Case 10.3 – Servant Leadership Takes Flight
Southwest Airlines is well known that they have the best customer services. Their Golden Rule is “treat people the way you want to be treated.” The airline’s mission statement is posted every 3 feet at all Southwest locations. For example, one time the weather was bad, so passengers had to be on the plane for a long time. A frantic mother asked the flight attendant to get off the plane just a moment in order to buy food for her hungry toddler. The attendant didn’t let her out but went to buy food for her child instead. She came back to the plane with food for her kid and other four children as well. This flight attendant not only took care of some frantic parents and their screaming children but also indirectly helped other passengers not to deal with children’s noises. This outcome came from the belief of Colleen Barrett, the president of Southwest Airlines, and the company’s cofounder, Herb Kelleher that if employees are treated well, they would treat customers well, and the airlines would succeed, too.
Herb treated everybody equally, and he disagreed with traditional hierarchies within the company. For instance, when Herb was a lawyer, he hired Colleen to be his aide even though she had no experiences. Colleen said that “Herb always treated her as a complete equal to him.” Then Colleen became the president of the airline in 2001. She established the Golden Rule and developed a model that focuses on the happiness of employees and customer satisfaction. The airline treated their employees with love and trained them for skill. The company developed a culture that celebrated and encouraged humor. Herb and Colleen also motivated employees to be themselves. As a result, Southwest Airlines’ profits are increasing every year while other airlines’ profits move downward. Colleen thinks if customers are satisfied by our happy