The Kelleher Legend: Herb Kelleher, Founder and CEO of Southwest Airlines, died last week at the age of 87 and the world is a lesser place because of his passing. How could you not love a CEO who settled disputes by arm wrestling, rode his Harley right into and inside the office and helped out the baggage handlers when they were swamped?
As an attorney with no airline experience, he started the company with one small plane and grew Southwest into an international airline empire. His unconventional methods earned the loyalty of employees and the grudging respect of a skeptical industry.
My Meeting with Herb: I was asked to speak on conflict to a group of 200 of Southwest’s top executives. The session started in the late morning and the group was to be served a buffet lunch. The organizers promised me lunch with Kelleher after my presentation. I tend not to eat before I speak and when I finished, I was famished. Kelleher came up to meet me, waxed with enthusiasm about my presentation and then walked me over to the buffet. Only….we never made it to the food. Herb decided to stop and talk with every person in the room, asking them questions about a son’s graduation, a recent wedding, a stay in the hospital and on and on. He knew the personal details of every employee’s life, including the servers and AV people. After an hour or so of this, I excused myself to grab some food before I fainted dead away. Herb continued to gab.
What Does All This Have To Do With Resolving Conflict? Based on several work projects with Southwest, my experience was not unique. Kelleher was legendary for remembering birthdays, work anniversaries and the details of an employee’s latest project. When a conflict arose, he had already infused the worker with a Kelleher charm offensive and developed a relationship with them. Of course, they were predisposed to want to work things out.
“What helps… is keeping a higher goal in mind to help you through the tough work.”
January 7, 2018
