In 2019, 4.5 billion passengers took an international flight, according to the CDC. By 2021, that number had dropped by nearly two-thirds to 1.8 billion as the pandemic wreaked havoc on the travel industry.
United Airlines was no exception. The company experienced one of the worst fiscal years in its nearly 100-year history in 2020, with a $1.9 billion loss in the last three months of that year.
Weathering a global health crisis would be challenging for any CEO, but all the more for a newly minted chief executive like the airline’s Scott Kirby. His saving grace, he says? He was confident that the travel industry would come back in full force despite naysayers. While other airlines were cutting their airplane fleet, United announced in June 2021 the purchase of 270 new Boeing and Airbus jets in preparation for a post-COVID resurgence. With the addition of these planes at the time, the airline expected to create 25,000 new jobs, generate more than $30 billion in traveler spending, and “contribute an estimated $50 billion annually towards the U.S. economy by 2026,” according to the company’s press release from this announcement.
A pandemic-era CEO, Kirby assumed United Airlines’ corner office in May 2020 after a nearly four-year stint as its president.
Though a trying time to take on his first-ever CEO position, Kirby says the pandemic gave him the window to both flex and develop new muscles. “It’s not just about dealing with the issue, but finding the opportunity in adversity because there’s always opportunity,” he says. He also used the experience to implement new leadership strategies around communication, collaboration, and decision-making that are still in operation post-pandemic.
From March to May 2020, Kirby and his executive team gathered on a daily call, seven days a week, to discuss every aspect of the airline, ranging from travel trends to consumer sentiment to new challenges and health care policies. Though the calls are no longer daily, Kirby found them to be a useful way to break down communication barriers and ensure cross-function transparency. He now meets with the executive team three times a week, with each meeting lasting for two hours.
“Everyone on the executive team knows what everyone else is doing and what they’re worried about. We sing from the same sheet of music,” Kirby says. It also provides them an opportunity to discuss pain points, ask for and share advice, and brainstorm with one another.
When it comes to who resides on his executive team, Kirby says he looks for people with complementary skills who aren't afraid to speak up. But most importantly, they must be goal-oriented and shun excuses, a trait Kirby says was drilled into him at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he received his bachelor’s degree.
The pandemic also influenced how he connects with rank-and-file workers. At its start, Kirby launched an internal twice-a-week video series called “Straight from Scott.” This was an effort meant to foster trust and intimacy with employees and communicate transparently about the state of the company. He’s continued disseminating the videos, albeit less frequently, to discuss the company’s growth plans and goals and share light-hearted commentary like holiday-themed videos featuring his family in matching pajamas.
Yet another takeaway from his leadership through the pandemic centers on making big decisions—or rather not making them. Although Kirby says he has always been detail-oriented and data-driven, he realized as the pandemic raged on that certain decisions weren’t his to make because he either didn’t know enough about the topic or because deciding without input from others could result in a faulty line of reasoning.
“The only decisions I should be making are the decisions that only I can make. They’re hard, there’s no clear right or wrong answer, and there’s a risk no matter what you do,” Kirby says.
For decisions that only he can ultimately make, Kirby implemented a system that requires extensive input. He gathers 15 to 20 employees and, starting with the most junior people, gets everyone's advice. Kirby had three big takeaways after first pursuing this endeavor: multiple viewpoints led to better decisions, employees became comfortable with disagreement, and everyone felt heard even if they had unpopular opinions.
In hindsight, Kirby feels that becoming CEO during the pandemic was a blessing in disguise. “Everyone realized how serious [COVID-19] was, that it was an existential risk, and therefore, you kind of had free license to change everything and to try things,” Kirby says.
