Southwest Airlines strategy
Learning Activity #1
Organizations have heavily invested in developing their strategy, and it is found that even the best strategies often fail. There are certain reasons behind that and organizations are unable to implement a sound strategy in an effective manner. During the last week, I have used the Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) tool to evaluate the merger and strategy for Southwest Airline. It was identified that the strategy would be probably acceptable, and it is a more attractive strategy that can increase the performance and operational effectiveness of the company. The organization design has a significant impact on the strategy and plays an important role in implementing the strategy in an efficient manner.
The effective organizational design will help Southwest Airlines to achieve the effective results from the strategy. The effective leadership, values, decision-making process, system, and ethical corporate culture play an important role in developing the organizational design. The corporate culture of the organization will enhance its performance after merger and acquisition with other company (Christine & Patricia, 2011).
The leadership of Southwest Airlines should focus on communication, technological innovation, productivity, and transparency that can generate good results from the strategy. The leadership is the starting point for implementing the merger and acquisition strategy in the organization. The executives have strong values and abilities to meet the goals through the contribution of all employees (Hsieh & Yik, 2016). It is important that the organizational culture is aligned with its objective. It is important the organization has established the shared decision-making process, and it has high staff morale. The company has strong cultural integration plan and ability to scrutinize the culture of acquired company.
References
Christine, I., & Patricia, C. (2011). Organization Design: A Guide to Building Effective Organizations. London: Kogan Page Publishers.
Hsieh, T.-y., & Yik, S. (2016). Article . Retrieved from http://www.mckinsey.com/global-themes/leadership/leadership-as-the-starting-point-of-strategy
Learning Activity #2
The success of any strategy is totally deepened on the strategy implementation phase. The strategy implementation phase is directly associated with the growth and development of the organization. It is noted that the strategy implementation phase is the most difficult stage that needs more concentration. The implementation is even more important than the strategy that has significant impact on the company performance. It is noted that the implementation phase failed due to different reasons such as lack of communication, ownership, coordination, empowerment, and accountability. The leadership, employees, and other stakeholders failed to engage and the company process is not aligned with the specific strategy.
The other factors such as operations, management, finance, marketing, research and development, and MIS issues are some other causes for the failure of strategy. The management is an important factor that is responsible for implementing the strategy in the organization. It communicates the strategic plans with the employees and encourages them to perform in right direction. The management is responsible to handle the performance of the organization after implementation of merger and acquisition strategy in Southwest Airlines. The leadership of the organization is considered as key player of the organization such CEO, COO, and others who are accountable for successful implementation of the strategy.
The poor management practices have significant impact on the strategy implementation phase. Many managers have developed insufficient approaches to achieve the results from a specific strategy that is important cause of failure. The employees are unaware about the strategy objectives and their roles that reduce the work performance in the organization. The management of Southwest Airlines is accountable for the success of the merger and acquisition strategy. It should develop the appropriate approaches and make strategic plan to achieve the effective results.
References
Bacal & Associates. (2015). Who Should Be Responsible For Implementing A Strategic Plan? Retrieved from http://work911.com/planningmaster/faq/implementwho.htm
