The year was 1992, the country was still getting over big hair and leg warmers so we could only move up from there. The place was Greenville South Carolina home to Stevens Aviation a little-known aviation sales and maintenance company. Since late 1990 they has been using the (very catchy) slogan Plane Smart in their adverting. They were very pleased with the slogan until they discovered the goliath Southwest airlines had started using the same slogan.
So stop and thing for a second. You are Kurt Herwald CEO of Stevens Aviation you have a few choices here. Legal action, you'd probably win you were using the slogan before the Big Guy after all. But what would the cost be? Thousands, if not hundred of thousands of dollars in legal fees.
What Herwald did was, and Im using technical terms here, was Awesome. He challenged then Southwest CEO Herb Kelleher to an arm wrestling contest, winner keeps the slogan. The Malice in Dallas was born.
An arena was scheduled and hundreds gathered to see the contest. Cheerleaders cheered, booers booed, and shows of goodwill were dripping for the stands. The winner of the best out of three contest was Herwald of the now over night sensation Stevens Aviation. Who, when things couldn't get any better, announced that both companies could use the much loved slogan. EVERYONE WINS.
There are several factors to this story that I love. The first was that Herwald was not quick to involve the law. He used some very creative out of the box thinking to not only solve his problem but create a sensation publicity opportunity, reinventing his company.
The Build Network Staff (2013) has also drawn attention to how the event created amazing unity within each company and between the two. " 'They were so proud of the company and so excited for the visibility that Malice in Dallas gave to their work,' Herwald says. For months and years after the event, the change to company culture was palpable. Employees felt more connected to one another and to their work" (Blitz, 2014)
Despite Southwests stock doubling and a reported 6 million in increased profit (Blitz, 2014) it was the lasting effect on the employees that would be the true winner of the contest. If I am allowed to speculate (its my blog I make the rules) I would guess that this one out of the box crazy idea created the company and the culture that would be able to help it survive out of the attacks of recessions and terrorists.
Check out 6 part Southwest YouTube of the Malice in Dallas
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLD8C2A0EC0E1E4E69
References
Blitz, M. (2014). How Two Major Companies Used an Arm Wrestling Match Instead of Litigation to Resolve a Dispute. Retrieved from http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/02/two-major- companies-decided-use-arm-wrestling-match-instead-lawsuits-resolve-dispute/
The Build Network Staff . (2013). 3 Lasting Lessons from Malice in Dallas. Retrieved from http://www.inc.com/3-l lasting-lessons-from-malice-in-dallas.html
No comments:
Post a Comment