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Failing Corporate Culture at US Airways:
Bill Pollock, MEC Chairman
In my capacity as MEC Chairman, it has become crystal clear to me that management’s failure to foster a positive corporate culture at our airline is as big a contributor to the failing of this company as are any financial measures by which our carrier may be judged. Radical improvement of corporate culture is a threshold issue that must be addressed now. Three words exemplify my view of an improved corporate culture as applied to pilots: Pride, Respect, Dignity. Convincing actions must be taken now to promote the restoration these crucial characteristics to our pilots.
I will continue to fight to restore “corporate culture†at US Airways. Without it I see little hope of success in the transformation of our airline. Tragically, corporate culture, a leadership responsibility of management’s, is left in the hands of top management who clearly seems more prone to promoting workplace hostility. Our call for the replacement of top management in December was a reflection of this recognition and my concern remains to this day.
I have, and will continue to, promote the restoration of corporate culture in any venue available, public and private. I call upon the pilots of US Airways to join me in the public demand for a “management action plan†to restore respect to our pilots so that we may restore pride in our profession and dignity in the hearts of the US Airways pilots.
My open letter to senior management on the subject of failing corporate culture:
Mr. Siegel, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Glass,
As US Airways President and CEO, CFO and Senior VP of Employee Relations, I’m sure you are used to people offering suggestions to increase the Company’s profitability. Fly more Caribbean routes. Use B-737s versus small jets. Properly staff the airline . . . .
The fact is, you can rework airline operations and procedures, develop new marketing initiatives and shadow the low cost carriers, then hope for the best. Or, you can first improve the US Airways corporate culture and the employees’ belief that we are respected contributors to this airline and that we are working together to achieve worthy goals.
Corporate culture can be defined as the values, attitudes, beliefs and behavior that embody a company’s working environment, organizational goals and vision. If you asked your employees to name a few words that embody US Airways’ working environment, well, you might have to listen to some pretty colorful adjectives. Since corporate culture is established and promoted by senior management, you should look at your corporate culture failings as your report card.
Companies with a strong corporate culture may look very different from one another, but all have three things in common: respect, honesty and vision. These are what we expect from you, our senior management.
Employees want the company they work for to look out for them, not just the fiscal bottom line. In the airline business, WE are the real bottom line. Some may argue that it’s just the ticket price that matters, but no one will be loyal to an airline that sells cheap tickets but employs poorly-managed, apathetic employees. If the pilots are going to participate in a revised business plan to restore the Company to profitability, it is even more important to transform the culture of the company. We need a coach to form a team to develop a winning game plan and to inspire the very best in each and every employee. I am deeply concerned that our current management team, with the sorry corporate culture they have fostered, can rise to the challenge in this crucial component of our airline’s business.
Here are my rules for treating your employees with respect and honesty:
· Communicate with your employees. Where do you expect US Airways to be in a year? In five years? What is our business strategy? How is our strategy unfolding? And tell your employees first, not the business community. Going to the “outside†with plans, ideas and wishes makes employees feel as though they don’t rate highly enough with their own management to hear this news first. Worse, you appear so eager to provide your plans to the hundreds of airline analysts out there, that you forget there are 40,000 people who should be at the top of your list of people who should know. We will always be more affected by the state of our company than anyone else.
· Coordinate with ALPA. Tell us what is going on with pilot-related administrative matters. When the payroll system computer spit out $0.79 pay stubs due to an error in FICA tax calculations, pilots called ALPA. However, we didn’t realize this, because you didn’t even bother to tell us that large chunks of FICA tax were being taken out of some pilot’s checks, let alone that in some cases, an incorrect amount had been deducted. The prevailing sentiment is that every time a problem like this pops up (and they do way too often), it’s something that could have been prevented by just giving ALPA a heads-up.
