Organizational Culture
"We succeed together, we fail together."
I’ve heard this statement several times but not until I read The Southwest Airlines Way (by Jody Hoffer Gittell) did I really understand what it means. My boss, AJU President Don Kassner, recommends books to the staff and this was his latest pick; I started reading on a Saturday morning and finished by that evening.
Reading this book made me realize how unusual is AJU as an organization. Southwest relies on a concept called 'Relational Coordination,' which means that when Southwest hires, it screens out people who may be arrogant or need a rigid job description in order to perform well.
This idea of Relational Coordination allows Southwest to hire in people who really are team players. Without having a name for it, AJU has always done the same thing. Each staff member wears multiple hats and we're constantly sharing them. As a small staff, we’re all cross-trained in someone else’s job. For example, our Bursar Joe Peek is away on National Guard Duty this week so I’m helping process payments.
As a staff, we pitch in as needed to reach our goal - which brings me to the next idea: Southwest uses Cross-Functional Performance Measures. Cross-Functional Performance Measures are overarching goals that span multiple departments for Southwest. For instance, this can mean fast turn-arounds at the gate since the pilots, gate agents, ramp agents and operations agents all have to work together to reach that goal. There’s no finger pointing, only everyone trying to get the job down to keep the customers happy and on time.
At AJU we have one shared goal - and that's our commitment to our students.
Our students are our customers so it’s up to us to make sure they receive the highest quality education for the lowest cost. AJU can do that with our new sponsored tuition program as well as by creating strong relationships with our students. We realize it’s a long road through college so we’ve put in place the tools for students to be successful and we’re here to offer all the help we can. Retention is paramount to us because we want our students to succeed...and that means graduate. Reading the Southwest book put into perspective the high-quality organizational culture that AJU has developed and will strive to grow.
Amanda Findlay
I’ve heard this statement several times but not until I read The Southwest Airlines Way (by Jody Hoffer Gittell) did I really understand what it means. My boss, AJU President Don Kassner, recommends books to the staff and this was his latest pick; I started reading on a Saturday morning and finished by that evening.
Reading this book made me realize how unusual is AJU as an organization. Southwest relies on a concept called 'Relational Coordination,' which means that when Southwest hires, it screens out people who may be arrogant or need a rigid job description in order to perform well.
This idea of Relational Coordination allows Southwest to hire in people who really are team players. Without having a name for it, AJU has always done the same thing. Each staff member wears multiple hats and we're constantly sharing them. As a small staff, we’re all cross-trained in someone else’s job. For example, our Bursar Joe Peek is away on National Guard Duty this week so I’m helping process payments.
As a staff, we pitch in as needed to reach our goal - which brings me to the next idea: Southwest uses Cross-Functional Performance Measures. Cross-Functional Performance Measures are overarching goals that span multiple departments for Southwest. For instance, this can mean fast turn-arounds at the gate since the pilots, gate agents, ramp agents and operations agents all have to work together to reach that goal. There’s no finger pointing, only everyone trying to get the job down to keep the customers happy and on time.
At AJU we have one shared goal - and that's our commitment to our students.
Our students are our customers so it’s up to us to make sure they receive the highest quality education for the lowest cost. AJU can do that with our new sponsored tuition program as well as by creating strong relationships with our students. We realize it’s a long road through college so we’ve put in place the tools for students to be successful and we’re here to offer all the help we can. Retention is paramount to us because we want our students to succeed...and that means graduate. Reading the Southwest book put into perspective the high-quality organizational culture that AJU has developed and will strive to grow.
Amanda Findlay
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