What to Learn from Southwest, Netflix and Honda?
How do these 3 companies achieve solid financial results amidst a pretty obvious economic crisis? It’s pretty amazing, especially considering 2 of the 3 these companies are in highly battered sectors (air travel and automotive). I’m sure these companies have great management, but more importantly they provide products that the “most” according to a great blog post by Bill Taylor (from my Alma Matter of blogs) about high-performance companies being more than “pretty good”, they are the “the most exclusive, the most affordable, the most responsive, the most friendly” as he puts it.
That’s what Southwest, Netflix and Honda have in common, so where does Leads360 fit into the puzzle? Do we provide something that our clients can’t live without? I think we do and I know many of our clients think that. How do we get all of our clients to realize this; and how do we get every other company that we talk to clamor for what we have to offer. I think it starts with culture. When we started we had very little to offer other than our passion. We were so very passionate about what we were doing and that passion was infectious. We hadn’t angered any clients or partners by making mistakes and our products addressed such a core need that it was hard to say it wasn’t valuable. But as we’ve grown it’s become harder to stay focused. We need to get back to basics.
It’s about understanding and building what’s really needed. It’s about being passionate about the value we provide. And most importantly it’s about the connection we make with our clients and partners. I know from experience; for Netflix, Southwest and Honda it’s burned into the culture and it makes all the difference.
As a user of Honda cars, Southwest flights and Netflix movies, I have to agree that these 3 survivors present excellent models for the many competitors who are flailing in the dust after gouging customers and offering low-quality products and/or services.
The big difference: Honda, Southwest and Netflix have a vision to satisfy customers and remain in business for many years...competitors are trying to satisfy shareholders and grab as much money as they can....they have no vision and therefore no future.
Posted by: John Gillett
I agree about the importance of a companies culture. I have been working on a website (leadingwithKindness.com) and have been amazed with how much these companies credit their success to the companies culture. The some of larger companies also expressed how it is more difficult to maintain their culture, but they still try to because they believe that it is extremely important for the company. One way these companies maintain their positive culture is by spending time with potential employees and having a longer than average hiring process to ensure that they fit with the company culture.
Posted by: Tom