Executive Summary
Southwest Airlines was formed in 1967 and has continued to offer its air transportation services over time. Their initial strategy was excellent, having its workforce be considered a team in the business and reduced airfare for the customers. However, the firm has faced downturns in its financial aspects, impairing its management of employees and reducing its workforce. The report below provides a summary of the case and current strategies implemented in the firm. It outlines how these strategies have developed out of favor for the firm, providing 3 HRM implications and how they can be met through business strategies. It concludes with a summation of the main points in the report.
Introduction
Southwest Airlines is one of the companies that presented growth and development opportunities, especially in its air transport industry. Founded in 1967, the firm focused on reducing air transport for its current and prospective customers, a unique marketing tactic compared to its competitors. Additionally, Southwest Airlines considered its workforce as part of a family in the employment sector, treating them with respect and advocating for their work devotion. However, their strategies were becoming obsolete and led to massive destructions in its profile and ability to sustain its workforce at the same salary. The case indicates issues existential with low HR strategies, presenting opportunities for meeting the organizational objectives. The following is a report illustrating the current techniques and their problems, along with possible HRM implications for Southwest Airlines.
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Current Strategies and Issues
The initial strategy employed by Southwest Airlines was to embrace their employees as part of a family in the workplace such that they will provide high-quality services to the target customers. The employee’s contribution was relatively significant in the facility, focusing on determining ways to improve profitability and efficiency and inform its growth. However, the strategy failed to incorporate the importance of technology within the airline, limiting its operations and increasing its labor costs. Similarly, the business leadership is unable to manage the workforce to meet the required objectives efficiently adequately.
Type of Strategy for Southwest Airlines
The company’s current strategic model embraced innovative and cultural perspectives of the employees to develop a good relationship between management and the employees in meeting the organization’s success. However, their expansion rate was soon reduced, hindering the proper application of HR practices in the facility. The majority of its workforce was under unions, and the company was challenged with employing new workers at a lower wage. This is primarily because of the facility’s poor performance, resulting in consideration of wage freezes and tightening the rules on sick time. Additionally, the airline anticipated the need to hire more part-time workers and outsource various jobs, which would reduce their financial strain while providing exquisite services to the customers.
3 HRM Implications for Southwest Airlines
Considering that Southwest Airlines has faced changes in its leadership and management, various HRM implications are presented for the airline industry. These HRM implications are inclusive of:
Succession planning for Southwest Airlines
Employee Career Development
Coaching and Mentoring
Business Strategies for the 3 HRM Implications
One of the implications is the need for succession planning for HR in the business. Instead of outsourcing and having part-time employees, the HR is mandated with planning for the company’s future by identifying key employees and providing them with the necessary assistance for growth and development (Harrison, & Bazzy, 2017). This is proposed to eliminate future issues in the airline company and improve productivity in the firm.
Another HRM implication is employee career development. The culture in the company embraced the workforce as part of a family, which requires proper career development of the workers (Wirtz, company’s cultureThe& Jerger, 2016). Investing in this approach assures the firm that the workers remain loyal and operate with high efficiency in meeting the airline’s objectives.
Finally, HR should extend aspects of coaching and mentor for the workforce. Coaching and mentoring are proposed to improve workers’ morale, boost their performance, and ensure they meet the airline industry’s required guidelines (Heng, & Po, 2017). Additionally, it eliminates the need to hire more workers since the current employees have the necessary skills and training to meet their goals and objectives.
HR Strategy
The company’s recommended HR strategy is to embrace a more dynamic approach to dealing with the workforce to meet the required objectives efficiently. The HR strategy must first accommodate the need for Technological training for the crew and implement the majority of the facility’s technologies. This will help in improving the workforce’s motivation and teamwork capabilities, which leads to better efficiency. The HR strategy should also incorporate succession planning elements to reduce the risks of the company’s failures. Succession planning will be necessary for Southwest Airlines because it ensures the recruited employees understand the business’s culture and are inclined to meeting its objectives. Besides, the HR strategy should concentrate on training and coaching the workforce on leading in the workplace, customer services, and communication efficiencies. Embracing these elements improves the firm’s ability to satisfy customer needs, thereby raising its competitive advantage, leading to better profitability.
Conclusion
The report above illustrates the current strategies and their issues, along with possible HRM implications for Southwest Airlines. The report indicates that Southwest airlines have continually fared well in the industry but have been faced with challenges in HR strategies that have impaired its ability to meet its objectives efficiently. The report provides various alternative HR implications and business strategies for the same proposed to improve its outcomes.
References
Harrison, T., & Bazzy, J. D. (2017). Aligning organizational culture and strategic human resource management. Journal of Management Development.
Heng, K., & Po, S. (2017). Cambodia and China’s Belt and Road Initiative: Opportunities, challenges, and future directions. UC occasional paper series, 1(2), 1-18.
Wirtz, J., & Jerger, C. (2016). Managing service employees: literature review, expert opinions, and research directions. The Service Industries Journal, 36(15-16), 757-788.
