...Southwest Case Southwest airline is one of the major U.S. low-cost airlines in the United States. It was founded in 1966 from an idea of Rolling King a San Antonio entrepreneur who owned small commuter air service. The original plan was fairly simple attract passenger by offering convenient schedules, getting on time to their destination while having a good experience, all these while trying to charge the most competitive prices. Over the course of the years Southwest had to fight really hard in order to establish itself in the market because of fierce competition. In order to compete with other big airline, Southwest introduced important and revolutionary concept that have deeply affected the airlines world until now a days. Just to mention a few: taking cue from its hub at Dallas Love Field they started the so called “Love campaign” (Southwest’s airplanes were Love Birds, it’s drinks Love potion etc) this set the tone for Southwest’s approach to its customers to make flying with Southwest an enjoyable and fun experience. The company decided strategically to move from big, expensive Intercontinental Airports to smaller and closer to downtown airports. They also reduced to 10 minutes the turnaround time (the time spent refueling, off-loading passengers and bags and cleaning up the airplane in order to be ready for the next flight). Southwest was also the first to differentiate among its consumers. They offered generally low fares but in certain time and on certain days it...
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...School of Management Coursework hand-in sheet Student name(s) | % | | % | Naomi Wai | 20% | Chukwudubem Joseph Onochie | 20% | Nevena Rakovska | 20% | Anish Rai | 20% | Warren Cannon | 20% | | | For group work – individual % contributions need to be stated only where they are not equal. Department (e.g. Management): School of Management | Programme and Year of Study: Accounting and Finance, Y3 | Name of lecturer: Dr. Sarah Park | Unit title and code (eg MN20010): MN30449 | Number of pages in assignment:17Word count: 2845 | Declaration I/we certify that I/we have read and understood the entry in the relevant Student Handbook for the School of Management on Cheating and Plagiarism and that all material in this assignment is my/our own work, except where I/we have indicated with appropriate references. I/we agree that, in line with Regulation 15.3(e), if requested I/we will submit an electronic copy of this work for submission to a Plagiarism Detection Service for quality assurance purposes. I/we also confirm that the percentage allocation of work is as shown above. Student Signature(s) | | | | | | | If assessment is group based, all members of the group must sign this form When to hand in You should aim to hand your work in before the deadline given by your lecturer/ tutor. The University guidelines on penalties...
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...Southwest identified an opportunity within Texas for short distance air service between Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio. These Texas cities were often referred to as one single market area, although they were some of the fasted growing in the nation. Southwest recognized that Pacific Southwest Airlines had a similar business plan in California servicing Los Angeles to San Francisco, so they took this similar concept, and set their goals to provide quick, reliable service that local passengers sought to utilize. Within this Texas market included two other airlines, Braniff and TI. Both did not originally specialize in short distance air travel, and most short distance flights started at a larger location such as New York and traveled through the Texas cities as a multiple stop trip. Southwest’s choice to enter the market initiated a quick process to implement their strategy. Within 4 months, they would implement a marketing strategy and begin servicing the area. The problem with the Texas market was as soon as Southwest implanted a strategy and promotion, Braniff and TI would closely follow and form a very similar strategy. Southwest’s third phase of their advertising campaign led to Braniff once again matching the promotion that they are offering, and Southwest’s response to Braniff’s move would help establish southwest as a successful company. Within the Texas market, Southwest has created many strengths that will help set them apart from the current brand...
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...Southwest Airlines Co. Analysis * Introduction and Mission Southwest Airlines Co. is a major U.S airline and the world's largest low-cost carrier. It was established in 1967 and adopted its current name in 1971. The airline operates more than 3,400 flights per day and has more than 46,000 employees as of August 2012. In 2013, Southwest Airlines has scheduled service to 84 destinations in 41 states and Puerto Rico. In 2012, Southwest Airlines was the market share leader in domestic air travel in the United States; it transported more passengers from U.S airports to U.S destinations than any other airline, and it offered more regularly scheduled domestic flights than any other airlines. For the 40th consecutive year, the Company was profitable, earning $421 million in net income. 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 mission statement has always regulated the way the company conducts their business. The company mission statement also highlights their desire to serve customers better and it provides them with direction when they have to make certain service-related decisions. The company mission statement is also another way of saying, "We always try to do the right thing!" According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Southwest Airlines has the best cumulative consumer satisfaction record. * Market Share These three...
