Southwest Airlines values leadership in the organization and has assigned a specifc person to take special care o this matter and take ull charge o the company’s leadership program its CEO since 2!" Colleen #arrett$ %irst" #arrett ensures a special &ond with all employees o Southwest Airlines$ She does this through regular visits in all o the company’s locations" individual meetings with its employees" consistent sending o &irthday cards and greetings during any&ody’s &irthday as long as they are employees o Southwest Airlines" and acknowledgement o any special events$ 'his kind o &road(&ased development targets the entire width and &readth o the organization as it pertains to leader development" leadership development" generic development" and customized development$ #arrett leads via the e)ample o a positive role model$ *n this regard" leader development pertains to the e)pansion o a person’s capacity to &e e+ective in leadership roles and processes$ ,eanwhile" leadership development is defned as the ocus on an organizations capa&ility to get the work done through its many leaders$ -eneric development pertains to ocus on education and learning the skills that ena&le employees to e+ectively conduct their day(to(day activities and take care o their coworkers$ %inally" customized development pertains to a highly individualized coaching and mentoring scheme or the company’s e)ecutives$ .ith personal concern rom the CEO and targeting all parts o the organization in all levels" Southwest Airlines has a top(down approach to leadership development$ 'his makes the CEO well aware on the strengths and weaknesses o the organization through constant eed&acks rom each individual employee$ 'hus" #arrett is in a &etter position to determine Southwest Airlines leadership needs through her &rand o hands(on management$ Second" #arrett sees to it that the company’s commitment to good leadership culture within the organization starts with the hiring process and developed urther upwards$ *ndividuals are careully selected or their characteristics and 2
personalities that ft in the company’s culture$ 'hose who do not ft in are immediately replaced$ /ikewise" clear instructions and open communication o the company’s e)pectations are conveyed rom the very start$ One characteristic that is very important to Southwest Airlines development program is the willingness to learn$ 'he a&sence o motivation and readiness to change or improvement is an indicator that a potential employee does not ft in the company’s culture$ 'wo" another important characteristic is the a&ility to learn$ 'his re0uires the right com&ination o intelligence and personality traits such as good smiling dispositions or Southwest Airlines rontline employees who have constant contacts with its customers$ 'hree" another signifcant actor lies with the company itsel and not on any individual$ 'his reers to the opportunity to practice and learn or access to developmental e)periences$ .ithout these practical e)periences" no amount o classroom(type lecture will create progress in the leadership skills o Southwest Airlines employees$ %inally" our" the company makes sure that its culture supports and sustains learning and development$ *t can &e discerned that Southwest Airlines keeps a careul &alance o development within the organization$ *t re0uires two actors o learning rom its employees as well as provides two actors o learning rom its end$ Simply" the employee(side actors o learning are the willingness to learn and the a&ility to learn$ ,eanwhile" the company(side actors or learning are opportunity to learning and application o learnt skills into practice and support and sustenance o learning and development mechanisms$ 'hird" Southwest Airlines provides a range o development programs such as ormal leadership training or everyone including rontline employees" to presentation &y outside consultants" leadership &riefngs" and communication a&out leadership in company &ulletin$ ,oreover" these are augmented &y leadership topics in regular management(employee interactions and demonstrations o the company’s leadership principles through positive role modeling$ 1ence"
Southwest Airlines develops its leaders in three steps$ %irst" it communicates its values and principles through a positive role model in all levels o the organization$ Second" it ensures that the corporate culture o leadership &egins with the employee hiring and selection process$ %inally" third" it provides the necessary mechanisms and resources to promote and sustain the organizational culture$
2. )#' & ')e %ole o3 (l'(%e #!$ 4' ! ')e &(e&& o3 ')e o-p#!, Southwest Airlines has ade0uately leveraged the American culture as well the advantages o having a woman CEO and successully incorporated these into the organization$ %or instance" the American culture o ease in controversial case discussions and open eed&ack worked e+ectively or Southwest Airlines$ 'he CEO has taken a personal responsi&ility to talk and discuss with all employees in all locations o the company on a regular &asis$ 'his has resulted in frst hand awareness as well as immediate eed&ack which made the organization very adaptive to changes that ensured its success or 3 consecutive years$ #arrett’s &rand o intensive eed&ack and developmental relationship which is ocused on individual perormers rom a top(down approach ena&led Southwest Airlines to &e very competitive and profta&le or 0uite a long time$ ,oreover" #arrett has leveraged her gender advantages well in the company’s progressive developmental program$ Studies show that women tend to outperorm their male counterparts in 4 degree eed&acks$ O course" the clear communication o Southwest Airlines e)pectations as well as its rewards and punishment scheme or the right cultural ft appear to &e the main ingredients or its success$ %or instance" its hiring and training policy makes sure that those who do not ft do not get hired or do not stay long$ 5e)t" it has a Culture Committee that 3
preaches and teaches the company’s uni0ue culture$ /ikewise" the company has its own leadership language$ %inally" it has strong training programs" promotions rom within" and the telling and retelling o many stories which makes Southwest Airlines culture" principles and values its pillars o strength or 3 consecutive years o consistent profta&ility$
