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This
interactive, multimedia program compliments introductory level business classes
by illustrating how basic management principles are put into practice at
Southwest Airlines. Students new to the field of business can develop an
understanding of leadership, strategy, job analysis, cost containment, and other
concepts as they learn about one of America's most celebrated and successful
companies. The program contains seven individual modules devoted to the
following topics: Management, Strategic Planning, Job Design, Human Resource
Management, Work Groups and Teams, Leadership, and Monitoring/Cost Control.
Module 1 provides students
with a general introduction to the basic principles of management. Using the
Southwest organization chart, they begin to identify different kinds of managers
and their roles and duties. Southwest's efforts to embrace cultural diversity
serve as an example of how various levels and types of managers work in concert
to change and develop company policy.
Module 2 looks at strategic planning. After a general description of
Southwest's business strategy, students are invited to examine specific
strategy-related issues such exploring the airline's competitive environment,
noting the company's competitive strengths and weaknesses, and learning of their
plans for future growth and expansion.
Module 3 is defining jobs and planning work. The components of Hackman
& Oldham's Job Characteristics Model serve as the theoretical foundation for
the explanation of job creation and development at Southwest. Students come to
understand how various facets of jobs contribute to psychological satisfaction
and personal motivation.
Module 4 examines
human resource management systems and their role in employee motivation.
Southwest's recruiting, selection, training, and
compensation systems are presented as examples of HR principles in action. Then,
Southwest's incredible culture is examined through the lens of traditional
theories of motivation to explain the mechanisms through which the company keeps
its personnel happy and productive.
Module 5 Here, the focus is on team building with particular attention
to the development of trust among team members. Southwest's hiring policies are
explained in light of the team atmosphere in the organization, allowing students
to see the strategy the company uses to form successful work groups.
Module 6 focuses on Leadership. The
traditional distinction of "leading vs. managing" is clearly
highlighted through a discussion of Southwest's training program objectives.
Herb Kelleher is presented as a prototypical charismatic leader, and the pros
and cons of charismatic leadership are discussed.
Module 7 In this module, students learn how traditional control mechanisms are used at
Southwest. Salient examples include how Southwest computes cost-benefit analyses
for new routes, the use of customer feedback for service monitoring, and the
importance of "clan control" to keep the Southwest culture alive.
Each
Module consists of a 1-2 page text overview, a video overview, additional
multimedia elements, links to background information and related websites, and a
15-20 question online quiz.
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