Performance & Governance

Board Oversight and Governance

Information on our financial performance and Corporate Governance can be found on the Company’s Investor Relations webpage, including the Board of Directors, Senior Executive Leaders, Board Committees, Corporate Governance Guidelines, Corporate Bylaws, Articles of Incorporation, and Corporate Policies.

Data Privacy and Cybersecurity

Our business requires us to process, store, and sometimes share the personal information of our Customers, People, and partners. Our Privacy Program, administered by our Privacy Office, is based on a broad set of privacy principles and applicable law.

To enable data and asset security within all aspects of our business, Southwest^® has adopted the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity Framework. This is a risk-based approach to mitigate organizational cybersecurity risks and impacts to Southwest’s facilities, airports, and aircraft. We also have a dedicated Cybersecurity Team that is a part of our Technology Department.

Preparedness, Risk, and Crisis Management

Successful identification and mitigation of risks, along with appropriate response to rapidly emerging events, are essential for our continued viability and success in maintaining resiliency for our Customers and Employees. The following groups contribute to the Company’s risk management and crisis planning efforts:

• Emergency Response is responsible for developing plans, manuals, training, and drills for responses to aircraft accidents, hurricanes, pandemics, and other disruptive events.
• The Business Continuity Team is responsible for providing a framework that enables Southwest to continue business during disruptions to its People, facilities, and technology.
• Southwest’s Enterprise Risk Management Team plays an important role in managing risks that are critical to the overall business goals, objectives, and mission of Southwest Airlines, as they conduct risk assessments, produce internal reports, define risk focus areas, and provide a framework to drive cross-departmental alignment.

We strive to support our communities during times of crisis. Through our Community Outreach efforts, we partner with national and local organizations to support services focused on preparedness, response, building resilience, and living responsibly.

Ethics

The Company seeks to operate with the highest ethical standards and in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. To that end, the Board has adopted a Code of Ethics that sets out basic principles to guide the behavior of the Company’s Employees, Board members, and business associates.

Public Policy

Our Governmental Affairs Team works to stay on top of proposed statutory and regulatory changes to educate a wide range of policymakers and Stakeholder groups directly. They also present our views on these topics through trade associations, business forums, chamber organizations, and interactions with public officials at the federal level and in the states and communities we serve. We participate in the trade association Airlines for America (AAA), which allows us to gain insight into core issues for the airline industry as a whole and to advocate jointly for regulations that support a healthy, competitive industry.

We’ve adopted a policy that we will primarily use our affiliated political action committee, the Southwest Airlines Co. Freedom Fund (“Freedom Fund”), financed by contributions made voluntarily by Employees, to support political campaigns. Company funds are limited to supporting selected political campaigns at the state and local level in compliance with the laws of the relevant states and localities. We have a time-tested evaluation process when considering Freedom Fund contribution requests and our criteria for giving are evaluated annually. All contributions by the Freedom Fund are disclosed via publicly available reports filed monthly with the Federal Election Commission. We strive to comply with all applicable federal, state, and local campaign finance restrictions and disclosure requirements.