Happiness Quotient Headquarters

January 23, 2008 3 Comments

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Thank you for coming and enjoy your visit!

I am always a bit pleasantly surprised when I return in one piece from a plane trip. If you read my previous post called Fear is a Four-letter Word, then I thought you might like to know that two things have happened since then:

1. I survived a cross-country round-trip from California to Florida without the 737 becoming a lawn dart and

2. I did not get kicked in the head by any goats. Sometimes life is good.

There are very few things I hate worse than flying. Public speaking, pantyhose, toilet paper rolls with no discernible starting point, news coverage of Brittany Spears, and filing might be close. So it might seem strange for someone like me to sing the praises of an airline, especially one in which I do not own stock. But I have a fondness for Southwest Airlines which borders on religious devotion. I may not be the most relaxed flyer on the plane, but thanks to the comfort of Southwest (and perhaps one teeny weeny Xanax), this trip I was actually able to get out of my seat a few times to use the bathroom, a feat I consider as terrifying and dangerous as the Running of the Bulls in Pamplona. I may have even nodded off for a few minutes at one point. Anyway, flying Southwest makes me about as happy as I can be at 40,000 feet, and here are 11 Reasons I consider them the Feel Good Airline:

1. Arriving alive—-No passenger fatalities in the history of the airline.

If you are a fearful flyer, as I am, you are probably obsessed with statistics regarding airline safety. Check out Southwest’s safety record. They have been around since 1971 and fly over 3,300 flights each day. However, they have never had a passenger fatality. While this might just be luck, my guess is that there are some corporate factors that contribute to this (maintenance, staff morale, etc) including some of the ones I’ll mention below. One factor may be that they only fly planes in the 737 family for ease of training, etc. So no confusion over where the controls are here. In an emergency where split seconds may count, I like knowing that my pilot probably knows the location of the controls in his sleep.

2. Sense of humor.

This is an airline company that knows how to have fun. The book Nuts! Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success talks about how Southwest has fun as a major part of its way of doing business. This may include humorous commentary from pilots flight (such as when our pilot came on the loudspeaker saying “Whoa big fella!” during some turbulence outside of Chicago to flight attendants bursting into short songs. One flight attendant thanked us for flying Southwest and jokingly reminded us that “No one loves you or your money more than Southwest.” I have also heard of takeoffs where a toilet paper roll was unfurled down the aisle and everyone on the row where it stopped when the plane leveled off got free drinks. During my most recent flight, they also updated us frequently on the scores of the NFL playoff games going down below.

3. High employee morale.

Highly unionized, but still able to keep costs down, Southwest was the first in the U.S. airline industry to adopt a profit-sharing plan with its employees in 1973. According to Southwest’s website, through this and other employee plans, employees own over 80% of the company. In the years they participated in the Fortune 100 Best Businesses to Work For, they consistently ranked in the top 5. I like knowing that the people taking care of me feel that they are being taken care of as well. That means no disgruntled employees checking the maintenance of my plane, routing my luggage to Hawaii just for fun, or glaring at me as I go by.

4. Inexpensive.

Despite the pressures on U.S. Airlines today, Southwest has been one of the most financially stable and profitable of all of the domestic airlines. Yet I was still able to get a round trip ticket across the country at dirt cheap prices. In fact, Southwest’s average passenger airfare is only $105.37. They use a variety of cost-saving measures such as fuel hedging (buying extra fuel beforehand if they think the cost is going up) and using many secondary airports. Very few affect the customer, although I must admit if you are looking for first-run movies at your seat or gourmet cuisine they may not be the airlines for you. Unless you are a rabid fan of whipped cheese, salami sticks, and gerbil-sized packets of peanuts, I suggest stowing a few extra snacks in your carry-on bag for long flights.

