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Essay / A Look at Southwest Airlines - 2987
IntroductionEvery entrepreneur would have come across the success story of “The Southwest Airlines” one day. The founder, Herb Kelleher, in one of his interviews with CNBC, mentions that there were key moments in the history of the airline where things could have gone wrong, but he found original solutions that not only saved his business, but made it prosper. When Southwest started in 1971, it was simply a small regional carrier connecting Houston and Dallas. But to make themselves unique, they selected beautiful flight attendants with unique personalities, then slipped them into hot pants and go-go boots. They made exceptional non-traditional choices while operating in a very traditional industry. This is how they introduced differentiation. From the beginning, they realized that they had to get more with less (M4L strategy). They knew that if they bought all the same types of planes – the Boeing 737 – they could save money on maintenance costs. They wouldn't need to train mechanics and carry parts for several different types of planes. Today, they still only use one model of aircraft, which has saved them a lot of money in the long run. But when competitors lowered their prices (even below their own costs), it forced Southwest to think outside the box. If they matched those prices, Southwest would go bankrupt. Instead, they decided to offer all frequent flyer passengers a free bottle of whiskey every time they flew southwest. For a few months, Southwest Airlines was the largest distributor of whiskey in Texas. And then there were the peanuts. While every other airline served meals on board, Southwest chose to be the no-frills airline by offering paper in the middle......schedules are strictly followed to minimize delays, customer complaints and lost luggage. . A well-defined and distinctive set of people management practices has led to shared goals, knowledge, and mutual respect that are useful because work is highly interdependent, uncertain, and time-bound. Some of the strategies integrated to make the business model of South West airlines sustainable are: They maintain and promote a friendly corporate culture. They provide leadership to an ever-changing workforce. work. They have integrated techniques to eliminate waste generation through source reduction, recycling and reuse. They have optimized aircraft to be more energy efficient and are looking for alternative energy options . Their operating model is therefore sustainable.