Southwest Airlines

Kelleher at Southwest Airlines “You shouldn’t get too heady about anything, because the greatest thing you do is not big in the universe. It’s not saying it doesn’t matter. It matters all the more. You’re fighting against nothingness. But you don’t give up. Therein lies the heroism.” -Kelleher (p.156) Although many have a great respect for Southwest Airlines and their disciplined business decisions. I have a greater respect for their “family like” environment and how they encourage their employees to be the best airline business they can be. At the beginning of the chapter they spoke about their professional wrestling battle over the new “Just Plane Smart” slogan. Just proves that Southwest is able to be a successful, well respected, and leaders of the aviation business while having a good time and enjoying life. Employees of Southwest truly work to live rather than the average American who lives to work. Southwest’s “no frills point-to-point air service” business plan, is one of the very few successful companies. The idea of starting a simple airline through Texas’ growing cities was a good start for Kelleher. I believe that it is a smart business plan to look at other airline companies and learn from their pros and cons. If I was in Kelleher’s shoes and other companies were trying to sabotage my successes while starting a company, I would be just as driven to be successful and beat my competitors. This is exactly what Kelleher did and again I have developed a great deal of respect for Southwest Airlines and the pride they have in their company. With the help from deregulation, Kelleher was able to expand his operations outside of Texas and develop growth within his company.
The fact that many airlines attempted to take on Southwest Airlines and failed or ended in bankruptcy just proves the foundation and strength of the airline. With the support and hard work of the employee behind Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines will continue to strive. The