After being fascinated by the corporate culture of Zappos, I wanted to learn more about other companies who use their culture as a competitive advantage. I came across Southwest Airlines and an article discussing the airline’s focus on developing a thriving organizational culture.
Southwest Airlines CFO, Laura Wright, is quoted in an article saying:
You must take time to celebrate and recognize employees if you want to keep them engaged and productive.
This is the reasoning behind Southwest’s fun and engaging work environment, which includes events such as costume parties and “Finance Olympics”. Southwest even has a specialized “culture keeper” department that helps to maintain its unique culture. In an industry where customer satisfaction is key, Southwest Airlines first targets its own employees. Employees who are happy will be motivated to keep customers happy as well, and even go the extra mile to help them. As a customer, the service I am given is definitely a major factor for me in deciding whether I want to go back to the company or not.
When considering the profitability of a company, corporate culture is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. However, customer satisfaction and employee turnover rate are both directly related to a company’s culture. Companies such as Southwest Airlines are proof of what a developed culture can do for success.