· Admit your mistakes. How you deal with your mistakes, more than how you deal with your successes, is what determines a company’s future and is the measure of a person’s character. Picking yourself up from the dirt and admitting that problems exist, and that you’ve learned from them, is key. Yes, this also means apologizing. When was the last time we’ve heard you apologize? It’s easy: “We are sorry. We will work to make sure this doesn’t happen again. We will not blame anyone else for our mistakes and shortcomings. We will be accountable for what happens next. We will lead.â€
· Back up your apologies with corrective action. Pilots have very long memories. When the same mistake is made repeatedly, it builds, layer by layer, the mistrust that we have towards you. You may think our frustration and anger is a simple result of lower pay and reduced benefits; however, our suspiciousness isn’t fueled by our personal losses, but how our business losses keep increasing while our airline wallows under dysfunctional management, a failing corporate culture, and a business model that is not adapting to economic realities.
· Demonstrate your appreciation. A pat on the back goes a long way towards making people feel as though their efforts matter. What doesn’t work is when you only talk about appreciating us when you want something you can’t have without our permission. That degrades employees, who start to feel like the only time management thinks they bring something to the workplace is when they give up something in the workplace.
· Don’t take what isn’t yours. To pilots, cheating our contract is disrespectful, immoral, dishonest, reprehensible, corrupt and intolerable. Can’t get what you want? Don’t steal it. Make your case to the MEC and the pilots. If we believe your needs are real, we’ll talk. If you convince us that you can’t be trusted, you jeopardize any hope of a successful discussion.
These points shouldn’t tell you anything that you haven’t heard before. They may be harsh, but they have to be conveyed. After years in business, you should already know these truths. If you don’t, here’s your chance to right this ship. If you do understand these points, and just don’t want to bother to fix our problems, a new plan won’t matter.
I don’t know where this process will end. But, Mr. Siegel, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Glass, this is where we begin. If you are willing, our corporate transformation must begin with you. Rest assured, we will devote our time and resources to providing the US Airways pilots a management team who understands and appreciates the importance of a positive corporate culture. The employees of this company deserve no less.
Bill Pollock, MEC Chairman
In my capacity as MEC Chairman, it has become crystal clear to me that management’s failure to foster a positive corporate culture at our airline is as big a contributor to the failing of this company as are any financial measures by which our carrier may be judged. Radical improvement of corporate culture is a threshold issue that must be addressed now. Three words exemplify my view of an improved corporate culture as applied to pilots: Pride, Respect, Dignity. Convincing actions must be taken now to promote the restoration these crucial characteristics to our pilots.
I will continue to fight to restore “corporate culture†at US Airways. Without it I see little hope of success in the transformation of our airline. Tragically, corporate culture, a leadership responsibility of management’s, is left in the hands of top management who clearly seems more prone to promoting workplace hostility. Our call for the replacement of top management in December was a reflection of this recognition and my concern remains to this day.
I have, and will continue to, promote the restoration of corporate culture in any venue available, public and private. I call upon the pilots of US Airways to join me in the public demand for a “management action plan†to restore respect to our pilots so that we may restore pride in our profession and dignity in the hearts of the US Airways pilots.
My open letter to senior management on the subject of failing corporate culture:
Mr. Siegel, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Glass,
As US Airways President and CEO, CFO and Senior VP of Employee Relations, I’m sure you are used to people offering suggestions to increase the Company’s profitability. Fly more Caribbean routes. Use B-737s versus small jets. Properly staff the airline . . . .
The fact is, you can rework airline operations and procedures, develop new marketing initiatives and shadow the low cost carriers, then hope for the best. Or, you can first improve the US Airways corporate culture and the employees’ belief that we are respected contributors to this airline and that we are working together to achieve worthy goals.
Corporate culture can be defined as the values, attitudes, beliefs and behavior that embody a company’s working environment, organizational goals and vision. If you asked your employees to name a few words that embody US Airways’ working environment, well, you might have to listen to some pretty colorful adjectives. Since corporate culture is established and promoted by senior management, you should look at your corporate culture failings as your report card.
