lee, 2016, p. 234). Customers can show loyalty to a
brand if they feel satisfied of the services provided by a
particular Airline Carrier. Most Airlines strive to attain positive
perception in the Airline industry by incorporating technology
to offer services to their customers. However, the ever changing
customer needs prompts Airline Carriers to spend significantly
in managing their affairs through continuous research and
innovation that improve their brands from the customers’
perspectives.
Some consumers prefer comfort on their travels thus they pay
expensively to attain such attribute (Teece, 2014, p. 172). On
the other hand, some customers prefer less expensive services

17. thus they prefer Airline carriers offering relatively cheaper
flight services (Gillen & Lall, 2014, p. 41). An airliner must
understand its market segment and adopt relevant branding
strategies to attract adequate and sustainable customer levels.
An Airliner (The American Airline) uses branding strategy
entitled ‘’We Know Why you fly’’ (Gursoy, Chen & Kim, 2015,
p. 57). Such branding strategies illicit psychological
preparedness of travellers to use higher class services that the
American Airline offers. Consumers have the chance to pay
expensively for services that an airliner offers due to its use of
psychological branding strategies as is the case of the American
Airliner. Once an Airline carrier scrutinises the market and
develops a branding strategy for its customers, it must adopt
measures to enhance and promote adequate customer
satisfaction (Albers, Koch & Ruff, 2015, p. 49).
1.1 Backgrounds of the Study
Air China is a major airline firm incorporates in China and
operates on an international scale. The company is publicly
traded on Securities exchange markets in Shanghai London and
Hong Kong (Ahmed, Zairi & Almarri, 2016, p. 160). This brand
was created in 1988 by the Chinese government. The sole
mandate for the formation of this company was to provide
intercontinental flights and long haul services. Air China had
replaced the roles of Chinese Aviation Administration of China
(CAAC) of providing intercontinental flights (Alon, Littrell &
Chan, 2009, p. 123). Since the formation of this company, the
government has been instrumental in branding it as the best
airline that offers international flights to and from China. The
government allows this carrier to fly the flag of China on its
international flights. This action is a form of branding and
marketing of this company. Furthermore, this firm joined the
Star Alliance that contains a larger number of carriers such as
Singapore Airlines, Turkish Airline and United Airlines in 2007
(Alderighi, Gaggero & Piga, 2015, p. 42). Association with

18. major airlines in the Star Alliance increased the scope of Air
China's customer levels as witnessed in 2014 when the firm
recorded 900 departures on a daily basis. Consumer behaviour is
critical in analysing how firms such as Air China can offers
services that satisfies the needs of its customers.
1.2 Problem Statements
There is an increase in the level of competition in Airline
Industry in China thus leading to reduction in profit levels
among firms offering flight services. Firms such as Beijing
Capital Airlines and Okay Airways provide similar services to
those of Air China (Zhang & Round, 2014, p. 361). Despite the
increase in customer volumes to over 483 million annually, the
intense competition in Air services requires adoption of proper
consumer branding strategies that can allow a firm such as Air
China to attract adequate passengers (Chen, 2016, p. 479). In
case this firm fails to adopt and sustain proper flight services it
might face reduced profits in future due to intense competition
from rival Airliners in China.
This study is different from similar/ previous studies on
Airliners in China because it examines the potential of
competition that will lead to reduction in profits from Air China
in specific. The new insights that this study will add to the
literature of Airline Industry in China is the need to increase
and promote customer services in Air China as a measure to
counter competition that rocks the Airline Industry. Despite the
government’s support for Air China, there is an increasing level
of liberalisation in most industries in China. The increase in the
level of liberalisation will lead to openness of trade and
commerce (Feenstra & Kee, 2017, p. 5). The concepts of
market’s forces of supply and demand will dictate customers’
choice for various airliners (Rajagopalan & Zhang, 2015, p. 55).
Thus, a firm that enjoys state protection and advertise such as
Air China should understand the dynamics that might tilt its

