Speeches and Presentations from Southwest Leaders
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Colleen Barrett, Southwest Airlines' President |
Known for her down-to-earth, conversational nature, Colleen Barrett, Southwest Airlines’ President, had an El Paso audience of 350 plus hanging on her every word and cracking up about her unique outlook on life. Recently, Colleen addressed The Paso Del Norte Group, comprised of local community and business Leaders, at the Camino Real Hotel in downtown El Paso, Texas.
Colleen, who follows Southwest co-founder Herb Kelleher’s philosophy of taking our business seriously but not taking ourselves too seriously, described herself as a “Yankee from Vermont” and a “good ridden Irish Catholic” who came to Texas forty years ago. Not only did Colleen share funny tidbits about herself with the group, but also talked about Southwest Airlines’ Cultural and Leadership philosophy. She outlined the simple philosophy that has made Southwest successful for so many years.
Before she delved into Southwest’s philosophy, Colleen thanked the El Paso community for being a part of the Southwest Family. Southwest began service to El Paso on June 30, 1977, with six daily nonstop flights to Dallas. At that time, El Paso was the eighth city added to Southwest’s system.
Today, the airline has 35 daily nonstop destinations to 11 cities with additional direct or connecting service to 47 cities.
Colleen described to the group what you immediately see when you walk into Southwest’s headquarters – Southwest’s mission statement along with a personal message addressed to its Employees. The mission of Southwest Airlines is dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and Company Spirit. The Employee message reads: “The People of Southwest Airlines are the creators of what we have become – and of what we will be. Our People transformed an idea into a legend. That legend will continue to grow only so long as it its nourished – by our People’s indomitable Spirit, boundless energy, immense goodwill, and burning desire to excel. Our thanks – and our love – to the People of Southwest Airlines for creating a marvelous Family and a wondrous airline!”
Both messages communicate what makes the Company so successful – its People. “Thirteen officers created the mission statement and fought over it for three weeks until the final version was approved,” she says. As to the personal message to Employees, Colleen revealed how Herb personally created the message to communicate the significance of what the Company was trying to accomplish.
In essence, the philosophy of Southwest can be immediately seen on its walls literally. Along with the mission statement and Employee message, Colleen shared how the airline’s building walls at its Headquarters reflect Southwest’s philosophy.
Colleen was in charge of decorating the airline’s Headquarters. Since she didn’t have a big decorating budget to work with, she focused on what mattered most to Southwest – its Employees. “I didn’t spend any money on art because our art is our People,” she says. “I wanted our Headquarters to be an open family scrapbook celebrating life.”
In the Southwest Culture, the main focus has always been the Employee. “We hire People to live the Southwest Way. They must possess a Warrior Spirit, lead with a Servant’s Heart, and have a Fun-LUVing attitude,” Colleen says. “We hire People who fight to win, work hard, are dedicated, and have a passion for Customer Service. We won’t hire People if something about their behavior won’t be a Cultural fit. We hire the best. When our new hires walk through the door, our message to them is you are starting the flight of your life.”
The most important Customer in the airline’s mind is its Employees. When it comes to its Employees, Southwest empowers them. “When you empower People to make a positive difference everyday, you allow them to decide,” Colleen says. “Most guidelines are written to be broken as long as the Employee is leaning toward the Customer. We follow the Golden Rule and try to do the right thing and think about our Customer.”
For Southwest, it’s all about personal relationships whether it’s with its Employees or Customers. “For our Customers, our Employees become the People and faces that represent Southwest. This is where the relationship starts.” Colleen shared with the audience that it’s not unusual to get letters or phone calls from longstanding Customers who ask about our Employees.
As Colleen emphasized through her conversation, the goal is to maintain that Customer relationship by being proactive with Customer communication. “We over communicate,” she says. Specifically, she shared how Southwest is best at contacting its Customers when something irregular happens. “There is lots of trauma in the airline business. We try to gauge the pulse of our Customers,” Colleen says. For any irregular operations, she wants to know about the incident within 24 hours. In turn, she wants the Customers who experienced a severe disruption in their flights to have a letter from Southwest Airlines within three days. “Our biggest challenge is proactively getting to them before they get to us,” she says.
Colleen, the only female airline President, summed up Southwest’s Cultural and Leadership philosophy by saying “it’s not rocket science.” Most importantly, Colleen revealed the biggest secret of Southwest Airlines – The People of Southwest are the heart and soul of the airline.
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