Firms of Endearment – Southwest Airlines
Firms of endearment are the business companies that seek to satisfy the needs of every stakeholder group. Southwest Airlines is one of the many examples of companies that qualify as ‘firms of endearment.’ The company’s inclusivity strategy enhances performance, community involvement, and innovation. For instance, through its annual diversity summit, Southwest meets community members, executives, and HR professionals to discuss how the company can serve all stakeholder groups better. These stakeholder groups also discuss incorporating the company’s external and internal diversity into its business plans. The desire to seek community opinion shows how much the company is dedicated to serving its people satisfactorily (Sisodia, Wolfe & Sheth, 2003).
Southwest also continually empowers and appreciates its employees. At one point, the company needed new uniforms for its flight attendants. To show how much they appreciate their employees, the company contracted flight attendants to design new uniforms (Robertson, 2018). Such empowerment not only shows appreciation but is economic empowerment for its employees.
Moreover, Southwest has designed its physical spaces to reflect its cultural diversity. The company’s main office in Texas, Dallas, is designed around culture centres, with each office having recreational facilities and meeting rooms to reflect a certain value. Strong and vibrant company culture drives employee motivation from diverse cultures (Schneider& Warnvik, 2018).
Also, Southwest fosters inclusivity by equipping all leaders, regardless of the position they hold. For instance, the company facilitates all its associates and interns to attend leadership workshops to prepare them for future roles (Robertson, 2018). Also, managers are allowed to spend company money to buy gifts or comfort associates in case of death. By connecting directly with employees regardless of their position, they become part of the company and chase its goals as if they are theirs. Southwest’s actions are so successful that other companies are gradually modeling them.
References
Robertson, K. (2018, May 29). Southwest Airlines Reveals 5 Culture Lessons. https://www.humansynergistics.com/blog/culture-university/details/culture-university/2018/05/29/southwest-airlines-reveals-5-culture-lessons
Schneider, M. Y., & Warnvik, L. (2018). The impact of organizational culture and office design on innovation and motivation.
Sisodia, R., Wolfe, D., & Sheth, J. N. (2003). Firms of endearment: How world-class companies profit from passion and purpose. Pearson Prentice Hall.
Wang, C. (2013). On the scientific status of the conscious capitalism theory. California Management Review, 55(3), 97-106.
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Question 
Leadership is the ability to influence followers to achieve common goals through shared purposes. Leaders, with the help of followers, are responsible for enacting an organization’s vision, mission, and strategies and for achieving goals in socially responsible ways.
Choose one of the companies listed on page 362 of your textbook and research the company’s leadership and management, as well as their strategies and structure in meeting stakeholder needs.
Explain, based on your research, how the company is a “firm of endearment.”