Southwest Airlines Soars On Employee Engagement

Southwest Airlines just reported its 40th consecutive profitable year in a 41-year history during which the company has never furloughed employees.

That's a remarkable accomplishment in one of the most competitive businesses around.  All the more so considering that the Dallas-based carrier was able to add to that record during the economic and industry turbulence of the last few years.

There are many reasons for such an achievement, but Southwest Airlines people themselves will say that their long culture of employee engagement is one of the biggest.

Southwest's institutionalization of employee-recognition programs, company-wide surveys, special awards, distinctive Halloween celebrations and an annual company-wide blowout at a city on its route system have combined to help create an enthusiastic and committed workforce whose evident glow, in turn, rubs off on Southwest passengers by the millions -- and continues the company's cycle of prosperity.

"Customer service internally is what's critical, so that it spills over externally; and that trust that employees have in the company, and our leadership, is key for them to support the airline in a rapidly changing world," Cheryl Hughey, director of culture services for Southwest, told us. "We say we can have fun at work, and that's unique -- other organizations may not see the value of that."

And when "something comes up," as it often does in an industry as dynamic as air travel, the proven effectiveness of Southwest's employee-engagement culture helps the company perform best in whatever situation arises.

For example, Southwest was able to smoothly digest Trans Air after acquiring it in 2011, and integrate its 8,000 employees, partly because of a program in which Southwest employees volunteered to "adopt" a Trans Air employee via e-mail and guide them through the transition, then meet with them personally when their new Southwest orientation brought them to Dallas.

"We avoided having that 'takeover' feel because of that program," Hughey said.

Among other things, Trans Air's former employees learned about "the Southwest way," which describes the company's core values and expectations.

"We want to ensure that we have that fun-loving characteristic but also we do extremely hard work," Hughey explained. "And we have a servant's heart: putting others first."

Also contributing to Southwest's highly engaged culture is a small operation that, according to Hughey, has a huge impact: a handful of staffers who process letters and e-mails and other messages from customers about Southwest employees. Certainly there are complaints, but the group mainly exists to feed commendations of employees to those who need to know.

"The research that goes into this is huge," Hughey said. "Our people figure out which employees [took the commendable actions] and exactly what happened. We let their leader know, and we want the world to know internally and externally about these great feats of customer satisfaction, and the way our employees treat each other as well as our customers, and in times of need the way they come together.

"There's a lot of work that goes into that. A lot of companies may like what they hear about their employee, but they aren't willing to put in the work that it takes to make sure they're recognized."

Engagement is an Art at Mercedes-Benz Financial Services

There are more ways for companies to make employees feel valued than offering on-site massages, pet-day-care subsidies and an on-premises single-cup coffee maker.

Take Mercedes-Benz Financial Services, for example. The company has chosen to display fantastic modern art -- "colorful, bold and not so simple to interpret" -- at its Farmington Hills, Mich., headquarters, according to the online publication OaklandCountyProsper.com.

Produced by students of the famed Cranbrook Academy of Art in nearby Bloomfield Hills, the paintings, sculptures, metalsmithing, photography and other pieces adorn hallways, cafeterias, elevator lobbies and conference rooms under a 12-year partnership between the German luxury-car brand and the school.

But Mercedes-Benz goes way beyond static displays: The company uses art to inspire and engage its employees in a variety of other ways, ranging from staff mentorship of art students in local elementary schools to an annual employee art show in the cafeteria where temporary gallery walls are installed.

All of the employees in the building are invited to submit art, the publication said, and last year 15 of them -- none of whom function as full-time artists in their daily jobs -- did exactly that.

"It brings to light the creative interests, talents and skills of people that we work with on a day-to-day basis that oftentimes people don't know about," said Leila Matta, manager of brand identity, design and the art program for Mercedes-Benz Financial Services.

"It's about developing inner skills, listening to each other, and understanding where different people are coming from."

For Effective Brand Ambassadors, How About Employees?

Companies invest heavily in creating "brand ambassadors" out of a handful of loyal customers who can generate buzz and sales because of their singular devotion to a brand.

But brands could be even more effective if they would cultivate their own employees as brand ambassadors to spread positive word of mouth about their products and services. And yet relatively few enterprises are executing a strategy for doing this.

"A company's brand reputation, whether employer or corporate, is a direct reflection of the culture and values of a company," notes Mike Schroeder, CEO of TNS Employee Insights, which recently conducted a joint study with LinkedIn of nearly 11,000 employees about such topics. "The best way to increase awareness is through your employees."

We couldn't agree more. More companies are understanding the need for employee engagement in general, and reaping the benefits of engendering the enthusiasm, loyalty and resulting greater effectiveness of their staffs -- at least internally.

But leaders have been relatively slow to tap into the potential of proactively turning employee enthusiasm outward. Sometimes, this neglect can be as basic as helping employees to understand their brand and the importance of it.

Asked about their previous employment in a TNS-Linked In study, fewer than half of employees understood the behaviors that were required of them by the promise of the brand they represented.

TNS recommends five top drivers of employee brand ambassadorship:

• The company brand experience sets us apart.
• I trust senior leadership.
• Work gives me a feeling of accomplishment.
• The company is environmentally responsible.
• I feel valued as an employee.

We might add a few more drivers to this list, such as an active employee-engagement program.

But you get the idea: Engaged, enthusiastic employees can be the best way for brands to create more engaged, enthusiastic customers.