Why Vuyani Jarana is doomed to fail at SAA, even in the best-case scenario
The only success the airline’s new CEO could achieve would be to close it down altogether
Good Luck to Vuyani Jarana, new CEO of SAA. Unfortunately, he will need much more than that. Why, oh why, did he agree to take the reins at SAA? None of his Vodacom experience, where the main objective is to make a profit, will be of much use. He will fail, of that there can be little doubt. Let me explain, as I doubt anyone at SAA knows why. SAA’s glory days were in the last century when it thrived on a domestic monopoly, limited global services into Africa and apartheid boycotts. None of these conditions exists today, however, and now, in the 21st century, SAA is irrelevant. Prior to 1992, the domestic market was highly regulated. Private airlines were limited to operating on secondary routes, leaving SAA with a monopoly on the primary routes. After deregulation in 1992, SAA tried every means to eliminate competition on its domestic routes, first by purchasing and shutting down new entrants (Flitestar and Sun Air), and then by illegal, anticompetitive commercial conduct. These att...
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