Assessment of Southwest Airlines Corporate Culture
An Assessment of Southwest Airlines Corporate Culture February 2004 An Assessment of Southwest Airlines Corporate Culture The events of Sept. ... Major businesses had to change their organizational culture to survive and many other companies could not survive the economic decline. ... However, Southwest Airlines was able to do more than survive the tragedy, it was able to flourish. According to Triangle Business Journal, of all the major airline companies, Southwest Airline was the only one to remain consistently profitable since the Sept. ... In fact, Southwest Airlines is the only major airline company that has been profitable since 1973 (Stanley, 1998). The purpose of this paper is to dissect the company culture of Southwest Airlines and examine what is behind its success. ... We will look at leadership, role modeling, training, rewards, status symbols, and motivation within Southwest. ... Southwest Airline’s corporate headquarters in Dallas epitomizes how much they value employees: At the front entrance there is a trophy case prominently displayed the Triple Crown Award for five consecutive years, the U. ... Department of Transportation has awarded Southwest Airlines with having the fewest customer complaints, best baggage handling, and best on-time performance. As a result of receiving this award for five consecutive years, Herb Kelleher, Chairman of Southwest, promised employees that casual wear would be permanent at Southwest (Allenbaugh, 2002, p. ... Southwest Airlines has an environment like no other; it clearly demonstrates its commitment to both their internal and external customers. ... While other airlines have faced difficult times in recent years, Southwest has experienced continued growth and has had no layoffs. Its relaxed culture is a reflection of unconventional Chief Executive Office Herb Kelleher, who encourages informality and wants staff to have fun at their jobs (Anonymous, 2002). ... 11, 2001 tragedy, Southwest has actually added employees yet still operates as a very lean organization with the fewest number of employees per aircraft, and the most passengers per employee compared to the rest of the airline industry (McNerney, 1996). ... In evaluating Southwest Airlines’ organizational systems and procedures it is evident that the lack of formality within the entire company works.