Southwest Airlines Case

Abstract:

This following study will attempt to convey to its reader the successful and often innovative manner in which Southwest Airlines Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly leads his team. He is a man often seen by "outsiders" as being eccentric, to say in the least. The case study seeks to illustrate the importance of acknowledging, redefining and encouraging true cultural growth within an organization. Moreover, it will demonstrate how this "mastery" of personality traits and cultural development can- and does- bring about undeniably high levels of job satisfaction in a firm's "family..." and enormous profit margins in its inherent business scope.

The story of Mr. Kelly and Southwest was new to this researcher. Much like would be the case for a fully vetted and screened juror with no prior knowledge of- say, a high profile crime case- the assigned research here was conducted with no pre-conceived notions or judgments. This open-ended approach to the case study of Gary Kelly and Southwest Airlines revealed the fascinating story of a man who led a commercial airliner to the top with a highly energetic, fluid and innovative style of leadership. Under the leadership of Gary Kelly, Southwest Airlines grew to phenomenal levels of success, while fostering a genuine environment among its employees of cultural commitment and a resulting demonstrable overall success for the company.

Before analyzing the Southwest Airlines data, it is important that some basic terms are explored and defined. For example, what exactly is culture in a corporation? It can be best explained as the perceptions of employees and how they affect the overall view of those working for a firm. As explained in the text, Organizational Behavior and Management, these perceptions have "worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems (Ivancevich/Konopaske/Matteson, 2012)." The relevance of this culture- and its implications- to the savvy Chief Executive Officer, or CEO, quickly becomes clear when the strategic value of this perceived "state of affairs" is made central to the operation. After all, the CEO is the strategic planner for the company. As a U.S. Air Force leadership manual eloquently states, "strategic leaders have the best perspective, because of their position in the organization, to see

the dynamics of the culture, what should remain, and what needs transformation. This is the essence of strategic success (af.mil, 2013)."

Of appropriate consideration would be, of course, the firm's stated vision or mission statement. On its own website, Southwest describes the key to a company's success as being attributed to culture, or "the development, improvement, and refinement of the originality, individuality, identity, and personality of a given people (southwest.com, 2014)," This refreshingly upbeat mission statement is only a small example of how Southwest, under Kelly's leadership, has made the firm one where its cultural composition is the baseline for success and excitement for all of it employees. In fact, the parameters of success- as outlined in the textbook-are all clearly and positively affected by the ethos of cultural celebration. These include productivity measures, efficiency, employee satisfaction and an ability of the firm to adapt (Ivancevich/Konopaske/Matteson, 2014).

A final note on the overall success of Southwest Airlines can be addressed before the research transitions specifically to Mr. Kelly's performance and style as a CEO. It was reported by the Washington Post in 2012 that the company was experiencing extremely high levels of success, which could be owed to a dynamic and successful company culture. It stated that "employees act differently when there aren't any managers around, but with a great company culture, employees will be motivated, regardless of management's presence or absence (WashingtonPost.com, 2012)," as Southwest Airlines has managed to do with its workforce. The

measure of success by the airline itself is also very clear- again on its own website. It states that "Southwest Airlines achieved record revenues of $17 Billion in 2012, tripling the organization's revenue over the last decade (Southwest.com, 2012)." This relatively young commercial airliner has quickly and easily soared to the top in its class. Moreover, the individual, group and organizational levels of performance in its ranks are all committed to the high standards of ability, skill and attitude within the firm's day-to-day operations... just like its CEO, Gary Kelly.

When a researcher analyzes the success of failure of a corporation, it is inevitable that the "types" of people working there come into play. This essentially describes the personalities of the people the firm's managers chose to be employees (and we must remember that these managers have personality types too). Along with the previously discussed commitment to cultural value, personality type placement and development can also have significant impact on whether the organization accomplishes its goals... and this certainly holds true when considering the kind of personality possessed by the Chief Executive Officer as well. However, before studying the personality traits of Mr. Kelly himself, it is now appropriate to itemize the dimensions of personality in the workplace. This will form a baseline in understanding how his own style of leading has sky-rocketed the company into fabulous levels of success.

Authors Ivancevich, Konopaske and Matteson clearly outline the "Big Five Personality Dimensions" in the text book Organizational Behavior and