Students should apply to learn in crisis management, organizational culture, and leadership to discuss problems within Boeing, assess whether the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA's) penalty is sufficient, and brainstorm how the company might be able to recover. 

The Issue

Boeing is scrambling to rehabilitate its image and restore trust in the wake of two crashes of the company's 737 MAX that killed 346 people total, and after internal messages showed employees boasting about skirting safety regulations. The FAA has proposed a USD 5.4 million fine for the model's defective parts, though not the flight control software that was deemed responsible for the crashes. Boeing also fired its CEO without severance and has introduced new leadership to signal the company's new direction.

Why Is It News?

In October of 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 crashed shortly after departing Indonesia, killing 189 people. The following March, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed shortly after takeoff, killing 157 passengers. Both planes were Boeing's 737 MAX jets, which were grounded worldwide. A joint-agency task force found fault with both Boeing and the FAA. The FAA had relied on Boeing employees vouching for the plane's safety; those employees did not explain the system adequately, and the FAA lacked the ability to scrutinize their claims. But Boeing's oversights are made worse by messages revealing employees bragged about skirting regulations and refusing to run simulation tests, leading some to conclude the company needs a broader cultural shift.

Please follow the case analysis framework to analyze this case. One-page executive summary. You may need to answer the below questions from your writing report. Please do the necessary research for the case analysis.

Is the FAA's penalty steep enough considering the magnitude of Boeing's errors? If not, what further actions do you think should take place?

What red flags do the leaked employee emails raise about the organizational culture within Boeing?

What does Boeing need to do in order to truly regain the trust of regulators and the public, and to demonstrate a commitment to safety? Is the change in leadership sufficient?