19. operations (monopoly) in future. The process of improving
consumer perception and offering diligent services are critical
to maintain Air China’s positive brand name in the Airline
Industry in future (Fritsch & Chlebovský, 2017, p. 22). The best
option to ensure that an Airliner succeeds in its activities
depends on its ability to communicate its branding message
effectively to its consumers (Liebhardt, Luetjens & Gollnick,
2016, p.31). Any failure to communicate effective branding
needs to its customers might be detrimental if competition
intensifies in the aviation industry.
1.2.1 Descriptions of the Project
The research project was conducted within a period of three
months to establish the effectiveness of branding in Air China
Company. Primary data relating to this company were essential
to understand the consumers’ perceptions on effectiveness of
the Air China’s brand. Management of Air China has the
responsibility to ensure that they conduct effective advertising
to maintain this brand. International visitors to China can
choose Air China as a brand if the management has
effectiveness in marketing Air China’s brand (Fan, 2006, p.
365). Therefore, this project has determined various activities
that the management of Air China adopted to position this brand
in the international market. The freights services that this firm
offers is a B2C form of business. Passengers and their parcels
are the direct clients that this company targets. This research
project analysed demands that consumers have concerning
services provided by airlines using Air China as a case Airliner.
The level of awareness that targeted customers have for Air
China was be determined to ascertain its potential for future
growth and development in the Aviation industry. The results
obtained from the scrutiny of the responses that the respondents
offered are provided in chapter four of this project. The fact

20. that this research project focused on potential customers who
use flight services allowed a larger and inclusive pool of
respondents. The respondents had chances to offer their views
in line with predetermined questions and answers as presented
in the questionnaires. The rationale for providing questions
specifically to potential flight consumers was targeted to
promote reliability of the results obtained from this research. In
case the project opted for any respondent then it might not be
reliable since some respondents might have little or biased
knowledge of services that Airliners such as Air China offers.
1.3 Aim/ Objectives
The goals/ aims of this research project are divided into two
sections i.e. the main objectives and specific objectives/ targets.
1.3.1 Main Objective
The primary aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness
of branding activities in Air China Company by analysing data
collected through structured questionnaires.
1.3.2 Specific Objective
1. To establish the main criteria that consumers use to choose
Airlines.
2. To explore the consumers’ current perception of Air China
brand.
3. To identify the consumers’ future expectation of service
quality offered by Air China.
4. To explore improvement needs that consumers think is
appropriate for Air China’s brand.

21. 1.4 Research Questions
1. What are the main criteria that consumers use to choose
Airline?
2. Which are the consumers’ current perceptions of Air China’s
brand?
3. What are the consumers’ future expectations of services that
Air China delivers?
4. Which are the areas of improvement that consumers prefer
for Air China’s brand?
1.5 Study’s Justification
The study will assist the improvement of the use of consumer
branding loans in Air China Company to promote customer
loyalty. Flight companies need to understand the principles that
surround a proper barding concept that they apply to maintain a
positive image to submerge competition in Aviation industry. In
addressing the problem of increased competition in flight
services, the research shows correlations between a proper
consumer branding and the possible rate of returns that Airline
firms such as Air China can expect from proper branding
initiatives. The research shows the level of consumer awareness
driven from the use of proper branding initiatives. Areas of
improvement on consumer branding are highlighted to allow the
management to develop adequate and contemporary consumer
branding measures.
The research would help the members of registered Airline
firms especially in China who would like to apply contemporary
barding in understanding what they should do before and after
they design new branding strategies. They would be able to
focus on the current trends and prudently use of consumer
branding measures to enable them achieve better reputation to