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...ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS It is evident that the greatest strength that Southwest Airlines has is its financial stability. As known in the US airline industry, Southwest is one of those airlines who are consistently earning profits despite the problems the industry is facing. With such stability, the corporation is able to make decisions and adjust policies, which other heavily burdened airlines may not be able to imitate. Having a low amount of cost in their operations is one of the contributing factors in Southwest Airlines’ financial success. Such low cost model of the corporation is brought about by an effective strategy. Southwest uses only one type of aircraft – the fuel-efficient Boeing 737. This tactic keeps training and maintenance costs down. Moreover, the no-frills approach to customer service contributed to the low cost of operations for Southwest. The airline does not serve meals on board, and there are no luxurious or first class seats offered. Services like these have been seen by the airline as unnecessary for an airline that provides a short-haul trip from city to city. By these, Southwest were able to offer low price tickets to customers, which was good for the company because most people would prefer to fly without those services mentioned if it meant for cheaper ticket price. Even though Southwest offers no-frills, there is still a high degree of customer satisfaction that continuously builds customer loyalty for the company. As mentioned, Southwest offers low...
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...Introduction to Southwest Airlines 3 1.1 Overview 3 1.1.1 History 3 1.1.2 Southwest Airlines’ offerings 4 1.2 Reasons for choosing Southwest Airlines as a case study on HR practices 5 2 Literature review 5 2.1 HR strategies 5 2.2 Training and development 7 2.3 Compensation 8 2.3.1 Financial compensation 8 2.3.2 Non-financial compensation 10 3 Human resource practices in Southwest Airlines 11 3.1 Human resource strategies in Southwest Airlines 11 3.1.1 Southwest Airlines Strategies 11 3.1.2 Role of HR Strategies in implementing Southwest Airlines’ strategies 12 3.1.3 Southwest Airlines human resources strategies and tactics 14 3.2 Training and development in Southwest Airlines 20 3.2.1 Southwest offer the employees the freedom to learn and grow 20 3.2.2 Safety and security training and outreach 21 3.2.3 Environmental and sustainability training 22 3.2.4 Diversity and inclusion education and outreach 23 3.2.5 University for people - leadership 23 3.3 Southwest Airlines’ Compensation and Benefits for People 27 3.3.1 The Freedom to Travel 28 3.3.2 The Freedom to create Financial Security 29 3.3.3 The Freedom to pursue Great Health 30 3.3.4 The Freedom to Learn and Grow 32 3.3.5 The Freedom to Work and Have Fun 33 3.3.6 Employee Recognition Programs 34 3.3.7 Distributed Leadership 35 CONCLUSION 37 REFERENCE 38 Introduction to Southwest Airlines Overview History Southwest Air was founded...
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...QUESTION 1: What is the strategy of Southwest Airlines? Southwest’s strategy has two overarching themes: 1) Operate as a leading low-fare carrier, and 2) their mantra, “Happy employees make for happy customers.” There are several components to each, which are described in detail below. 1) OPERATING AS A LEADING LOW-FARE CARRIER There are several factors to this strategy: Low fares: SWA had the lowest fares in the industry and endeavored to keep it that way. Low costs: Southwest had the ability to charge low fares in part due to low overhead. Lost cost measures included the following: * Identical fleet of airplanes: This minimized the number of parts required for upkeep and maintenance, and it reduced carrying costs. It allowed SWA to simplify and harmonize training and operating procedures. Finally, not only was inventory “interchangeable” across the organization, staff could have moved freely from one location to the next with little to no training time required. * No meals on flights: A savings of $40 per passenger. * No seat assignments: No staff resources were required to maintain or change seat assignments, and no electronic system capacity was required to track/record such transactions. Simplified approach: Southwest kept the fare structure simple. * Only two types of fares: Regular and off-peak fares (no business class, first class.) * Consistent “within state” fares: For instance, a passenger can fly anywhere within...
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...4315*2 Team 4 Strategic Profile and Case Analysis Purpose In the airline industry competitors have to work hard to maintain market share and even more to increase their share. Southwest Airlines has become the market share leader in terms of passengers carried with the simple strategy: “low-cost/low-price/no-frills.” They have done an excellent job in implementing and executing their strategy elements. Some of the most crucial executions in the Southwest strategy are their point-to-point scheduling of flights, customer service and customer satisfaction, and appreciation of employee involvement for continuous company improvement. Although many other airlines can implement the same strategic elements as Southwest has, they would still be behind the times since Southwest has been working efficiently from inception. Throughout this analysis of their performance, one may conform his or her own opinion on how to grade Southwest with the information provided. Alternative strategic suggestions will be evaluated with a preferred alternative choice that could improve the Southwest image and performance. Situation Analysis General Environmental Analysis Until the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, the government had control over airline fares, routes, and market entry. But since Southwest's initial plan was to fly only intrastate routes, they did not have to come under the regulation of the Civil Aeronautics Board. Southwest did, however, encounter some legal and regulatory...
