Resources
The Colleen C. Barrett Institute strives to provide resources that will aid individuals and organizations in their own efforts to produce excellent cultures and provide top-notch customer service. To that end, we are continually adding resources to our generous collection of Leadership, Culture, and Customer Service content.
Thought Leadership
Strengthening Culture While Embracing Transformation
In July of 2000, I never could have imagined how a Southwest Airlines job advertisement in a legal publication would change the course of my life. At the time, I was working in a law firm, preparing to welcome my daughter into the world, and I was seeking a change. So, I took a chance—I applied.
Elevating Brand Identity: Transformation as a Mindset
At some point in life, I suspect we’ve all experienced or said out loud (maybe even shouted) “change is hard!” When change comes along, it sometimes brings with it disruption, ambiguity and even chaos—all uncomfortable things, especially for someone who likes a clear and predictable plan. But, as I reflect on the countless changes I’ve experienced in my life, I have to say, often, those moments brought critical growth and unexpected, pleasant surprises.
CCBI Wellness Journey: A Year In Review
In planning the Institute’s 2024 content, our hearts kept coming back to the concept of taking care of our own “house.” We wanted to focus on our own wellness and the wellbeing of those we love—and LUV. Sometimes, people, family, and organizations simply need a “reset,” and that’s exactly what we did.
Serving Well: Having a Heart for Service in Work and in Leadership
Have you ever been onboard one of our amazing Southwest Airlines’ flights and forgotten that you’re actually high above the ground, traveling hundreds of miles per hour? I’ve caught myself losing sight of that as well, and I’m reminded that is exactly the level of trust and confidence we hope to achieve in serving our Customers.
Learning Well: Growing Through Difficult Moments
My 38 years at Southwest have been a journey filled with immense gratitude. I’ve witnessed firsthand the power of strong leadership and the profound impact it has on an organization and its people, especially when facing adversity. Through the years, I’ve experienced my share of challenges, and one lesson I learned early on from Colleen Barrett (namesake of the CCB Institute) was that the defining factor in navigating storms is the quality of leadership at the helm.
Learning Well: Effectively Growing Diverse Teams
In today’s workplace, effectively growing and managing diverse Teams is paramount to success. Southwest Airlines President Emeritus, the late Colleen Barrett, mastered this principle, and I am blessed to be able to apply her lessons firsthand from seeing years of her “walking the talk.”
Articles
Media
Videos
Virtual Gathering
Access past and present Virtual Learning Events featuring exclusive Southwest Leader-led discussions covering topics like Inspiring Positive Culture, Leading with Empathy and Emotional Intelligence, Effective Recognition, and much more.
Culture Primer: Building a Lasting Culture: Practical Steps for a Values-Driven Culture Program
Southwest
Virtual Gathering: Being Well: Developing habits to bring out - and BE - the best!
Southwest
CCBI Virtual Roundtable | Women Leading the Way
Southwest
CCBI Virtual Roundtable | Leading the Southwest Way
Southwest
Podcasts
Undercover Recruiter
Brand Extract
J.D. Power Travel & Hospitality Podcast
Culture Program Primer:
First Steps
Download our proprietary Culture Program Primer: First Steps, your starter pack for a sustainable culture program, scripted from the heart of the Southwest Airlines Culture Ambassador program.
This Employee-driven initiative more than three decades ago as a small committee organized by Colleen Barrett to protect and preserve the storied Southwest Culture and has grown to over 400 volunteer Culture Ambassadors covering all locations and departments. We have distilled their learnings, lessons, and advice into a free resource packed with prompts, low-cost engagement ideas, and practical steps to help you build or renew your own organizational culture program. Download your copy below!
Library
Books on Southwest
To celebrate more than 50 years of putting People first, Southwest Airlines proudly released “Leading with Heart: Living & Working the Southwest Way.” This book represents Southwest Airlines’ guide to Leadership, business, and life, based on insights from Founder Herb Kelleher, President Emeritus Colleen Barrett, Executive Chairman and former CEO Gary Kelly, current CEO Bob Jordan, former President and COO Mike Van de Ven, and other impactful Southwest Leaders past and present.
The book highlights Living & Working the Southwest Way as a set of fun and engaging Leadership tenets that can be applied by readers everywhere, and features a special foreword by Gary Kelly. “Leading with Heart” gives readers a “behind-the-curtain” view into the beginnings of Southwest’s unique Culture and how it’s maintained by the Company’s greatest asset—its People.
Grab your copy of “Leading with Heart: Living & Working the Southwest Way” at swathestore.com.
A History of Southwest in 50 Objects
Celebrate Southwest Airlines’ incredible first five decades with 50 Years. One Heart. A History of Southwest in 50 Objects. This visually engaging coffee-table book showcases a stunning collection of 50 unique objects, outfits, and artifacts accompanied by short stories from the Company’s inspiring history and features a special foreword by 17-year Chairman & CEO Gary Kelly. Dive in to explore how Southwest:
- Beat the overwhelming odds to get “ready for takeoff”
- Launched and maintained a truly Legendary Culture
- Turned the corner from surviving to thriving
- Kept on “winning” with Customers
- Disrupted the industry
- And, has consistently put its Heart into action
The inspiring lessons to be learned from the Company’s past remain incredibly relevant today. Grab your copy of 50 Years. One Heart. at swathestore.com and enjoy a rare look at Southwest’s rich past through the lens of iconic (and sometimes, downright eccentric) objects from the Corporate Archive.
By Ken Blanchard and Colleen Barrett (2010)
- What “love” really means in the organizational context.
- Why leading with love is not “soft” management!
- How to use redirection and tough love to handle inappropriate behavior or performance.
- Why “servant leadership” is love in action, and how to make it work.
- How to build the compelling vision and culture that sustains leadership with love
By Kevin Freiberg and Jackie Freiberg (1998)
Southwest Leaders’ Recommended Resources
Leaders Eat Last
Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek
Recommended by
Juan Suarez
Vice President Culture & Chief Inclusion Officer
Who Moved My Cheese
Spencer Johnson, M.D.
Recommended by
CCB Institute
Recommended by
Tammy Taylor
Managing Director Change & Employee Experience
The Greatest Salesman in the World
by OG Mandino
Recommended by
Monica Van Slate
Colleen C. Barrett Institute (and longtime Southwest Employee)