5. Good ethics.

Southwest has been consistently named as one of the 100 Best Corporate Citizens for the past several years. On our flight, they made sure to let us know that they recycle as they cleaned up our aluminum cans. In Fortune magazine’s 2007 survey of businesspeople, Southwest ranked 5th on the list of most admired companies in any industry. This placed them just ahead of Fed Ex, Apple, and Google which were 6th, 7th, and 8th respectively. For years, the company has been a major financial supporter of the Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities.

6. Great customer service.

Southwest has one of the best on-time arrival and departure rates of any airline in the business with over 80% rate. All of my connections flights either arrived early, from a few minutes to an entire half hour. They have the fewest complaints per number of passengers of any U.S. airline. Last year, Southwest was named to Business Week’s list of “Customer Service Champs.” Sometimes it’s the little things that count. While we were waiting for boarding to start, the announcements for passengers were purposely timed to coincide with commercials, rather than interrupt the football playoff games which had started. A small consideration, but one that was appreciated nonetheless.

7. New and better boarding procedures.

I’ve had friends who’ve avoided Southwest because of their boarding procedure in the past, but those days are over. Before, it was first-come, first-served within each boarding group. It was a bit inhumane; I always felt like we should be mooing and watching for border collies. Early-birders started lining up an hour before departure. So you either developed cramps in your legs from standing so long or got stuck with the dreaded middle seat by default. Thanks to their new procedure, you can get your boarding passes 24 hours ahead and your place in line is reserved for you. Now passengers board in a much more civilized manner. Kneepads and helmets are no longer an advantage.

8. LUV is their middle name.

Well actually, LUV is their ticker symbol. While this probably has more to do with their corporate base of Love Field in Dallas, Texas, than an exhortation to love each other, I like it that Wall Street gets to feel the LUV. Call me a sucker, but their logo that has LUV with two wings makes me smile. While other industry leaders often spout catchy business jargon, the president of Southwest frequently mentions The Golden Rule as one which guides her company.

9. A motto decided by arm-wrestling.

Several years ago, Southwest came up with a catchy motto: Just Plane Smart. Problem was that another airline had used a very similar motto, “Plane Smart.” The conventional strategy would be to spend lots of money slugging this one out in court, but then Southwest is anything but conventional. Both airline presidents decided to let the winner of an arm-wrestling match get the rights to the motto. In addition, $15,000 would be donated to charity. The match was held a famed wrestling facility called the Dallas Sportatorium. Although Herb Kelleher, Southwest’s CEO at the time, lost the contest, the other airline president granted him permission anyway. Both companies saved their customer’s money by not giving it a lot of it to lawyers, got some good publicity, and most importantly had a good time with the whole thing. They have a new slogan now, but how can you not just love that chapter in their history?

10. An Eye on Diversity.

The current President of Southwest Airlines is Colleen Barrett, the first female with this position in the airline industry. She has an approachable, friendly look, reminding you of your favorite aunt. She has consistently been named as one of the most powerful women in business for several years. In 1992, Louis Freeman became the first African-American chief pilot of any Airline. Southwest has won several awards from Hispanic organizations for their leadership in the area of diversity, and they were among the first to offer Spanish-language online booking. The 2008 Guide to Gay and Lesbian Friendly Companies gives Southwest a 90 rating out of a possible 100. They are also well-known as a military-friendly company. I’m sure they aren’t perfect but it looks to me like their hearts in the right place.

11. A New Makeover for the Planes.

I was never a fan of the tan and orange colors better reserved for Burger King. Now they’ve added “canyon blue”, an attractive purple-blue hue that is a decided improvement. Because of the other 10 factors above, I’d probably fly Southwest if their colors were pea green and pink, but its nice to ride with a little style. The new color scheme seems to better fit their corporate persona to me, professional yet just a bit different.

There’s lots of ways to work on being a happier person. One is to use products and companies that exemplify the values you feel are important. You are not only what you eat, but also what you fly, drive, wipe up spills with, etc. Your money casts a vote of sorts. Who are you voting for?

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