Kenya Airways External Stakeholders’ Perception of the Airline’s Crisis Communication Strategies

Abstract

There exists a gap in empirical evidence in Africa on crisis communication strategies and the manner in which they affect the formation of perceptions by stakeholders. This study of perceptions is crucial because what stakeholders say about an organization affect the manner in which they flourish and has a great impact on their reputation and corporate image. This study sought to assess Kenya Airways external stakeholders’ perceptions of the airline’s crisis communication strategies; which formed its main purpose. The study has three objectives which guided its approach. They were; i) to establish Kenya Airways passengers’ views on the crisis communication strategies of the airline ii) to determine the views of Kenya Airways passengers regarding the timeliness of the airline’s crisis communication strategies iii) to assess the impact of Kenya Airway’s crisis communication strategies on passenger patronage of the airline. The study majorly relied on the Situational Crisis Communication Theory (SCCT) and the Attribution theories to support its arguments and findings. The study used the phenomenological research design to collect qualitative data from Kenya Airways passengers. The sampling techniques used were purposive and snowball sampling techniques to a sample size of 12 participants. Data was collected through interviews which was done of Kenya Airways passengers. This data was later analyzed through a thematic analysis which was most suitable for the synthesis of data collected. Some of the key findings in this study attributed to the fact that a majority of Kenya Airways passengers hold negative perceptions about the airline owing to the lack of empathy they perceive from their crisis communication strategies and the lack of accommodative measures to cater for their needs during crisis. Consequently, the study concluded that Kenya Airways should be more concerned about the perceptions their stakeholders hold about them by channeling that feedback as a recommendation to enhance its operations. Further recommendations were geared towards Kenya Airways building a robust complaints management system and enhancing its feedback collection mechanism during crisis. Such measures are likely to positively impact perception formation of the airline which is more beneficial to it as a corporate.