The Mission and Vision: Southwest and Jet Blue Airlines
BGMT 364
Alexandria Walker
01/19/2013
University of Maryland University College
Professor Brockunier
Abstract
This paper outlines the formation of a vision statement, the mission and the values that JetBlue and Southwest airlines embrace. A firm can initiate strategic management once it forms a mission statement. That statement allows forms to aspire to its potential while bearing in mind what it wants to avoid as it successfully grows. JetBlue and Southwest airlines mission has been primarily to govern the way they conduct business and the desire to serve customers and give direction to make service related decisions. This paper will concentrate
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Recommendations to the leadership: My recommendations for both companies are to keep employee job satisfaction and workplace environment number 1 priority, provide open forums for employee concerns Understand that happy employees=happy customers and continue to market Southwest and Jet Blue as concerned about customer satisfaction and safety.
The Vision: JetBlue’s 2005 annual report features a quotation from then-CEO David Neeleman that serves as a summation of company vision: “As JetBlue continues to grow, we know our commitment to friendly, helpful service, combined with amenities customers want, will continue to keep JetBlue #1 in the eyes of our customers” (“JetBlue Annual Report,” 2005). That statement reads well within that six year-old annual report. JetBlue has grown substantially since 2005 and Neeleman since has been replaced by Dave Barger as CEO (“JetBlue Annual Report,” 2010). Barger could expand on the Neelman’s vision and offer the following vision in 2011: JetBlue’s vision is one of continual emphasis on providing competitive rates for customers for all of our destinations. We will strive to maintain our industry-standard lowest cost-per-mile, and will continually seek new strategies and technologies that keep down the costs for every one of our flight routes. We foresee JetBlue as a value-driven leader, understanding that as a lower-cost carrier we will surpass customer expectations by offering
Given the fierce competition in the airlines industry and the additional competition being offered by the new ultra-low cost carriers, it has become imperative for Southwest Airlines to find a solution that will be sustainable and insulate them verses these and any other future threats. Southwest has initiated a merger proposal with JetBlue that will result in the newly formed SouthwestBlue being much larger and able to compete for control of the North American Continent as the number one provider for customers concerned with both low-cost and excellent customer service. Because both Southwest and JetBlue have similar core values, customer service policies, and business models, it will be an easier merger than it would be for two carriers with drastically different layouts.
JetBlue is a pro at utilizing its resources and structure. As such, JetBlue has proven to be efficient in its internal environment. Out of the physical and human aspects of the internal environment JetBlue focuses on human as the key factor. JetBlue views its employees and their skills as the key to a successful structure by emphasizing elements of loyalty, satisfaction, service quality, productivity, capability, and output quality. JetBlue reflects a culture of employees that understand how to retain customers and can perform under various situations with an equally varied consumer base. In addition to human capital, JetBlue uses physical assets to set them apart from the rest. The airline fleet of JetBlue is very precisely selected. From its new Airbus A321 to its Airbus 320, JetBlue prides itself on comfort and luxury. Other perks offered by JetBlue include lower priced airfare compared to that of its competitors and in-flight entertainment options that succeed its competition. Internal weaknesses include a
JetBlue is an American airline company whose headquarter is located in the New York City. They are a low-cost airline who is rapidly growing in the Unites States. According to Wikipedia, “David Neeleman founded the company in February 1999, under the name "NewAir.” Many of their approach come from Southwest Airlines include low prices airfares. However, they differ in the amenities offered to the customers.
David Neeleman found JetBlue in 1999 with the mission “to bring humanity back to air travel". This goal is achieved by creating a company that offers comfortable, friendly travel at low fares and by this to differentiate themselves from the mass.
