Southwest Airlines: an Industry Giant

From 1972 to 2002, Southwest Airlines stock returned more for their shareholders than any other stock in the same time period (Collins, 2006, Hospital Strategy IV: Southwest Airlines and thinking outside the box). Many companies have begun to take notice of the Southwest model; a model that allows Southwest to thrive while many of its contemporaries are faced with financial difficulties. The success of Southwest Airlines can be attributed to their structure. This structure has made it possible for Southwest Airlines founders Rollin King and Herb Kelleher to create a culture that was unique and ahead of its time: a people first culture. This culture is supported by Southwest 's human resource practices. Every aspect is dependant upon each other.
Southwest Airlines successfully employs the mechanistic model. There is a limited information system in place and information usually flows from the top to the bottom. Robbins (2005) states that there are six key elements that need to be addressed when designing an organization 's structure.
According to Southwest.com (2007), Southwest Airlines employs over 33,000 people. The size of the company means that the work specialization will be relatively high. Each employee will have specific tasks that they are responsible for. These tasks include flying, administration needs being taken care of, creating advertising campaigns, repairing equipment and many more tasks. The employees are departmentalized by their job function in order to achieve the most effective method of utilizing their employees.
Southwest Airlines has a clear and defined chain of command. The concept of authority is used by Southwest Airlines. There are certain rights that are inherent to certain positions and certain orders are to be followed by these positions. This helps to establish the chain of command. The rights that are inherent to these positions are used to establish a unity of command. Robbins states that the principle of unity of command

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