SOUTH BARRINGTON, Ill. (ABP) — Attitude, relationships and love have set Southwest Airlines apart from the rest of the industry, President Colleen Barrett told thousands of religious leaders.

And those qualities, which have made Southwest Airlines a success, are transferable to churches, added Bill Hybels, pastor of one of the nation's largest churches and an expert on congregational leadership.

Barrett discussed Southwest's management philosophy during the Leadership Summit, sponsored by Willow Creek Association.

Hybels, pastor of Willow Creek Community Church in suburban Chicago and host of the summit, asked Barrett how the Dallas-based air carrier succeeds at providing its trademark "positively outrageous customer service."

"We hire for attitude; train for skill," Barrett said.

"This is extremely important for churches," Hybels responded. He previously told participants that Leadership Summit planners wanted Barrett on the program because Southwest's management principles line up well with principles that will help churches serve effectively.

"We look for people who want to serve from the heart. That's the No. 1 personal trait," Barrett said. "We also look for people who are altruistic and caring."

Southwest Airlines' mission statement "basically is the Golden Rule," she said. "We require that all employees are respectful of others. . . . They treat others like they want to be treated."

That attitude applies both to fellow employees and to customers, she added, noting, "You won't be criticized for leaning toward a customer or what seems to be the most compassionate response."

Barrett, who rose from co-founder Herb Kelleher's legal secretary to becoming the only female president of a major airline, says Southwest's emphasis on relationships grows from its family atmosphere.

"I don't want to run a corporation; I want a family," she said. "Families are run with love."

(Associated Baptist Press, 8-18-05)