22. avert potential future competition in aviation industry in China.
By this argument the research would enrich the senior
management of Air China with adequate and varied skills in
promoting customer loyalty through incorporating consumer
branding. The process of understanding the market and
providing services that meets the demands of flight consumers
would be critical in promoting the profit levels that Air China
would realise from its services.
The management of Airline firms should ensure that they apply
appropriate research in conducting their routine services.
Customers have the chance to identify a firm that offer
appropriate services and maintain loyalty to such firms. This
research is critical to the senior management of Airline firms
since their activities are critical in ensuring that customer
loyalty is attained among flight consumers. Therefore, the
research provides insights into better ways of maintaining
customer loyalty through proper consumer branding.
Additional advantages that this research contributes to people
who might use information from this investigation are outlined
in subsequent sections. First, it elaborates an understanding of
measures that the largest airline company in the second biggest
economy (China) utilizes to wow its customers. Any marketing
student who receives this information can adopt standards that
Air China has in managing their operations to promote local
marketing strategies. Secondly, this project allows marketing
students who might use this information to understand the
carrying capacity of Airliners from China. Therefore, issues
such as export trends through air transport to China can be
established using results from this research. Findings from this
project can be crucial even to the Air China's management. The
management can utilize findings from this research to improve
their areas of weaknesses in branding strategies and attract more
customers.
1.6 Scope of the Study

23. The study was carried out in Shanghai International Airport
located in Beijing city of China. This Airport was selected for
the research due to ease of accessibility and willingness of the
respondents to provide assistance by filling in the structured/
closed-ended questionnaires that were presented to potential
flight consumers. The study involved structured questionnaires
that were administers to the respondents at their free time. The
choice of the scope mentioned in the first sentence was critical
since this Airport has a larger carrying capacity and provides
international and domestic travels. An Airline Carrier such as
Air China has more operations in this Airport relative to other
Airports that provide mostly domestic flights in China. Getting
in touch with intentional travellers using Air China plus
domestic travellers using this same firm was easier through the
choice of Beijing Capital International Airport as a scope of the
study.
1.7 Limitation of Study
Financial resources were not enough in carrying out the
research in diverse regions where the firm operates including its
international destinations such as Turkey and the UK. The
respondents had a tendency of requesting for some upkeep and
payment for the time wasted when filling in the questionnaires
presented to them. Such a tendency made it difficult for the
research to cover adequate number of respondents that would
give a smaller margin of errors when making final assumptions
from the research. However, not all the respondents asked for
some upkeep and compensation for their responses only a few
respondents exhibited such behaviour. The precept that more
respondents would frustrate the research from attaining its
objectives if they asked for unavailable financial advances
meant that just a sample of the respondents would be chosen for
the study.
Language barrier was also a limiting factor in conducting this

24. research. Most of the respondents that were chosen through
random sampling techniques spoke purely Chinese language.
The research couldn’t have a proper manner of communicating
in Chinese thus the level of interaction was reduced due to this
problem. However, a few respondents could speak in both
Chinese and English languages. Such respondents made it easier
to enhance the research process since they assisted in filling
their questionnaires quick and faster due to less logicality
behind interpretation.
Time was a one of the limiting factor as there was inadequate
time to the meet various tasks’ deadlines. The result of little
span made the research to be conducted within a single Airport
where Air China Company operates ignoring other major
Airports such as Beijing Nanyuan and Wayishan Airports where
the firm operates too. This criterion gave little concern to more
Airports where respondents would be having different
perceptions of Air China’s barding strategies. Probably, there
would have been a different perspective on the findings if many
Airports were used a scopes for the study. The findings from
many variables could have given a more critical result than the
findings from fewer variables obtained from a single Airport.
In solving the issues of financial inadequacy, there was a
prudent use of the resources that were available which enable
the research reach completion as stipulated. In cases that were
emergent, there was the application of funding from relatives
and close friends who sponsored the project leading it to a
critical phases of completion within the required time. The
problem of possible language barrier was resolved using the
services of translators who assisted the respondents in
translating the questions and filling them correctly. The
translators were predominantly Chinese who could speak proper
Chinese language and assist their fellows to understand the
content of the questionnaires. In solving the time problem there
was a fundamental time schedule that was developed to assist

