Southwest Airlines Announces Several Leadership Changes

Southwest Airlines announced several leadership changes after former President Tom Nealon officially retired on Monday.

Nealon will continue to serve as Southwest’s strategic advisor, focusing primarily on the carrier’s environmental sustainability and carbon emissions reduction plan. As a result, Chief Operating Officer Mike Van de Ven has been named President, effective immediately.

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Southwest CEO Gary Kelly announced Van de Ven would take on the additional responsibilities of the airline’s internal audit, business continuity, emergency response and enterprise risk management functions.

“The transition efforts being led by Executive Vice President and incoming CEO Bob Jordan are going extremely well, and as that continues, we are taking steps to shift reporting roles in preparation for Bob to assume the CEO role on February 1, 2022,” Kelly said.

The carrier also announced additional senior leadership promotions, including Laurie Barnett becoming Vice President of Communications & Outreach, Ryan Martinez earning the title of Vice President of Investor Relations and Juan Suarez moving up to become Vice President of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.

In addition, Marilyn Post has been moved from Deputy General Counsel and Corporate Secretary to Vice President Legal and Corporate Secretary, while Lauren Woods was promoted from Managing Director Technology to Vice President Technology-Technology Platforms.

“On behalf of the Board of Directors, I'd like to thank Tom for his nearly five-year tenure as President and more than 15 years of service to our Southwest Airlines employees, customers, shareholders and the communities we serve,” Southwest Lead Director William Cunningham said.

“We are extremely proud to have such a talented and robust leadership bench at Southwest Airlines, and are delighted with the announcement of Mike Van de Ven as Tom's successor,” Cunningham continued.