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...EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Southwest Airlines provides short haul, high frequency, point-to-point, low-fare services to and from 58 cities across the United States. The company is known for its low-cost fares and superior customer service in the airline industry. The company was started in 1971 with a motto still lived by today, "If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline." This motto has been effective for the company because they recently reported their 58th straight quarterly profit. SWOT Analysis The SWOT analysis describes the internal strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats of a company. The strengths of Southwest include its market leadership, its low-cost business model, and its strong financial performance. Weaknesses are the poor short-term liquidity situation, having only one established alliance, and the declining passenger revenue yields. Opportunities for the company include its new services, the new code-sharing agreement with ATA Airlines, and the overall positive outlook for the airline industry. Threats to Southwest include the increasing jet fuel costs, uncertainty in demand, and an increase in competition. Corporate and Business-level Strategies Southwest's corporate level is to focus on obtaining more of the low-fare market of the airline industry rather than to enter into other aspects of the...
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...Economic Analysis of Southwest Airlines Facilitator: James Young MGT: 513 Managerial Economics October 14,2012 Economic Analysis of Southwest Airlines History of Southwest Airlines History and Key Defining Moments Southwest Airlines was founded in 1966 when a group of Texas investors pooled together 560,000 to form the Air Southwest Company, incorporated in 1967 the company was envisioned as a commuter airline serving the cities of Texas, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Although the Texas Aeronautics Commission (TAC), the body responsible for overseeing aviation within the state granted the company permission to fly the routes requested in February 1968, three competing airlines filed suits to prevent the airlines form getting off the ground. An attorney, who stake in the company was a mere 20,000, took the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme court and in December 1970 this court ruled in the favor of Air Southwest. Early in 1971, Air Southwest changed its name to Southwest Airlines, the fledgling airline began operations on June 18, 1971 under the stewardship of President M. Lamar Muse, the airline offered six daily roundtrip flights between Dallas and San Antonio, and twelve daily roundtrip flights between Dallas and Houston. The start of service in June 1971 was accomplished with three 737-200 aircrafts that had been obtained from Boeing on favorable terms, and a fourth aircraft was obtained in September of 1971. The rest of 1971 and 1972 saw operating...
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...Summary Corporate Culture & Southwest Airline Case Analysis CORPORATE CULTURE Corporate culture is an incredibly powerful factor in a company’s long-term success. No matter how good your strategy is, when it comes down to it, people always make the difference. Corporate Culture * Is the meshing of shared values, beliefs, business principles, and traditions that imbues a firm’s operating style, behavioral norms, ingrained attitudes, and work atmosphere. * Is important because it influences the firm’s actions and approaches to conducting business Corporate culture refers to the shared values, ingrained attitudes, core beliefs and company traditions that determine norms of behavior, accepted work practices, and styles of operating. How was a corporate culture developed and nurtured in your organization? A company’s culture is grounded in and shaped by its core values and ethical standards. I am working at PT. Tempo Scan Pacific, Tbk. and known as Tempo Group. Tempo Group has a “Corporate Culture” implemented in the 5 core values : 1. Honesty 2. Equality 3. Usefulness 4. Responsibility 5. Perseverance Here are a few ways my organization can facilitate the creation of a nurturing the culture : * Communications: This allows information and ideas to flow up from entry-level ranks to the top management of the company, but information from upper management is also shared more readily with the entire company. Always communicate...