25. the researcher in conducting the research to completion within
the stipulated time span of three months. The schedule
developed under action plan ensured that most fundament and
critical paths of the project were given a due priority. The
access of the information as per the schedule became quite
automatic and easier to approach thus leading to better data
entry which fostered better analysis.
1.8 Assumptions of the Study
The study assumed that, all the data collected through
structured/ closed-ended questionnaires were free of bias and
gave the clear indications of a reflection on the perceptions of
flight consumers on effectiveness of Air China’s branding. The
training that was given to the respondents before they could
start filling the questionnaires was of much reliance of the
validity and the possible reliability of their responses. Even
though the study was only conducted in Beijing Capital
International Airport in Beijing City of China, the reliability of
the findings from the study has been generalised. The
generalisation represents the perceptions that flight consumers
have concerning the effectiveness of Air china’s branding
initiatives despite their localities.
1.9 Definitions of Terms
Airline Carriers- These are aircrafts or planes that enhance
commercial air transport services in domestic or international
scale. Airline Carriers enhances flights across various terrains
through the Air.
Flight Consumers- These are people/ customers who use air
transport as their means of accessing domestic and international
destinations. They prefer Air travel due to its safe and efficient
nature.
Funding- Is the provision of finances that enhance operations of
a firm. Funding can occur through direct contributions to a firm
or through the purchase of a firm’s shares in the foreign
exchange market.

26. Product Differentiation- is the process of value addition that
firms provide on their products to improve their attractiveness
to prospective consumers. Customers have the ability to choose
a firm’s product over the other competitors using different
features on their products.
Consumer Behaviour- is the prospective buying patterns that
consumers portray over the products or services that a company
provides to its consumers. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE’ S
REVIEWS2.0 Introductions
This chapter provides literature on what has been researched in
terms of consumer branding strategies and their effectiveness
especially to Airline companies. It reviews secondary sources
relating to the branding activities and appropriate consumer
barding needs that firms operating in Airline industry needs to
adopt for success in a competitive business environment. By
reviewing this information, it gives a highlight to the possible
findings or solutions to the problem area.
2.1 Consumer Branding
Consumers needs to have a positive perception of the products
or services that a firm offers (Bottomley & Holden, 2012, p.
494). Firms can apply consumer branding concept to allow them
offer products or services that can motivate consumers to
purchase such products or services on a regular basis. Firms that
fail to offer effective consumer branding have higher chances of
attracting lower sales turnover since most customers don’t
embrace their products or services (Rao, Agarwal & Dahlhoff,
2014, p. 126). The view of consumer branding is that a firm
offer its services in line with the changing needs of consumers
other than relying solely on corporate branding (Holt, 2012, p.
70). A firm that relies heavily on corporate branding might fail
to incorporate the needs of its potential clients (Berens, Riel &
Bruggen, 2010, p. 35). Once a firm fails to address the issues
that potential clients needs they have higher chances of failing
in future if serious competitors join the industry. Changes i n

27. economic realities and perceptions in different economies may
initiate changes in competition in different industries
(Thompson, Rindfleisch & Arsel, 2016, p. 50). Therefore, firms
must embrace consumer branding as a measure of countering
negative effects of competition that might occur due to entry of
new firms in an industry that was originally monopolistic in
nature. There is certain importance of consumer branding that
enables firms such as Airliners to maintain customer loyalty.
Such importance is discussed in the subsequent sections.
2.1.1 Promotes Identity
Identity is a critical aspect in marketing the products or services
that a particular firm offers (Wood, 2010, p. 662). Customers
have the mandate to choose particular products or services
because they identify with such products. A firm that has
positive reputation has the ability to create brand that most
customers prefer (Balachander & Ghose, 2013, p. 4). For
instance, Airline companies have the ability to offer similar
services if they have relatively equal capital outlay. However, a
firm that markets its brand has a higher chance of controlling
more market share since most customers can identify its
products and services among competing brands. Once a firm
designs its products and services, it has a mandate to ensure that
its logos and trademarks are protected against any form of
malice from unscrupulous competitors (Harris & De-
Chernatony, 2011, p. 441). Copy rights and patents can be
applied by firms to protect the identity of their brands from any
severe competition in an industry.
2.1.2 Promotes Response to customer needs
Consumer branding aims to respond to the needs that customer’s
exhibit concerning products and services that a particular firm

28. offers (Wilder, Collier & Barnes, 2014, p. 446). Firms that have
strong branding strategies have the mandate to conduct market
research and determine the contemporary needs of their
potential and actual customers. The nature of products and
services that a firm offers must coincide with the perceived
needs of their customers. Consumers …