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The following is a transcript of a video message by Robert E. Jordan, President, Chief Executive Officer, & Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Southwest Airlines Co. (the “Company”), published on October 15, 2024:
Bob’s Briefing: It’s OUR Southwest
Bob Jordan
President CEO & Vice Chairman of the BOD
Published 10/15/2024
Hey, Southwest Team. I have a critical message this morning, so thank you for taking the time to watch and listen, because it’s important. Since Elliott Investment Management launched its campaign against our Company in June, I’ve provided you with updates… and with a promise that I would let you know what you can do to help when the time is right.
In the meantime, you’ve made me proud by not letting this be a distraction. You’ve stayed focused on running a great and safe operation and serving each other and our Customers with legendary Hospitality. And you’ve executed at a very high level, even during very difficult weather events like the recent hurricanes, and I’m just very proud of you. And you’ve waited patiently to share your voice on this issue with Elliott.
We’ve been meeting with Shareholders and aiming to work collaboratively with Elliott. But time and again, Elliott has demonstrated little or no interest in collaborating with Southwest. The Board has made every effort to reach a constructive resolution, including providing a reasonable settlement framework under which the Board would interview Elliott’s director candidates. Unfortunately, Elliott remains entrenched in demanding control of the Board, which means control of our Company, while continuing to block its Director candidates from being interviewed by the Board’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, making it impossible to find a constructive resolution.
And now, with Elliott’s call for a Special Meeting of Shareholders in December—which appears designed to maximize disruption as we approach one of the busiest travel periods of the year—it’s looking like this could be a marathon, and not a sprint. Elliott’s actions highlight its lack of understanding of our business and its insatiable need to put its own interests ahead of those of all Shareholders.
We, along with many of the Shareholders we’ve spoken to, do not believe that a proxy fight is in the best interest of our Company. We want to preserve our Southwest superpowers for the long term, and we can’t risk Elliott exploiting the five-plus decades of work we’ve done to position ourselves as a category of one. For more than 53 years, we’ve worked to build and maintain our Culture, live up to our Promises to our People and to our Customers, and sustain our financial strength—even through crises like 9/11 and the pandemic.
It can all be gone in the blink of an eye if we aren’t vigilant, and if we don’t fight to preserve it. But let me be clear: This is not a fight “against Elliott.” This is a fight for the future of Southwest Airlines. Our future is built on an intentional, detailed, and well-constructed plan—a plan that gets us to a place of certainty.
I’m confident in our ability to execute our strategy over the next three years, and we have timelines for delivery. And I’m accountable, we’re all accountable, to the Company that we love. I believe executing our plan will create substantial value for Southwest and our Shareholders. We’ve already seen successes as our transformational work is underway. We have the right plan, and we have the right Team.
And all our efforts are focused on becoming Southwest. Even Better. Anything else is just a distraction from the certainty that our plan provides. Our Team—past and present—has always exemplified a superior level of commitment, whether it’s in the day-to-day, or in the monumental challenges we faced… and we’ve always overcome. You’ve heard the heroic stories of Employees who rallied together for a cause throughout our history.
This, too, is a pivotal moment, as we are transforming our Company. And now, it’s our turn. And now, you are writing the story of Southwest’s exciting future. We’ll be giving you ways to show your support for our great Company as this marathon continues, so please visit SWALife regularly for the latest. Right now, the most powerful thing that you can do is join me in our steadfast focus to deliver on our plan—all eyes forward. And, my ask of you today is that you share your passion for this Company and make it known that it’s OUR Southwest—demonstrating pride for what we’ve built, and confidence in what we will become. Together. It’s Our Southwest. And we’ve got this. So, let’s go!1
| 1 | It’s Our Southwest. To show your LUV: |
Add [this frame] to your Facebook profile. To add the frame, go to your Facebook profile > click update > click add frame > search for “It’s Our Southwest.”
Post to your [link Instagram feed], [Instagram stories], and [LinkedIn].
You can also tag your social posts with #OurSouthwest and #LifeAt Southwest so we can cultivate awesome stories that demonstrate our unique Culture and Southwest Spirit.
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