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...צוותי האוויר אשר עוזרים גם בתפעול על הקרקע ואת השימוש בצי מטוסים אחיד אשר תורם להורדת עלויות אחזקת המטוסים והכשרה של טייסים ומכונאים. פעילותה העיקרית של החברה היא בקווים קצרי טווח בהם העלויות גבוהות מאשר בקווים ארוכי טווח (המטוס ממריא/נוחת יותר פעמים ודורש תפעול בכל תחנה). Value – למשאב זה ערך רב שכן הקטנת העלויות מול שאר המתחרים תורם רבות להגדלת הרווחיות. Rarity – מבנה עלויות נמוך כפי שאנו רואים ב-Southwest הוא אכן נדיר ולכן אנו לא רואים את אותן עלויות נמוכות גם בחברות המתחרות. Imitability – עקב מכלול הגורמים אשר תורמים למבנה העלויות הנמוך קשה מאוד לחקות משאב זה. אפשר לראות זאת לפי מספר דברים, ראשית, אנו רואים כי בשנים 1993-1994 העלות הממוצעת של Southwest היא 7.1 סנט למייל בעוד העלות אצל המתחרות הגדולות גבוהה ב-20 עד 30 אחוז. שנית, מספר האנשים בצוותי הקרקע של Southwest נמוך ב-50 אחוז מאשר אצל המתחרות ועם זאת הם יעילים יותר (צוות קרקע של Southwest מסובב מטוס ב-15 דקות לעומת 35 דקות אצל המתחרים). בנוסף צוותי האוויר בחברה טסים יותר שעות אך מרוויחים משכורות נמוכות יותר מאשר אצל המתחרים. כדי לחקות מאפיין זה יצטרכו המתחרים לבצע שינויים מקיפים ולקצץ משכורות באופן מאסיבי. לבסוף, ב-Southwest לעומת המתחרים צי המטוסים מורכב רק ממטוסי בואינג 737 שכן החברה פעולת רק בקווים קצרי טווח. חברות התעופה הגדולות שמתחרות בה פועלות גם בקווים ארוכי טווח ולכן חייבות להחזיק גם מטוסים גדולים יותר, מה שגורר עלויות גבוהות יותר באחזקה והכשרת עובדים. Organized Properly – החברה מנצלת את המשאב במלואו. מבנה החברה, העובדים והתרבות הארגונית מתואמים ותורמים לניצול מירבי של משאב זה על מנת להגדיל את היתרון התחרותי...
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...the struggle for lowering fixed cost to raise profit margins. The airline industry is not attractive to compete in because of its mature state in the product life cycle. The projected growth rate of the airline industry is small because it has become so well developed. Competition is also very fierce in the airline industry, especially after the Airline Deregulation Act created price wars. This same reason is why the airline industry does not have large profit margins. They are also susceptible to social, political, and economic pressures because of the high fixed costs and safety requirements. Airlines do carry industry uncertainty as many carriers have gone bankrupt since the deregulation. An opportunity for airlines, particularly Southwest, would be growth internationally. As the world...
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...1. Airline Industry According to most of the airline companies, labor is the second cost behind fuel in the airline budgets . The companies have to pay pilots and flight attendants, but also most of the employees on ground such as baggage handlers, customer service, dispatchers and others. In other words, labor in airlines companies includes and brings together completely different jobs with different skills needed from loading luggage to repairing aircrafts. 545’000 people are employed by 100 U.S airline companies. We can define four main groups of workers. Airline flight operations combine pilots, who earn the highest salary in the industry, and dispatchers who work hand-in-hand with pilots to plan the flight maps that are using during the flights. Flight attendants are in the second group, many are needed because of the limited hours that the Federal Aviation Administration requires and at least one flight attendant has to be in a commercial flight. Working hours are an important issue in this sector where a small mistake of distraction can have a huge repercussion on the passengers’ safety. The two last bodies of an airline company are the aircraft maintenance and ground operations. Mechanics work directly for airlines but can also work for vendors and contractors. Ground operations work is the job that requires less skills and knowledge than all the others; therefore the pay is lower but still has a high power in labor issues. Labor unions in the U.S airline industry...
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...An Investment Analysis of Southwest Airlines for Embry Investment Group Kenneth O’Connor Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Worldwide Table of Contents Tables and Figures 3 Abstract 3 Introduction 3 Why this Analysis was Done 3 The Limitations of this Report 4 Background Information on Southwest Airlines 4 Analysis Methodology 4 Short Conclusion 5 Supporting details and data 5 The Financial Reasons to Invest in Southwest Airlines 5 An Assessment of Southwest Airlines Past Performance 5 2013 Financial Statistics 6 An Assessment of Southwest Airlines Future Performance 7 The Numbers 7 The Logical Reasons to Invest in Southwest Airlines 8 Aircrew 8 Ground crew 8 Aircraft maintenance 9 Business administration 9 A short Timeline of Southwest’s Fleets Major Upgrades 10 Conclusion 12 Glossary 13 Appendix A 14 Detailed Graph Creation 14 Appendix B 15 Additional Information on Southwest Airlines and AirTran Airways 15 Southwest Airlines' Recognitions 15 Appendix C 17 About Red Rock Biofuels 17 Appendix D 18 The stock price data from my father 18 References 19 Tables and Figures Figure 1. 9 Year Closing Price $ 5 Figure 2. 1 Year Closing Price $ 6 Figure 3. Southwest and AirTran destinations 15 Abstract Dallas-based Southwest Airlines is in their 44th year of service, and with 41 consecutive years of profitability, they continue to be one of the most admired airlines in the world. This...
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