Southwest Airlines

Business Environment-External
 Political & Legal
 Air flights permitted only to cities within Texas or to those states bordering with Texas
namely Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
 South West forbidden to advertise, publish schedules or fares or check baggage of the inter
state flights.

 Economic
 Air ticket prices were quite high.
 It gave tickets at a reasonable price.
 Social Environment:
 Flights schedules were not convenient time required for traveling to airport and take off was
to lengthy and annoying.
 It was committed to cutting passengers' time for traveling to and from airport.
 Technological
 There was no major technological change influencing the environment
 Standardized fleet of Boeing 357 aircraft, to reduce
 Business Environment-Internal
 Man
 Treat employees as internal customer
 Money
 Material
 Machine
 Management
 Southwest Airline’s Low Cost Competitive
Advantage
Courteous, but
limited passenger
service

Lean, Short haul, point-to-

productive Competitive point routes, often to
employees Advantage: secondary airports
Low Cost
High
aircraft Frequent,
utilization reliable
Standardized fleet schedules
of Boeing 357
aircraft
 Southwest Airline’s Low Cost Competitive
Advantage
Courteous, but Frequent, reliable
limited passenger schedules
service
High number of flights reduces
No seat assignments employee idle time between flights
No baggage transfers Saturate a city with flights
Automated ticketing machines flowering administrative costs per
No meals passenger for that city

Lower gate costs at

Short haul, point-to- secondary airports
point routes, often to High number of flights,
secondary airports reduces employee idle
time between flights
 Southwest Airline’s Low Cost Competitive
Advantage
High
Standardized fleet aircraft
of Boeing 357 utilization
aircraft
•Flexible employees and standard
Pilot training on only one type of
planes aids scheduling
aircraft
•Flexible union contracts
Reduced maintenance inventory
•Maintenance personnel trained on
required because of only one type of
only one type of aircraft
aircraft
•15 minute gate turnarounds
Excellent supplier relations with Boeing
has aided financing
High level of stock ownership
Lean, Hire for attitude, then train
productive High employee compensation
employees Empowered employees
Automated ticket machines