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20 180 Chaos as soon as he set foot in Air Canada after having spent a year at the Université du Québec, Pierre Jeanniot saw that the restructuring recommended by the McKinsey experts had not only transformed the company’s entire structure, but had also disrupted the mentalities and the culture of the government corporation. Already, the arrival of a francophone as chairman of the board had upset much of the upper management, but now the divisions, the directorships, the vice-presidencies, the groups and sub-groups were being reconceived from top to bottom. Some positions were redefined, others abolished and new ones created, without anyone quite knowing why. The hierarchical and managerial lines were being intertwined, and rumour had it that the ‘Frenchies’—not to say ‘frogs’n—were taking over key posts, and, it was feared, would push aside the anglophones currently in place! These changes imposed from on high were alien to the basic culture of Air Canada, a Crown corporation where the employees had acquired rights as quasi civil servants in the federal government. In short, there existed an immense technological challenge and a great deal of resistance in human terms. The vice-presidency of Computer Systems and Services that Pierre Jeanniot had inherited was directly responsible to Air Canada’s new President and ceo. John Baldwin had been shifted from his position as deputy minister of transport to this key post at the same time as Yves Pratte had been made chairman of the board. Unlike Pratte, he knew aviation well, and had a good reputation at Air Canada, but his management experience was strictly that of a senior state bureaucrat . The two upper managers soon began to rely on Pierre The origin of the term ‘frogs’ to designate the French goes back to the time of Elizabeth I, Queen of England, who was inclined to give her favourites the names of animals. She apparently called a young French ambassador“my dearest frog” when he impressed her with his elegant leaps during a dance at court. The nickname, which had no pejorative connotations in the beginning, shifted in meaning to apply to the French in an insidious way. In Canada, anglophones gave it a vexatious twist to refer to French Canadians, while the latter responded by characterizing the English as têtes carrées (squareheads) or wasps (White Anglo-Saxon Protestants). 181 Chaos Jeanniot, who had returned to the fold after an absence of more than a year, and who had, like them, a fresh perspective on what might happen. The new vice-president of Computer Systems and Services had before him an exciting challenge, because in addition to its bringing together everything in the company that was computer-related, the job was taking him into uncharted territory . He was asked to oversee the implementation of an entirely new system of on-line reservations supported by the most advanced technologies. At the time, only a few competing companies (American Airlines and Air France) had begun to explore this new, real-time computer field, and Pierre Jeanniot, the hands-on researcher, wanted to be the one in charge of the dossier at Air Canada. He wanted it to be done well—better than the competitors. To successfully take up the challenge that the McKinsey consultants had laid out for his division, he had to get his troops behind him. He first met with the employees to give them a short briefing on the new management philosophy being proposed. He outlined what he expected of them, and what should result from their efforts. Specifically, he foresaw greater involvement on the part of each individual, greater accountability on the part of managers, decisions based on a maximum of information, an organization into teams allowing for an exhaustive analysis of alternative solutions and, finally, greater profitability for the projects. He wanted in particular to have them share in his enthusiasm for the challenges facing them. He said that he felt privileged to have been assigned to such a stimulating sector. Not only was civil aviation experiencing spectacular growth, but the field of computer applications was growing even faster—much faster. The two combined made for exceptional opportunities, he told them, and an environment as stimulating as it was dynamic. Reminding them that the division was directly responsible to the president and ceo, testifying to the importance being accorded it, he asserted that he wanted to speak for them to upper management and to ensure that they played an...

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