Ensure all 130,000 team members feel cared for

The Opportunity

• Ensure all 130,000 team members feel cared for
• Align senior leadership team behind newly established Leadership Attributes
• Redefine American’s purpose beyond being the World’s Largest Airline

Our Approach

Three years after American Airlines merged with US Airways, the airline had completed the integration of most customer-facing services. Turning their attention to internal systems and culture, the first step was drafting Leadership Attributes that would form the foundation for a fully merged One American. It was then that American Airlines engaged with Chapman & Co. to redefine the airline’s purpose and build a leadership curriculum for all leaders, and also:

• Engaged organization to define purpose and values
• Embedded employee focus groups as a key component of assessing current culture
• Consulted with the senior leadership team on reaction to engagement survey results, listening skills, and development of action plans
• Custom-designed leadership curriculum, inclusive of 360 assessments, shared in-person experience, and executive coaching of 2,500 leaders
• Built and designed team-specific solutions throughout the business
• Re-designed and facilitated an annual leadership conference for 6,000 people leaders

The Result

• Senior leadership commitment to developing each positional leader, including company officers
• Holistic integration of Leadership Attributes into custom-built curriculum
• Increased survey scores in the following categories in 2017 vs. 2018:
  • My manager would support me if I made a mistake
  • My manager thanks or recognizes me when I do good work
  • My manager is open to hearing my thoughts or ideas