Organizational Behavior and Communication Paper

Organizational Behavior and Communication Paper

‘The phrase “The customer is always right” was originally coined by Harry Gordon Selfridge, the founder of Selfridge’s department store in London in 1909” (Bonnell, 2009). This phrase is used by a number of businesses to portray an image to the public that customers will receive quality customer service, and is also unfortunately used by customers to abuse and exploit employees. Southwest Airlines has adopted a different strategy, one that is unique and sought after by many organizations developed by their founder Herb Keller who started the company in 1971 (Smith, 2004).

The Mission Statement of the company is twofold and first addresses the customer. Second the statement addresses its employees. The customer’s message “Mission of Southwest Airlines” states, “The mission of Southwest Airlines is dedication to the highest quality of Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride, and Company Spirit.” The second portion of the mission statement titled “To Our Employees” states, “We are committed to provide our Employees a stable work environment with equal opportunity for learning and personal growth. Creativity and innovation are encouraged for improving the effectiveness of Southwest Airlines. Above all, Employees will be provided the same concern, respect, and caring attitude within the organization that they are expected to share externally with every Southwest Customer.” “The company’s attitude is that its employees are the “first customer” and passengers are the second (Smith, 2004).”

The history of Southwest airlines meeting the needs of its first customers, the employees is evident through the actions of the company in its early introduction stage. The company not having enough money to pay it employees faced the decision of laying off employees or selling one of its four planes; which required the company to decrease significantly its turnaround times. Herb met with...