Q1. What is Southwest’s strategy? What is the basis on which Southwest builds its competitive advantage? Q2. How do Southwest’s control systems help execute the firm’s strategy? The Southwest Airlines strategy is best explained by its co-founder Herb Kelleher during a talk at Wharton: “It’s an obsession with keeping costs low and treating employees well and a commitment to managing the company during booms with an eye to the busts that will inevitable follow. Do that and most of the rest takes

Southwest Airlines was founded in “1964, when Rollin King purchased a charter airline company called the Wild Goose Flying Service” (Lauer, 2010). The idea of Southwest Airlines began in “1967, between King and Herb Kelleher” (Lauer, 2010). After winning “legal battles against their rival competitors Southwest was ready for operations in 1971” (Lauer, 2010). The CEO of Southwest Airlines is “Gary Kelly, who was hired to work in 1986” (Lauer, 2010) He started by working in the financial department

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES The Mission of Southwest Airlines 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. To Our Employees We are committed to provide our Employees a stable work environment with equal opportunity for learning and personal growth. Creativity and innovation are encouraged for improving the effectiveness of Southwest Airlines. Above all, Employees will be provided

Introduction Southwest Airlines was incorporated in Texas and commenced Customer Service on June 18, 1971 with three Boeing 737 aircraft serving three Texas cities-Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio. Today, Southwest operates 537 Boeing 737 aircraft between 68 cities. Southwest topped the monthly domestic originating passenger ranking for the first time in May 2003. Year-ending result for 2009 marked Southwest 37th consecutive year of profitability. Southwest became a major airline in 1989 when it

Southwest Airlines, Key Facts: Niche strategy. Concept: • Concentrate in underutilized airports • 1 type of aircraft – fuel-efficient 737 (1994 – more that 200 planes) • Frequent, on-time departures • Low cost fares, only 2 types of fares per root • No seats assigned, no meals • Point-to-point roots • Higher equipment initialization, shorter turn-around times Competitive advantage: • Cost structure • "The workforce is dedicated to the company. They're Moonies basically. That's the way

Introduction By October 2002, Southwest Airlines had apparently weathered the initial crisis to the airline industry that resulted from the September 11, 2001 ("9/11") terrorist attacks. Most of the large national carriers had experienced huge losses in demand, profitability and market share, while in contrast Southwest's low-fare operations had thrived, even in the face of declining earnings. Yet, only a year after the attacks, Southwest and the industry in general faced still unknown future

Southwest Airlines In the airline industry, Southwest Airlines is considered a true innovator. By shaking up the rules of flying and improving upon inefficient industry norms, Southwest has quickly grown by leaps and bounds. From the very start, Southwest Airlines' goals were to make a profit, achieve job security for every employee, and make flying affordable for more people (Southwest,2007). Southwest has not strayed from these goals. It does not buy huge aircrafts, fly international routes

Strategic Issue Southwest Airlines has never deviated from its niche: short-haul, high frequency, low-fare service, all delivered with award-winning customer service.1 -- Herbert D. Kelleher, Chairman, President, and CEO Southwest's current strategy is to position itself as a cost leader with a focus strategy. The company's management and employees aim to cost-effectively and reliably fly large number of customers on short, non-stop flights, and to have fun doing it. They are devoted to making

Executive Summary Southwest Airlines is competing with "Shuttle by United" head to head in about 9 routes. United has just announced that it is discontinuing its Oakland - Ontario route and hiking the fares in all the 14 routes by $10, which calculated to be 14.5% increase in the fare. Southwest has to respond effectively to these unexpected developments and has to act accordingly while maintaining their current low fare image and increasing their daily operating profits. We have considered the

Southwest Airlines strategy of focusing on short haul passenger and providing rates as low as one third of their competitors, they have seen tremendous growth in the last decade. Market share for top city pairs on Southwest's schedule has reached 80% to 85%. Maintaining the largest fleet of 737's in the world and utilizing point-to-point versus the hub-and-spoke method of connection philosophy allowed Southwest to provide their service to more people at a lower cost. By putting the employee first