David Neeleman, CEO of JetBlue Airways and his management team have realized that JetBlue is still making profit despite the many challenges facing the airline industry after the September 11th 2001 terrorist attacks. Despite these positive returns; JetBlue plans on raising capital through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) to support its aggressive growth and to also offset portfolio losses to their venture capital
JetBlue has been one of the most successful airlines since it first entered the industry in December of 1999. Founder, David Neeleman, set out to succeed by offering low-cost air travel in hopes of perpetuating his services to as many people as he could across the US. He was very adamant about having a very customer oriented business that catered to the needs of all. In doing so he wanted to emphatically promote his obligation to safety, caring, integrity, passion, while allowing the customers to have fun while traveling. There motto helps portray Neeleman’s belief stating “You Above All”. His primary goals had been to follow Southwest’s objectives of offering low rates to customers, focusing on customer’s needs and comforts while distinguishing itself with their amenities. Neeleman’s other goal was to establish his low-cost leadership strategy by concentrating his airline in a large popular metropolitan area that already is already correlated with high airfare (Peterson, 2004). He then began operating based out of the New York metropolitan area at John F. Kennedy International airport with his secondary locations in Washington D.C., Boston and Los Angeles.
JetBlue Airways Corporation was formed in August 1998 as a low-fare, low-cost but high service passenger airline serving select United States market. JetBlue's operations strategy was designed to achieve a low cost, whilst offering customers a pleasing and differentiated flying experience. JetBlue has had a successful business model and strong financial results during that period, and performed well in comparison to other airline companies in the US during the period between 2000 and 2003. It had been the only other airline apart from Southwest airlines, to have been profitable during the aftermath of the September 11, 2001
To formulate a strategy that will help Southwest Airlines maintain its competitive edge in the US airline industry.
1. JetBlue's strategy for success in the marketplace is based on the cost leadership strategy, as outlined by Michael Porter (QuickMBA, 2010). This strategy relies on delivering products or services at a lower price than competitors, and using that cost leadership as the basis by which to attract customers. JetBlue essentially built their business model after Southwest Airlines, and the company's founders had experience with Southwest that helped them learn about the business. The JetBlue approach to cost leadership is focused on the mass market.
Jet-blue Airways is American low cost airline head quartered near New-York city. It’s foundedin August 1998 by David Neeleman with Joel Peterson as a chairman and David Barger as apresident and CEO. By late 2006,like some other airlines, JetBlue faced some softening demand and high cost due to the increase in fuel prices. Barger realizes that JetBlue needs to take further steps to slow its rate of growth. Barger was not sure about the reductions across E190 and A320. The E190 showedpromising growth opportunities and challenges for JetBlue. At the same time, the A320 wasconsidered as proven plane that had succeededover past 6 years. Most of the airline industries were using hub-and-spoke system and point-to-point services. Due to this service, South West Airlines showed consistent profits. After September 11th, the airline industry experienced trouble due to attack. Looking at the history of Jet-blue, it started with just 10airplanes in 2000 and by 2011 the company planned to have 290 planes in service. To support customers, Jet Blueprovided
The goal of this paper is to explain the prominent success of Southwest Airline in the United States through a single case study analysis making use of the McKinsey’s 7-S framework. Developed in the early 1980s at the McKinsey & Company consulting firm by Tom Peters and Robert Waterman, this framework looks at 7 internal factors (Structure, Strategy, Systems, Style, Staff, Skills, Super-ordinate goals) which, according to its authors, need to be aligned for an organization to be successful. In this paper, we will analyse each of its internal elements through the case study “Southwest Airlines in 2008, Culture, Values, and Operating Practices”.
JetBlue had made significant progress in establishing a strong brand by seeking to be identified as a safe, reliable, low-fare airline that was highly focused on customer service and by providing an enjoyable flying
David Neelman realized his vision of creating an airlines company that is focused on customer service by starting JetBlue. During
JetBlue is related to three types of the management concepts in my personal understand, they are: product and marketing. First of all, in product concepts the company focuses on offer the best to fulfill their customer’s expectation “holds that consumers will favor products that offer the most in quality,
Because what JetBlue did was stop thinking about looking right customers for their business, this way they devoted himself to transform the company to focus on its customers, so used all the basics of marketing which seeks that customers have an important value in the company so that they can better understand consumers and achieve satisfy in the best way, this is the ideology that drives this company, the most important thing for them is that the customer are happy with JetBlue and does not change the company for any reason, and then for the next plans they came back.