An organization is only as strong as its people — and that’s why winning the war to attract, engage, and retain top talent is so crucial to organizational success. With a 96% employee retention rate and decades on multiple lists as a Top Employer, Southwest Airlines has been a standout Employer Brand since before the creation of that buzz phrase. And now former Chief Culture & Communications Officer, Ginger Hardage, is pulling back the curtain on how Southwest attracts, engages, and retains their extraordinary (and extraordinarily loyal) workforce. In this keynote from Ginger, you will glean the timeless strategies that have led to Southwest’s acclaimed success in the people arena, stay current on other top strategies from leading companies, and learn how to apply them to your own organization.

When considering organizational culture, some universal lies tend to rise to the surface. In the back of our minds, we have little voices telling us that we can’t change the culture of our companies and teams. Maybe for you, that’s the idea that culture is fluffy, you can’t afford culture, or that if you empower your employees, you might lose control. But, none of those are true!

In Ginger’s signature keynote, she walks through the five lies people tell about why they can’t affect culture and reveals the counteracting truths that allow companies to build Unstoppable Cultures in their own organizations. You already have a culture – will that culture happen by default or will you define it? When you stop believing lies and start living by the truth, your culture flourishes… your employees stick around longer and people achieve more than they ever thought possible. In short, if a leader creates culture intentionally, that organization becomes unstoppable.

Every company has a culture. For some, it's a culture of innovation - new, never been done before ideas. For others, it's fun (birthday cakes and costumes are often involved). For some, it’s toxicity and gossip. There are cultures that celebrate loyalty, hard work, or profit above all else. There are cultures that are both intentional and accidental. There are cultures that draw people in and ones that drive people away. There are cultures that detract from the mission of the organization, cultures that must be overcome or compensated for, cultures that derail or dead end. Surely, you can resonate with at least one of those descriptions.

But then, there are cultures that are unstoppable. Unstoppable Cultures put people first, are consistent in nurturing their culture through systems, and are relentless in storytelling. In this signature talk from Ginger, she will walk you through these critical characteristics of unstoppable cultures. You will undoubtedly leave with both practical and inspiring ideas on how to begin the journey of building the culture you always dreamed of for your organization.
 

What do you think about when you think about a brand? A logo? A website? A stock symbol? Maybe. But these are just expressions of a brand; they are not what brings a brand to life. So if not these elements, what is the most important thing when we think about our brands? Ginger has a simple answer - people.

In this inspiring talk, Ginger discusses why employee engagement is the single most important element when any of us are thinking about our brands. She knows that the way an organization behaves on the inside will find its way to the outside, and that the true character of any company is expressed by its people. In “Building a Brand from the Inside Out,” learn from this 25-year Southwest Airlines veteran about creating an “employee first” culture where employees are engaged, act like owners, and are connected to their organization’s purpose.