This presentation will give you an idea about Human Resource management in SOUTHWEST AIRLINE.

2. 1971Founded by Herb Kelleher on
18th June , Dallas
1989 Expanded its operation
in California from intrastate of Texas
1992The most leading carrier
in passenger of US

3. 1994
Dominated most of the leading
markets consisting ,
Intra-Texas market as 70%
Intra-California market as 50%
2019
Scheduled services to 101
destinations in the United States
and ten additional countries.
Its most recent expansion
occurred in March, April, and
May 2019 with service
to Honolulu, Maui,
and Kailua-Kona respectively.
Southwest began to expand
service to Lihue in mid-
November .

4. To connect People to what's important in their lives through friendly,
reliable, and low-cost air travel.
Our Purpose

7. Southwest’s human resources department is named the
“people department” and stresses the two “C’s””
compassion and common sense.
They tell people to Break the Rules
if they need to.
The “Southwest Spirit” appears
to be: creative, not too uptight,
strong on teamwork, positive,
a bit non-conformist,
a little outrageous and extroverted.

8. Given the talent shortage facing in industry,
you’d think they’d be tempted to snap up many
of those candidates, particularly ones with
backgrounds in engineering and technology.
But, since the company was founded,
even before their first flight on June 18, 1971,
They’ve been extremely selective in their hiring.
So far this year, for example,
Reviewed 287,422 resumes
Chosen 102,112 candidates to interview
Hired only 6,582 people
Hire people who form the fit

9. At Southwest, for example, they talk about hiring not for skills but three attributes
1. A warrior spirit (that is, a desire to excel, act with courage, persevere and
innovate);
2. A servant’s heart (the ability to put others first, treat everyone with respect and
proactively serve customers);
3. A fun-loving attitude (passion, joy and an aversion to taking oneself too
seriously).

10. They’ve found that it’s important to clearly define these expectations — we’re listed
on every job description — and build their interviewing methodology around us.
Their mentality isn’t “We’ll know it when we see it.” It’s “Does this person already
live the way we do?”
They use behavioral interview questions to determine whether candidates have
those key attributes. For example, to determine someone’s ability to be a passionate
team player, they will ask him or her to describe a time when he or she went above
and beyond to help a co-worker succeed. They also conduct what they call a career
motivation interview to determine if the candidate really understands the job he or
she is applying for and if it is aligned with his or her career goals.
In particular, it focuses on hiring people who have the right attitude and who are
willing to work hard to meet customer needs.

11. • Casual dress code.
• Hugs common across office.
• Field visits.
• Informal structure.
• Everyone towards an ultimate goal.
• Work together.
• “Flight attendants help clean
airplane cabins,
pilots help moving luggage”.

12. Staff training facilities
Southwest airlines use single aircraft model.
Manufacturer - Boeing Commercial Airplanes
Model – Boeing 737
This made their work of training people simple and clear , that any pilot will be able
to operate any plane in the company .
This made the airline possible to
reduce the training cost ,time and
also made pilots a comfortable
environment to work .

13. Southwest has by far invested more in staff training and facilities for employee
development within the last decade.
The airline completed a new Training and Operational Support (TOPS)
building, which has 392,000 square foot office and training facility in 2013.
Two years ago, Southwest Airlines also opened a new training facility referred to
as Wings, which has a 380,000 square foot development center known as
Leadership Education and Aircrew Development (LEAD) Center. The new
pilot training facility, opened April 3, 2018, can support 18 flight simulators with
expansion provision to accommodate as much as 26 simulator bays.

14. Cost cutting strategies
Stocking the fuel when prices are low Reducing unwanted weight in the interiors of the
plane to increase its efficiency
Power wash the engines every night for efficiency
Choose airports with less gate fares
with less crowd

15. They have a quick, easy, and efficient boarding
process. Look at your boarding pass to find your
assigned boarding group (A, B, or C) and boarding
position (1 - 60). When your group is called, stand by
the column with your number on it until it’s your turn
to board.
(NO pre assigned seat number for any passenger)
Hence reducing the reservation cost.
NO foods are sold in the airplane to keep it simple and cost
effective .
Passengers are provided a welcome complement of peanuts
and soft drink
This business structure not only make southwest to compete
in the airline industry, but also with road way transportation
by its unbelievable travel cost .

16. One way that Southwest reduces cost is by
encouraging each employee to pitch in and help finish
tasks, even if those tasks are not part of that person’s
normal job.
For instance, flight attendants help clean airplane
cabins, and pilots help move luggage.
This practice greatly reduces the time that a plane is on
the ground between flights.
Not to be underestimated is the fact that Southwest’s
workforce is very productive.
Their turnaround time (arrival at gate to next departure) is about 15 minutes,
as compared to an industry average of about 35 minutes.

17. A profit-sharing policy
It’s easy to see why Southwest Airlines employees are
exceptionally motivated. They are all shareholders and
receive profit based on how much was realized for the year.
No wonder! Southwest has been profitable for 44 years in a
row.
The airline’s founder Herb Kelleher in 1973 introduced a
profit-sharing policy that enables the company to share
annual profits to its employees.
“Profit-sharing is an expense we want to be as big
as possible so our people get a greater reward,” Kelleher said,
according to Forbes.
Herb Kelleher in 201310% of the stocks are held
by their employees

18. In 2017, the company announced it was
sharing profits worth $586 million with its
54,000 employees. That’s an equivalent of
13.2% bonus on the average or extra six
weeks’ play for each employee. A year earlier,
Southwest Airlines disbursed record $620
million through the same policy.
Southwest has found a way to pull of its
employees together toward a common goal
and a sense of fairness motivates them. That’s
why stories about pilots’ efforts to cut back on
fuel, flight attendants picking up trash, or gate
agents following up borrowed staplers
shouldn’t amaze anyone.
To brief, the company has developed a work culture that sees hard work, dedication, fun,
equality and cost consciousness.
They represent part of the HR success story at Southwest Airlines.

19. This consistent approach of adopting a low-cost strategy and emphasizing
commitment to employees has been helpful during recent times of economic
difficulty. For the first time since inception, Southwest Airlines began posting
quarterly losses in 2008, but its lean structure and efficient practices helped it
recover more quickly than competitors.

20. Workforce Magazine is the leading magazine for HR professionals
making their business better. Workforce will answer your questions,
give you solutions, and help you make decisions that will move your
organization and your career in the right direction.

22. STUDIED
BY
S.KAMALESH
BMS – BE
JGI