Home/Gary's Greeting |
Send This To A Friend Print Page |
 |
January Features
City Profiles Calendar Spirit’s guide to fun events! Spirit's Travel Wizard Spirit's guide to the best Travel! Win Prizes Send Letters, Pictures or Advice. The best ones win prizes! Advertisement
|
|
The Winning Spirit
Why is New Year’s Day so special? OK, besides the parades and the bowl games. (I am grateful that my wife, Carol, allows this former college player to hunker down in front of the big screen on Jan. 1 and on a few other weekends.) Astronomers tell us that a year lasts 365.25 days, so an arbitrary dividing line between years is needed. But, again why is Jan. 1 so important? I have a guess. Besides astronomical reasons, 365 days is good amount of time to measure progress and change. As arbitrary as the date is, on Jan. 1 we can assign the year’s setbacks to history and embrace a better future. After the year our nation just had, it’s definitely a chance to exhale and start anew. A new president takes office this month, spring will be here soon, and oh yeah, the football playoffs are here. Like you, Southwest is looking forward this month. Our Technology Employees have been hard at work on some much-needed upgrades to the way we conduct business, and this year, you will see some significant improvements. Very soon, you can communicate with us via e-mail. New finance and ticketing systems will help our Employees to better serve you. It will be easier for us to contact you in the rare instance when your flight has been disrupted. And, even more exciting is that we plan to take our first steps outside of the country when we begin codesharing with the good folks at Canada’s WestJet later this year. What won’t change is equally exciting. We still have the best Employees in any Customer Service organization. Even though our personal pocketbooks will be challenged this year, Low Fares and No Hidden Fees are the rule on Southwest Airlines again in 2009, just as they were in 2008. You shouldn’t be charged for a Coke, checking a bag, or even for wanting to talk to another human being. So on behalf of the entire Southwest family, we hope that your new year is prosperous, pleasant, and rewarding. We also hope that one of your resolutions for 2009 is to fly Southwest at every opportunity. Gary KellyCHAIRMAN AND CEO SOUTHWEST AIRLINES Click to read the Southwest Blog, Nuts About Southwest
OPERATION: KICK
TAIL RECOGNITION At least nine of our Station and Inflight Employees from Harlingen, Texas; Houston; Dallas; and Jackson, Mississippi; assisted a distraught Customer during a recent family emergency. Upon learning that her mother had been killed and her father and youngest child were severely injured in a Mississippi car accident, the Customer rushed to the Harlingen Ticket Counter. Our folks arranged immediate passage, ensured that the Customer had as much privacy as is possible on a public flight, assisted with the connection in Houston, and provided big heaps of compassion. Upon arrival in Jackson, our Employees had the Customer’s bags delivered to a friend’s house so that she could immediately go to her daughter’s bedside. In fact, her daughter’s hospital room was already filled with balloons and flowers from the Flight Attendants on her flights. The Customer tells us how much she “appreciates the acts of kindness not covered in any job description. Or is it?” Maybe she has a point because our Employees are known for their empathy and compassion. |
|
Find information & resources related to feature stories.   Advertisement
|
|
