Organization\'s Philosophy Assessing the Culture of Southwest

¶ … Organization's Philosophy

Assessing the Culture of Southwest Airlines

airline to never declare bankruptcy and stabilize its customer base during recessionary periods over the last ten years, Southwest Airlines has consistently been able to translate their unique vision, mission, and values into consistently profitable performance (Rhoades, 2006). The mission statement of Southwest Airlines is dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and Company Spirit (Strategic Direction, 2005).

Company Culture

The culture of Southwest Airlines is highly egalitarian in nature, designed to enable a high degree of information and knowledge exchange due to the flat layers and small span of control (Hardage, 2006). The founders of Southwest deliberately constructed an organizational structure contributes to rapid collaboration and openness of communication (Rhoades, 2006). The culture is also anchored in the highly non-conformist nature of the founder and CEO Herb Kelleher who infuses an underdog mentality throughout the entire company while at the same time underscoring the need for exceptional customer service (Lee, 1995). Mr. Kelleher and his co-founders deliberately set out to create an organization that would celebrate the uniqueness and value of each employee, while putting service to customers and the delivery of exceptional experiences as the highest priority of all corporate values (Lubans, 2009). The result is a company that has defied a contracting, highly regulated industry and continued to grow despite economic turbulence over the last several years. Southwest deliberately planned an organizational structure that would allow for stable, profitable growth based on strong foundation of values (Hardage, 2006).

Southwest Airlines' Type of Communication

Early on, Southwest Airlines' senior management realized that the accuracy and speed of communication would be critical for their profitable growth. The organizational culture was deliberately designed to provide recognition and rewards to those that were quick to contribute and help their co-workers, and the culture slowly began to deeply value this attribute above all others. Employees were urged to serve each other just as quickly if not more quickly than customers (Sadri, Lees, 2001). Political infighting, always a reality within any organization, was minimized by having shared metrics of performance that sought to reward only those goals attainable with intensive shared effort (Rhoades, 2006). The result was an organizational structure that delivered exceptional results and the attainment of complex, highly demanding objectives over time (Strategic Direction, 2005).

Southwest Airlines Values Form the Foundation of the Company