*Southwest Airlines is known for their unique culture within the airline industry. Herb Kelleher has been the leader of Southwest Airlines, and he is responsible for initiating the unique culture at Southwest Airlines. Kelleher is an effective communicator, and he has earned the trust and loyalty of his employees over the years. The first year was a tough year for Southwest Airlines, however, after that year Kelleher hasn’t had to lay off an employee. The business strategy is “low cost airline provider with frequent service and no frills to customers who drive most of the time instead of flying” (Smith, 2004, p.27). However, there are three main approaches that Southwest follows to create their unique corporate culture and that is from their …show more content…
This business model is similar with other carriers, however, their unique twist is what makes them unique. The two part business model is listed below: 1. Identify customers you want to serve- Southwest’s short haul, high frequency, low fare business model caters to the customers who most often drive rather than fly to their destination. Southwest prices their flights so the aforementioned type of customer may fly rather than drive. 2. Be the low cost provider- Southwest offers frequent but no-frills service. Southwest does not serve food on their flights. Southwest only flies one model of airplane. As stated in the article (Smith, 2004, p. 28). Other company’s seem to always try and go above and beyond. This can sometimes leave their employees behind as well. Other airlines could take this approach, and focus on what they can do, and give the other time in making sure their employees are taken care …show more content…
Kelleher and his management team accentuate an easy going and stress free corporate style that gives their employees a sense of independence. Southwest’s quality program isn’t just a different flavor of the month, it is putting the quality and time into their corporate culture. Kelleher and the management team makes their employees the number one customer first and their passengers second (Smith, 2004). This would definitely be a hard challenge for other companies to accommodate at their business. This is a mindset that the owner of a company needs to be implemented downwards to