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that only two airlines, Southwest and Jet Blue, have been profitable since September 11, 2001, is because they are the only two who know the value of their product offerings as perceived by their customers. Not very long ago the big traditional airlines were beating each other up over first class customer service in the air. Ad campaigns focused on who could pamper you more. This may have appealed to the few who rode in the first six rows, but the rest of us schlubs riding coach, which represents a very sizeable market segment, just wanted to get there in one piece without breaking the bank.

Now here's the shocker - a simple yet profound principle based on understanding what customers really want: Southwest recognizes that it is competing with ground transportation. The majority of passengers compare the cost of flying on Southwest or Jet Blue with the cost of driving or taking the bus. That cost includes time, wear and tear on automobiles, nerves, and one's behind. Armed with this simple understanding of what customers want, the Southwest business machine can focus on delivering exactly what people want. Let the other airlines waste time, energy, and therefore profitability on being the great four-star restaurant in the sky.

Focus: Delivering Customer Value = Satisfaction = Profit

Every successful business achieves customer satisfaction by delivering what its customer perceives to be of value. Ignore everyone else's opinions about what to build or deliver. Forget about trying to please the critics, designers, engineers, advertisers, sales people, girl scouts, and politicians. The only opinions that matter are those directly and very accurately derived from the customers' perceptions. Your company's bottom line reflects the level of customer satisfaction which your business produces in the form of delivered customer value.

Your job as leader of your organization is to identify what the customer values and deliver that with increasing effectiveness and efficiency. This means everything in the mind of the customer that is associated with the product. This includes everything the customer has an experience with, such as ease of use, performance, packaging, documentation, training, support, and distribution. When you offer more customer value than your competitors you will dominate your market.

Better is Not Always Better

Despite what common sense might suggest, successful IT companies do not focus on technical superiority. To be sure, technical acumen must be present

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