In my last post, I talked about the book Creating Customer Evangelists and how it used certain companies as examples of how to create buzz and build customer loyalty.  One of these companies was Southwest Airlines. 

The subject of Southwest Airlines as a model business for lawyers comes up in Larry Bodine's Professional Marketing Blog where he summarizes a speech by Deborah Ackerman, VP and GC of Southwest Airlines.  Ms. Ackerman said that a law firm run like SWA would:

-Be the low-cost producer.  -Have excellent service.  -Focus on clients as customers and not as a legal matter.  -Have no layoffs.  -Have an annual chili cook-off.  -Have a tradition of fun.  Halloween is a major holiday at the headquarters, and everyone comes to work in a costume, including the CEO.  -Relax the dress code.  -Be family-oriented.  There is no expensive artwork on the walls of SWA.  Instead there are pictures of employees with their families, pets and hobbies.  -Display "brag boards" everywhere where employees can put up notes about their own and their kids' accomplishments.  -Have many employee recognition programs.  -Establish an Employee Catastrophic Fund to help employees in cases of an uninsured loss or serous illness.  -Communicate in a timely fashion to employees.  -Give hugs and praise from to staff as a daily occurrence.

Bodine calls this a "total fantasy" and says, "There will never be a law firm run like Southwest Airlines,  because law firms care about partner profits, not employee happiness.  The employees are there to serve the partners and help the firm make more money.  Law firm goals are to move up the chart of the AmLaw profitability tables."

Why can't a law firm be run like Southwest?  Don't clients deserve a choice? Airline passengers choose Southwest in no small part because SWA employees enjoy their jobs so much, they make travelling fun.  How many lawyers enjoy their jobs so much, their enthusiam rubs off on their clients? Not enough.