Southwest Airlines Strategic Practices Marion L. Boston MGT 450 Strategic Planning for Organizations Instructor: Mark Bojeun April 4‚ 2011 Introduction Southwest Airlines’ company strategy consists of competitive moves and business approaches management has developed to attract and please customers‚ conduct operations‚ grow the business‚ and achieve performance objectives (J. Gamble & A. Thompson. 2009. p. 2). In writing to inform the management team of the discussion‚ we will discuss
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SOUTHWEST AIRLINES Presented by: Allan Abutin Rick Boone Peter Bond Bethany Lam Phuong Nguyen A. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Southwest Airlines has been serving its customers since 1971 and has focused its business on convenience‚ customer service and low-cost flights. From the outset‚ the two founders were dedicated to success and the company has taken many steps since then to accomplish this. Through the use of technology‚ strategic placement of travel routes and keeping the business person
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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
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Southwest Airlines Executive Summary “The U.S. airline industry had lost money in 14 of the 28 years from 1980 through 2007‚ with combined annual losses exceeding combined annual profits by $15 billion. Yet in July 2008‚ Southwest reported record quarterly revenues‚ its 69th consecutive quarter of profitability‚ rising passenger traffic on its flights‚ and a record load factor.”5 With a brilliant strategy of ‘low cost/low fare/no frills’ Rollin King‚ along with Herb Kelleher‚ launched the
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Background: Southwest Airlines is the largest airline measured by number of passengers carried each year within the United States. It is also known as a ‘discount airline’ compared with its large rivals in the industry. Rollin King and Herb Kelleher founded Southwest Airlines on June 18‚ 1971. Its first flights were from Love Field in Dallas to Houston and San Antonio‚ short hops with no-frills service and a simple fare structure. The airline began with one simple strategy: “If you get your passengers
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Corporate Strategy Southwest Airlines faced many barriers to entry from the fierce competition of other airlines in the industry. Though competition was fierce‚ Southwest Airlines managed to succeed by doing things differently. Their mission was to provide affordable air travel to those who would not normally fly. Contradictory to the rest of the airline industry‚ Southwest maintained a profit while keeping its fares low. Southwest was unique to the industry in two ways. They focused on the short
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typically created unconsciously‚ based on the values of the top management or the founders of an organization. Southwest Airlines expends a lot of energy in maintaining its workplace culture. Southwest is the only major airline in the U.S. that has been profitable in each of the last five years. It also has a good reputation as an employer. Herb Kelleher‚ Southwest’s CEO‚ indicated how Southwest maintained its culture: "Well‚ first of all‚ it starts with hiring. We are zealous about hiring. We are looking
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What are the sources of Southwest Airlines’ competitive advantages? There were three keystones to Southwest Airlines’ competitive advantage. The first lied in its employees and how they were managed. Secondly‚ the firm sought to identify major threats and opportunities in their competitors‚ and assess how Southwest could improve and capitalize on markets where their competition failed. And the final significant success factor was the company’s cost structure. Former CEO‚ Herb Kelleher‚ was
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External Assessment The cellular industry is a very competitive industry when it comes to market share. The industry has 4 major national players holding 90% of the market share. The chart below shows the US market share by carrier and how much ground the smaller carriers have to make up. The chart also shows an acquisition that was declined by the FCC‚ as it would have given AT&T 43.3% of the total wireless market share.(Dailywireless.org) The FCC heavily regulates any mergers in the cellular
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Southwest Airline Case ¨C Executive Summary Introduction in 1971‚ Herbert D. Kelleher with other few business partners started an Airline services. Up till 1991‚ Southwest served low-fair air transportation among 32 cities in 14 states with over 20 million customers annually in the United States. Although the industry suffered a major blow from the unfavorable economic conditions‚ the company was still holding strong; while other airline companies were in debt. The major success to their continued
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