Strategy Simplified S21E17: BCG Candidate-Led Case: Should This Airline Go Credit Card Only?
Dec 3, 2025
In this session, Tauseef Charanya, a former BCG principal and case coach, guides guest Bao through a live case on whether an airline should adopt credit-card-only in-flight payments. They discuss critical topics, such as passenger segmentation, the financial impacts of cash removal, and operational efficiencies. Tauseef shares insights on structuring analyses under pressure, and Bao presents a compelling recommendation by balancing cost savings against potential revenue loss, all while navigating customer experience concerns.
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Why Gamma Likely Switched To Card-Only
- Gamma Airline likely switched to card-only to reduce operational friction and costs.
- Bao hypothesizes Gamma gained efficiency and possibly higher purchase volume by removing cash.
Start With A Tight Clarifying Question Set
- Begin cases by restating the problem and asking two to three clarifying questions.
- Bao models this well by confirming scope and asking about in-flight offerings and class differences.
Build A Hypothesis-Led Framework
- Structure frameworks around customer, revenue, cost, and non-monetary risks.
- Bao orders analysis sequentially and ties each branch back to his hypothesis about costs and revenue.