Ann McGee Cooper and Christina Johnson

							  Southwest
  Airlines &
 Servant-
Leadership
          :
  The Story of 9/11


  Ann McGee-Cooper & Associates, Inc.
What do we mean by
Servant Leadership?

“It begins with the
natural feeling that one
wants to serve, to serve
first.”
     —Robert K. Greenleaf
   “Go to the People; Learn from them;
Live with them; Start with what they know;
        Build with what they have.

 But of the best leaders, When the job is done,
        When the task is accomplished,
            The people will all say,
         ‘We have done it ourselves.’”
                  —Lao Tzu, 604 B.C.
What do we mean by
Servant Leadership
      “We are not looking for blind
      obedience. We are looking for
      People who, on their own initiative,
      want to be doing what they are
      doing because they consider it a
      worthy objective. I have always
      believed that the best leader is the
      best server. And if you’re a
      servant, by definition, you’re not
      controlling.”
                     —Herb Kelleher, Chairman, Southwest Airlines

          Colleen Barrett, President of Southwest
                                          Airlines,
Growing from Traditional
Boss/Subordinate to Servant-Leader

 What changes in a culture when it transforms
 from a top-down hierarchy into servant-
 leadership, a truly leaderful culture?



          “Fear”             “Mutual
      “Intimidation”         Trust”

     “Coercive Power”
       Hired Hands         Engaged Hearts & Minds
Growing from Traditional
Boss/Subordinate to Servant-Leader

                      Most likely to
                    listen deeply and
                       respectfully,
   Eager to speak
                       first; values
     first; feels
                       others’ input
    his/her ideas
                    (especially those
       are most
                      who disagree)
      important
                        and builds
                    strength through
                       differences.
Growing from Traditional
Boss/Subordinate to Servant-Leader


                      Views accountability
                          as creating a
       Views            safe environment
  accountability as        for learning
  assigning blame.      from experience.
Growing from Traditional
Boss/Subordinate to Servant-Leader



                            Views
       Views          accountability as
  accountability as    creating a safe
  assigning blame.    environment for
                        learning from
                         experience.
Creating a
 LEADERFUL
ORGANIZAT
   ION
 Southwest Airlines

•$6.53 Billion in
  revenue in 2004
•35,000 Employees
•“Most Admired”
  airline according to
Fortune Magazine
Southwest Airlines
Revenue
Southwest Airlines
Profit

     •Profit
US MAJOR AIRLINE STATS FOR 2002

  Revenue
US MAJOR AIRLINE STATS FOR 2002

  Profit
Southwest Airlines
Average Salary
Based on US Major Airline Stats for
2002
Southwest Airlines
Seat/Mile Stats
US MAJOR AIRLINE STATS FOR 2002

  Load Factor
    Necessary to make a profit
    Actual 2002
Southwest Airlines
Stock Performance 1980-1999

 Growth
 Percent
             4048%
   4,000

   3,000

   2,000                                 1477%            1316%
                     938       923%
   1,000             %                            413%
                                                                   241%

       0
           Southwest S&P       Dow       American Delta   United   US
            Airlines 500   Transportation Airlines                 Air
 The Test of Servant-Leadership
 Happens
 When the Unthinkable Happens

Remember back to 9/11
• Country was in
shock-fear
• Planes were
grounded
• $3 Million Loss per
day
  Southwest Airlines
  Compassion...The Airline with Heart

• Three top leaders
  chose to work
without
  pay for the rest of
  the year.
• Employees created
 “Pledge Your LUV”
  program. Donated
  more than $1.3
Southwest Airlines
Southwest Employees Rise Above it All


• Only major airline to post
  a profit in 2001
Southwest Airlines
Maintain Job Security at All Costs



•No layoff, furloughs, no
 reduction in schedules
service
•Constant, daily, even
hourly
 communication to all
levels of
Southwest Airlines
First Airline to Offer Ticket Refunds



• Message   was:
“We’re here when
you’re ready to
fly.”
                         “Freedom is not free! It takes hard work.”


“You can’t wait until you need deep
trust to begin to build it. If it doesn’t
come from the heart, then forget it!”
                    ―Colleen Barrett
                    President, Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines
Foresight

 “We operate in good times
   to prepare for the lean
  times, so that when
  those times come, as
  they surely will, we
  can survive.”


                                        Jim Parker
                             Former CEO Southwest
                                           Airlines
“… if the greatness of a
Company is measured by
the hearts and souls of its
People, then we are indeed
the richest Company in      the world.”

   —Jim Parker and Colleen
   Barrett
     to Employees on September 12, 2001
“Southwest, continuing an enviable
32-year streak in the black, may be
the only low-cost carrier to turn a
fourth-quarter profit.”
                  Dallas Morning News January 20, 2005
Essential Elements of
Servant Leadership
1. Paradox: Both words
    - servant and leader -
    have equal importance.

2. Servant-Leadership
   begins within.
Essential Elements of
Servant Leadership

“…the Servant views any problem
 in the world as in here, inside
 oneself, not out there.”
                    —Robert K. Greenleaf
“And if a flaw in the world is to be
remedied, to the servant the
process of change starts in here, in
the servant, not out there.”
                        —Robert K. Greenleaf
  Essential Elements of
  Servant Leadership

3. It’s a long-term,
   not a short-term
   journey.

4. Play is an important
   way to build trust.
5. Servant-leaders build
   high-trust communities.
The Test of
Servant Leadership
“The best test, and difficult to administer, is: do
those served grow as persons; do they, while
being served, become healthier, wiser, freer,
more autonomous, more likely themselves to
become servants?”
                           —Robert K. Greenleaf
The Test of
Servant Leadership


“And, what is the effect on the
least privileged in society; will
they benefit, or, at least, will they
not be further deprived?”
                                    -   Robert K. Greenleaf