Flying has always been one of my favorite ways to travel. As a child I would use American almost every flight for their frequent flyer program. Now as a pay-my-way adult I use exclusively Southwest and JetBlue. I do noticed that the employees of Southwest and Jetblue actually seem happier. A happy flight attendant makes me enjoy myself better.
At South by Southwest a couple of years ago, there was a panel on company culture and keeping employee moral up. One of the sitting experts was from Southwest Airlines. Did you know Southwest has over 20 employees who’s only job is to find ways for all of the other Southwest employees enjoy their time at work? Not only that, but there is a social network online exclusively for southwest employees to interact with each other and react to company press releases and major decisions.
Besides workplace transparency, Southwest is a company actively trying to make flying fun. I know you’ve seen the rapping flight attendent, but I’ve been on multiple Southwest flights where crying babies are sung lullabies or some other great tunes.
I hope more airlines start including a fun atmosphere, but I respect travelers who want to be left alone. [Via]