Role of Leadership in Southwests Culture Leadership at Southwest is understood as a process that can take place at any level of the organization Southwest believes that leadership at the front line can play a critical role in organizational success so it has more supervisors per frontline employee than any other airline in the industry, despite the fact that many think the organization is flat and team-based It is an approach that directly contradicts many contemporary management thinkers who argue that supervisors tend to perpetuate bureaucracy and, thus, get in the way (Gittel,2003) New leaders at Southwest are told, Dont try to learn your job.
{"Image DocumentName": "What Makes Southwest Unique?", "Image ImageDescription": "Southwest Airlines began operating in Much of Southwest s success is due to the willingness of its leadership to be innovative. Southwest s primary operating philosophy is low fares and lots of flights. Southwest management has created a culture where employees are treated as the company s number one asset. The benefits it gives it employees, include: profit-sharing and empowering employees to make decisions. Southwest mixes in New Age management techniques, such as celebrating different milestones, and letting love play a part in running the airline. The company s stock ticker symbol is LUV. (Freiberg and Freiberg, 1996)", "Image XResolution": "37", "Image YResolution": "37", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Centimeter", "Image Software": "SlidePlayer", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered"}