WN hiring soon question?

[Flying Saluki]

I have to disagree with the mentality of working somewhere else in a company before moving to another deptarment. With dispatch it is apples to oranges. IMHO dues paying in dispatch comes dispatching at the regionals and non-legacy/WN/NK types, even more so when trying to make into the legacies/WN/NK. That is were your talent for dispatch should be pulled from.

I suspect your opinion would change if you were a Southwest employee. But that is neither here nor there.

Disagree all you want, but the fact remains that it obviously works for them. Otherwise they would not hire that way.

Hiring/promoting a current employee, even an "inexperienced" one, has a lot of benefits. That person already knows how the company does business, and has a lot of skills that are related to the new job, even if they aren't considered primary skills. Put simply, a current employee already knows the "language" of the company. Moreover, that person is a known quantity with a known history of work performance. The company already knows, or at least as a good idea, of how that person is likely to perform in the new job. Contrast that with an outside candidate of which nothing is known except what is on their resume and background check. As far as the dispatch specific experience goes, well, that's why they hire them into the assistant position: so they can gain that seasoning before upgrading to full dispatcher.

It's just a different way of doing business.

 

[jrdownunder]

The suspense is killing me!!!!!

Youuuuuu! Just shut your mouth!! LOL. Good Luck!!

 

[El Oso]

Hiring/promoting a current employee, even an "inexperienced" one, has a lot of benefits. That person already knows how the company does business, and has a lot of skills that are related to the new job, even if they aren't considered primary skills. Put simply, a current employee already knows the "language" of the company. Moreover, that person is a known quantity with a known history of work performance. The company already knows, or at least as a good idea, of how that person is likely to perform in the new job. Contrast that with an outside candidate of which nothing is known except what is on their resume and background check. As far as the dispatch specific experience goes, well, that's why they hire them into the assistant position: so they can gain that seasoning before upgrading to full dispatcher.

^ this

I think I actually used the term "known commodity" when filling out my "why should we hire you" essay.
There's something to be said about having a person's work history/attendance available. In my case they had 19 years worth. I'm glad my employer thinks this way.

 

[manniax]

Disagree all you want, but the fact remains that it obviously works for them. Otherwise they would not hire that way.

Hiring/promoting a current employee, even an "inexperienced" one, has a lot of benefits. That person already knows how the company does business, and has a lot of skills that are related to the new job, even if they aren't considered primary skills. Put simply, a current employee already knows the "language" of the company. Moreover, that person is a known quantity with a known history of work performance. The company already knows, or at least as a good idea, of how that person is likely to perform in the new job. Contrast that with an outside candidate of which nothing is known except what is on their resume and background check. As far as the dispatch specific experience goes, well, that's why they hire them into the assistant position: so they can gain that seasoning before upgrading to full dispatcher.

It's just a different way of doing business.

I don't think it completely "works for them" or they wouldn't be hiring externally (at least in part.) For a long time SW (as well as DL) were almost exclusively "internals only." The fact that they began recruiting from outside the company for dispatchers would seem to indicate that they recognize the value of practical experience dispatching and/or ran out of good internal candidates.

 

[kilo]

You have to remember that it is in any corporation's interest to poach talent from its rivals. Yes, any company wants the simplicity of keeping things in house as much as is reasonable, and will reward those internal candidates who have displayed upward mobility within that company. At the same time, Southwest and others absolutely want to grab solid dispatchers from other carriers, because it makes business-sense to pull proven talent away from your competitors.

 

[pljenkins]

I don't think it completely "works for them" or they wouldn't be hiring externally (at least in part.) For a long time SW (as well as DL) were almost exclusively "internals only." The fact that they began recruiting from outside the company for dispatchers would seem to indicate that they recognize the value of practical experience dispatching and/or ran out of good internal candidates.

I think this is a combination of several factors; management philosophy chsnge, availability of talent available internally and a change in operational environment that internal applicants are wholly inexperienced with, that being Class II, ETOPS and international operations. Every company evolves. For WN, that evolution was from high frequency short haul (more asset management then dispatching) to long haul and international (much more dispatching then asset management). Of the immediacy, you cannot hire 100 dispatchers in a 14 month period and expect not to go external.

