Devoted to Managers and those that seek to improve their management skills

Patience is a Key Ingredient to Southwest’s (LUV) Strategy and Management Style

In talking about the time it takes to reach profitability in new markets, is the context of the comment above. Kelleher said that he had to talk to his people and remind them of this all the time concerning being patient in waiting for results.

He added that the majority of times when they entered a market, it wasn't too long before the city was profitable; but in some cases it took up to 2 years to turn a profit.

There's an important point to note in being patient. Patience is not only necessary, but imperative in the vast majority of management strategies. The key is that they had a way of doing business down that was proven. It was never a question of whether the service would be successful, but only when. That's the context of patience here.

The one thing we need to be careful of is when we don't have proven systems and services in place and we take our time doing things with regard to changing and adapting. That's a mistake to me. If someone hasn't been proven, it question isn't patience, but continual experimentation until we get it right.

Once we get it right, it's then that we can patiently roll it out to various other markets, being assured that the way we do business will be successful over the long-term.

This is a key distinction that must be taken into consideration when thinking about patience and moving ahead. The difference is where in the process our services or products lie.

Other Herb Kelleher Sources:

A Culture of Commitment

HERB KELLEHER

The wild turkey

Herb Kelleher on the Record, Part 1

Herb Kelleher Talks about How Southwest Airlines Grew from Entrepreneurial Startup to Industry Leadership

Belief Model for The Leadership of Herb Kelleher (Southwest Airlines)

Herb Kelleher, Chairman, CEO and President, Southwest Airlines

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