Companies with a strong corporate culture may look very different from one another, but all have three things in common: respect, honesty and vision. These are what we expect from you, our senior management.
Employees want the company they work for to look out for them, not just the fiscal bottom line. In the airline business, WE are the real bottom line. Some may argue that it’s just the ticket price that matters, but no one will be loyal to an airline that sells cheap tickets but employs poorly-managed, apathetic employees. If the pilots are going to participate in a revised business plan to restore the Company to profitability, it is even more important to transform the culture of the company. We need a coach to form a team to develop a winning game plan and to inspire the very best in each and every employee. I am deeply concerned that our current management team, with the sorry corporate culture they have fostered, can rise to the challenge in this crucial component of our airline’s business.
Here are my rules for treating your employees with respect and honesty:
· Communicate with your employees. Where do you expect US Airways to be in a year? In five years? What is our business strategy? How is our strategy unfolding? And tell your employees first, not the business community. Going to the “outside†with plans, ideas and wishes makes employees feel as though they don’t rate highly enough with their own management to hear this news first. Worse, you appear so eager to provide your plans to the hundreds of airline analysts out there, that you forget there are 40,000 people who should be at the top of your list of people who should know. We will always be more affected by the state of our company than anyone else.
· Coordinate with ALPA. Tell us what is going on with pilot-related administrative matters. When the payroll system computer spit out $0.79 pay stubs due to an error in FICA tax calculations, pilots called ALPA. However, we didn’t realize this, because you didn’t even bother to tell us that large chunks of FICA tax were being taken out of some pilot’s checks, let alone that in some cases, an incorrect amount had been deducted. The prevailing sentiment is that every time a problem like this pops up (and they do way too often), it’s something that could have been prevented by just giving ALPA a heads-up.
· Admit your mistakes. How you deal with your mistakes, more than how you deal with your successes, is what determines a company’s future and is the measure of a person’s character. Picking yourself up from the dirt and admitting that problems exist, and that you’ve learned from them, is key. Yes, this also means apologizing. When was the last time we’ve heard you apologize? It’s easy: “We are sorry. We will work to make sure this doesn’t happen again. We will not blame anyone else for our mistakes and shortcomings. We will be accountable for what happens next. We will lead.â€
· Back up your apologies with corrective action. Pilots have very long memories. When the same mistake is made repeatedly, it builds, layer by layer, the mistrust that we have towards you. You may think our frustration and anger is a simple result of lower pay and reduced benefits; however, our suspiciousness isn’t fueled by our personal losses, but how our business losses keep increasing while our airline wallows under dysfunctional management, a failing corporate culture, and a business model that is not adapting to economic realities.
· Demonstrate your appreciation. A pat on the back goes a long way towards making people feel as though their efforts matter. What doesn’t work is when you only talk about appreciating us when you want something you can’t have without our permission. That degrades employees, who start to feel like the only time management thinks they bring something to the workplace is when they give up something in the workplace.
· Don’t take what isn’t yours. To pilots, cheating our contract is disrespectful, immoral, dishonest, reprehensible, corrupt and intolerable. Can’t get what you want? Don’t steal it. Make your case to the MEC and the pilots. If we believe your needs are real, we’ll talk. If you convince us that you can’t be trusted, you jeopardize any hope of a successful discussion.
These points shouldn’t tell you anything that you haven’t heard before. They may be harsh, but they have to be conveyed. After years in business, you should already know these truths. If you don’t, here’s your chance to right this ship. If you do understand these points, and just don’t want to bother to fix our problems, a new plan won’t matter.
I don’t know where this process will end. But, Mr. Siegel, Mr. Cohen and Mr. Glass, this is where we begin. If you are willing, our corporate transformation must begin with you. Rest assured, we will devote our time and resources to providing the US Airways pilots a management team who understands and appreciates the importance of a positive corporate culture. The employees of this company deserve no less.