 

[Reek]

It's just frustrating when you have many qualified externals that get ignored while an internal gets the nod that can't even derive basic alt mins. I think all internals should prove they have just as strong book knowledge as the externals. From the several jobs I've been at this never seems to be the case, unfortunately imo personality and politics get too heavy of a consideration. I get the company history and values portion but dispatch is much more of a specialized skill that involves more than morales and punctuality.

 

[manniax]

I think this is a combination of several factors; management philosophy chsnge, availability of talent available internally and a change in operational environment that internal applicants are wholly inexperienced with, that being Class II, ETOPS and international operations. Every company evolves. For WN, that evolution was from high frequency short haul (more asset management then dispatching) to long haul and international (much more dispatching then asset management). Of the immediacy, you cannot hire 100 dispatchers in a 14 month period and expect not to go external.

I think the change in management philosophy, hopefully, includes viewing dispatch as a more professional position. SW seems to have a "hire the person, train them for the job" preference in their hiring...and this works well, I'm sure, for ticket agents, rampers, etc. that don't require extensive knowledge. But Southwest has never done ab initio training for pilots, or hired brand new A&P's to fix their planes that I know of. (I know they did require a 737 type rating to be considered as a pilot, not positive if that still applies but if it does, it's not the same as hiring someone with no flying experience.) However, for dispatch, they seemed to think that just getting a license and doing well on the testing/interview process was all you needed. I know that everyone starts as an assistant and thus isn't "green" when they become a regular dispatcher, but I imagine that the switch to more complicated operations was a factor, as well as the need for a bunch of dispatchers in a short time period drove the need to do some external hiring (like you discussed in your post.)

 

[Flying Saluki]

It's just frustrating when you have many qualified externals that get ignored while an internal gets the nod that can't even derive basic alt mins. I think all internals should prove they have just as strong book knowledge as the externals. From the several jobs I've been at this never seems to be the case, unfortunately imo personality and politics get too heavy of a consideration. I get the company history and values portion but dispatch is much more of a specialized skill that involves more than morales and punctuality.

Qualified applicants get ignored all the time, and not just because such-and-such company favors internal candidates. This profession, like all professions, is a pyramid. There's simply not room for everyone at the top. For every one dispatcher at Southwest, there's probably two working at a Frontier or a Spirit, and 3 three working at an Envoy, Trans States, or Mesa.
Don't waste time lamenting it. Go out there and do good work. It may pay off. It may not. But it's the only way to you're going to advance.

 

[Brett Spurgeon]

It's just frustrating when you have many qualified externals that get ignored while an internal gets the nod that can't even derive basic alt mins. I think all internals should prove they have just as strong book knowledge as the externals. From the several jobs I've been at this never seems to be the case, unfortunately imo personality and politics get too heavy of a consideration. I get the company history and values portion but dispatch is much more of a specialized skill that involves more than morales and punctuality.

Internals don't simply make it in by applying. They too have to pass the test. Numerous externals, like myself, were fortunate enough to apply in time, pass the test, and interview solid.

 

[pljenkins]

It's just frustrating when you have many qualified externals that get ignored while an internal gets the nod that can't even derive basic alt mins. I think all internals should prove they have just as strong book knowledge as the externals. From the several jobs I've been at this never seems to be the case, unfortunately imo personality and politics get too heavy of a consideration. I get the company history and values portion but dispatch is much more of a specialized skill that involves more than morales and punctuality.

You are quite mistaken. The internal candidates must pass the same test and are asked the same questions as external candidates. Make no mistake about it, the internal candidates who darken the door at WN are well knowledgeable in the basics of dispatch. Nobody rides into this room for free.

As for quality of work, a recent external safety audit of flight operations found that Southwest had the lowest dispatch release error rate of any United States carrier, and ranked second only behind Japan Airlines in the world. I'm quite certain our dispatchers, most of whom are internal hires, are qualified and know what we are doing.

 

[jrdownunder]

This Cracks me up. Posters in here who weren't even born when Southwest started flying, telling them how they should run their company. Considering WN survived Deregulation and the merger boom, the economy, fuel prices, and everything else, I think they have a handle on what they are doing. They do what works for them. If you want to work at WN, work at WN. Hump bags, work the counter, whatever. Go with the program. Instead of telling posters in here from WN how their department should be ran, maybe "you" should network with them and learn from their success. If someone sits back and complains about the way WN is operating their business, then good chance "your" not a good fit for that business.

