Beyond the Boarding Gate: How Southwest Airlines Uses Agile To Get Better, Faster, and More Efficient
Southwest Airlines transformed their Crew IT department of 250 people across 25 teams, saving over $5 million in just two months through improved agility and faster delivery.
Download Full Case StudyIn the airline industry, the word "Crew" evokes images of pilots and flight attendants. But at Southwest Airlines, there's another crew that makes everything possible: the IT teams that build the technology keeping 60,000+ employees connected and 130+ million annual passengers flying.
The Crew IT department (250 people across 25 teams) was at a crossroads. They had tried transformation before. They were using SAFe. But something wasn't clicking. Testing cycles were actually longer than development cycles. An idea took 6-8 months just to reach a team for development. The gap between potential and reality was growing.
Southwest's culture of "Warrior Spirit, Servant's Heart, and Fun-LUVing Attitude" needed a technology organization that could match it. They didn't just need to be good. They needed to be "Better, Faster, More Efficient."
Disruption Was Coming From Within
"Every organization now understands that disruption can happen to them," reflected Marty Garza, Sr. Director of Technology. "Disruptors are everywhere, whether it's a scrappy startup or a large organization with a different culture."
But at Southwest, the disruption concern wasn't just external. Internal teams were frustrated. Development and testing were misaligned. Ideas languished in queues for months. The promise of Agile had not been realized despite previous attempts.
"If Southwest Airlines was going to maintain an elite technology department, we had to provide an environment that would attract great people," Garza explained. "I knew the Agile transformation was a necessity if we were going to meet the needs of our broader Southwest team and our customers."
This wasn't about implementing a framework. This was about cultural survival.
Southwest had adopted SAFe, but the transformation had stalled. Teams went through the motions (PI Planning, sprints, demos) but the underlying problems persisted. Testing took longer than building. Ideas aged in backlogs. The "why" behind Agile had been lost in the mechanics of "how."
Previous transformation attempts had focused on process adoption without addressing the deeper cultural and systemic issues. Teams felt like they were doing Agile without being Agile.
Leadership realized they needed more than a framework refresh. They needed a complete reimagining of how they worked, with coaches who could see beyond process to the human elements that make transformation stick.
Nine Coaches, One Mission
Agile Velocity brought nine coaches to Southwest, an investment that signaled how seriously leadership took this transformation. Unlike previous attempts, this wasn't about teaching SAFe. It was about achieving business agility.
The coaches worked directly with leadership to co-create a transformation "flight plan," Southwest terminology for a roadmap focused on three words: Better, Faster, More Efficient. Path to Agility assessments after each Program Increment measured progress against real outcomes, not just process compliance.
The transformation involved internal customers from the very beginning, a shift from building technology "for" business partners to building "with" them. Knowledge transfer was built into every engagement, ensuring Southwest could sustain improvements long after coaches departed.
Within months, teams built and deployed a critical application in 3 weeks that would have previously taken months, saving over $5 million in just two months.
Understanding the J-Curve
One of the most powerful concepts introduced was the Virginia Satir Change Model, the "J-Curve" that explains why change feels worse before it gets better. Teams learned that the dip in performance and comfort during transformation wasn't failure; it was a necessary passage to a new level of capability.
This psychological framework gave teams permission to struggle and leaders patience to stay the course. Instead of abandoning transformation at the first sign of difficulty, they pushed through to integration and new status quo.
"By using the Path to Agility, we were able to centralize our Transformation program while driving accountability and ownership to the development Teams," said Katie Morris, Director of IT Transformation.
The success was contagious. Path to Agility spread beyond Crew IT to marketing teams and other parts of the organization. Southwest's first true transformation, with Agile and business agility at its core, was taking flight.
Transformation Progress
Southwest Airlines Crew IT has reached the Accelerate stage, having established foundational practices and predictable delivery. They are now focused on optimizing their value delivery system and shortening time-to-market, with Path to Agility spreading across the organization to IT and Marketing teams.
The Results
Built and deployed critical application in 3 weeks instead of months
Saved over $5 million in first two months
Path to Agility adopted across IT and marketing teams
First transformation with Agile and business agility at core
Involved internal customers from the beginning
Knowledge transfer built into engagement for sustainability
Measurable Impact
"By using the Path to Agility, we were able to centralize our Transformation program while driving accountability and ownership to the development Teams."
"If Southwest Airlines was going to maintain an elite technology department, we had to provide an environment that would attract great people. I knew the Agile transformation was a necessity if we were going to meet the needs of our broader Southwest team and our customers."
"Every organization now understands that disruption can happen to them. Disruptors are everywhere, whether it's a scrappy startup or a large organization with a different culture."
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