British Petroleum Case Study

The purpose of this paper is to show how companies deal with an array of issues and the steps managers take to solve problems. The focus of this paper will be on the Deepwater Horizon oilrig, which exploded and sunk into the Gulf of Mexico in April 20, 2010. During the explosion, approximately eleven people were reported missing and were assumed dead. It is undetermined when British Petroleum (BP) might have some sort of resolution to the issue, which based on the size and impact to the environment and economy. The problem BP has experienced since the explosion was a blowout preventer (BOP) that failed. The failed BOP has caused a horrible oil leak that is gushing from the ocean floor. The estimated oil leak into the ocean was approximately1, 000 barrels or 42,000 gallons per day; however, the number skyrocketed from the initial estimates.

On May 13, 2010, gallon of oil leaked into the ocean increased to 70,000 barrels per day, or 2,940,000 gallons. The amount of oil that leaked into the Gulf of Mexico from the incident was seen as one of the worst oil spills in U.S history. The previous oil spill in U.S history was the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, which occurred on March 24, 1989. In comparison, the Valdez spill lost 250,000 barrels of oil, or 10,500,000 gallons. The Valdez oil spill was completely clean up in 1992 (The Valdez Oil Spill). From the estimated numbers, the BP oil spill quadruples the Valdez spill in a matter of days. Given the fact that the Valdez oil spill took approximately three years to clean up, one can only speculate as to how long it might take to clean up the effects of the Deepwater Horizon. The major problem that BP had to deal with was how to control and stop the Deepwater Horizon leak. BP leaders consulted with several companies and experts to determine the best approach to stop the oil spill (Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill).

Since April 22, 2010, BP has utilized the planning process and tried to implement several different strategies. While the typical planning process might take several weeks or months, BP had to speed this process up. BP goal was to try to minimize the impact to the Gulf of Mexico and the surrounding environment. Planning is necessary to help drive a structured process for making decisions about the goal they are trying to reach. There are six main steps involved in a formal planning process, which are situational analysis, alternative goals and plans, goal and plan evaluation, goal and plan selection, implementation, and monitor and control. (Bateman & Snell, 2012)

Situational analysis

The first step in the planning process is situational analysis. This is when all relevant information about the plan is gathered, interpreted, and summarized all information relevant to the planning issue under consideration. In this situation, it most likely included studying past events, the current conditions and trying to forecast future