Oct. 10, 2023

Southwest Airlines: Linda Rutherford - Weathering the Storm with Culture

"Still, you saw those moments of person-to-person care and outreach that really do illuminate what it means to be a Southwest Airlines warrior, and that is that we're in this together. We're going to take care of each other and we're going to figure out how to get out of this.” - Linda Rutherford

Tough times fall on all organizations. Whether it be from mistakes made within, unpredictable storms or financial events, and even pandemics… things can happen. And when they do, having a strong foundation of good culture and a committed team is going to make all the difference.

Southwest Airlines has spent its nearly six decades of existence building and maintaining a strong and healthy culture in its workplace. But the major winter storm of December 2022 put that culture to the ultimate test. When everything was going wrong, they were fortunate that their people were able to pull them through to the other side.

In this episode, Linda Rutherford, Chief Administration Officer of Southwest Airlines, shares the behind-the-scenes story of their storm experience. We'll gain insight into how their culture carried them through and we’ll offer valuable lessons on fostering resilience through culture within all organizations.

Contents

1 - Linda’s journey to Southwest (1:55)

2 - Southwest’s focus on culture (5:58)

3 - When the storm hit (7:39)

4 - How culture led them through (17:22)

5 - What they learned from the experience (19:14)

6 - How to build and maintain culture over time (22:05)

Southwest Airlines: Linda Rutherford - Weathering the Storm with Culture

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