 

[CPZ9900]

You are quite mistaken. The internal candidates must pass the same test and are asked the same questions as external candidates. Make no mistake about it, the internal candidates who darken the door at WN are well knowledgeable in the basics of dispatch. Nobody rides into this room for free.

As for quality of work, a recent external safety audit of flight operations found that Southwest had the lowest dispatch release error rate of any United States carrier, and ranked second only behind Japan Airlines in the world. I'm quite certain our dispatchers, most of whom are internal hires, are qualified and know what we are doing.

Essentially regional dispatching with a 737... I wouldn't expect anything less.

 

[Reek]

This Cracks me up. Posters in here who weren't even born when Southwest started flying, telling them how they should run their company. Considering WN survived Deregulation and the merger boom, the economy, fuel prices, and everything else, I think they have a handle on what they are doing. They do what works for them. If you want to work at WN, work at WN. Hump bags, work the counter, whatever. Go with the program. Instead of telling posters in here from WN how their department should be ran, maybe "you" should network with them and learn from their success. If someone sits back and complains about the way WN is operating their business, then good chance "your" not a good fit for that business.

Yea Ill be stuck at PSA for the rest of life rotting to my desk illegally dispatching everything. Sorry dispatch gods. #AttitudeProbs

 

[pljenkins]

Essentially regional dispatching with a 737... I wouldn't expect anything less.

If you insist.

 

[jrdownunder]

Yea Ill be stuck at PSA for the rest of life rotting to my desk illegally dispatching everything. Sorry dispatch gods. #AttitudeProbs

Its your name on the releases. If you dispatch something illegally, your at fault. I am sure your current employer would be happy to know that you have knowingly dispatched illegally. The point is no one has to be stuck anywhere. If "you" know that WN hires mostly from internally, and that is "your" goal, the attitude should be do what it takes. In the day, even regionals hired from within. So be happy that there are opportunities out there to be hired with very little experience off the street.

 

[CPZ9900]

some of y'all need to loosen up a bit, going to stroke out taking everything so seriously....

 

[womanpilot73]

Its your name on the releases. If you dispatch something illegally, your at fault. I am sure your current employer would be happy to know that you have knowingly dispatched illegally. The point is no one has to be stuck anywhere. If "you" know that WN hires mostly from internally, and that is "your" goal, the attitude should be do what it takes. In the day, even regionals hired from within. So be happy that there are opportunities out there to be hired with very little experience off the street.

I guess you missed the clear sarcasm in his post... ;-)

 

[Reroute-Randy]

This is good stuff. Two days into posting and hurt feelings reports are flying. Can't wait to see where thread goes after testing/interview invites go out. I will be waiting with popcorn and a 30 pack.

 

[Delta Echo]

I suspect your opinion would change if you were a Southwest employee. But that is neither here nor there.

Disagree all you want, but the fact remains that it obviously works for them. Otherwise they would not hire that way.

Hiring/promoting a current employee, even an "inexperienced" one, has a lot of benefits. That person already knows how the company does business, and has a lot of skills that are related to the new job, even if they aren't considered primary skills. Put simply, a current employee already knows the "language" of the company. Moreover, that person is a known quantity with a known history of work performance. The company already knows, or at least as a good idea, of how that person is likely to perform in the new job. Contrast that with an outside candidate of which nothing is known except what is on their resume and background check. As far as the dispatch specific experience goes, well, that's why they hire them into the assistant position: so they can gain that seasoning before upgrading to full dispatcher.

It's just a different way of doing business.

Keep telling yourself that internal works best if you desire, but why should it be any different if all of your pilots are external hires? Fact is dispatch is a profession and at a large major is best carried out by those with experience in it. You don't "season" someone by putting them on a desk, even an assistant desk with no prior experience in dispatch. "Seasoning" comes with actual experience in the field starting at the regionals or other smaller outfits and working yourself up to having the skill set to succeed at a larger level.

When it comes to the personality and culture fit, HR types seem to be very good at screening for this.

In the end one simply doesn't become experienced or knowledgable in dispatch by having a license and passing a test. Those are important, but so is actual experience.