Summary

  • Tom Brady and Delta CEO discuss teamwork and culture on Gaining Altitude podcast.
  • Brady highlights the importance of a healthy company culture and employee investment.
  • Delta’s strong team ethos and communication system impresses Brady, who has worked as a strategic advisor for Delta within the past year.

NFL legend Tom Brady joined Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian for a 45-minute chat on the latest episode of the airline’s Gaining Altitude podcast. The former quarterback joined Delta as a strategic advisor last year to offer insights into teamwork and culture.

Tom Brady and Delta CEO talk teamwork

Brady sat down with Delta CEO Ed Bastian to discuss the importance of a healthy culture and fostering teamwork. The seven-time Superbowl winner touched on lessons learned during his playing days and how they can be applied to the airline industry. One of these is being truly invested in and having a sense of enfranchisement in your vocation. Brady noted,

“There’s an incredible amount of pride and ownership from people who work for the company. They all feel like they are part of a team… They love what they’re doing.”

ed bastian tom brady

Photo: Delta Air Lines

The airline has long held a reputation as a place of high employee satisfaction, pioneering initiatives like a generous profit-sharing program – in fact, so strong has its team ethos been over the years, that its employees once chipped in to purchase an entire plane – a Boeing 767 called the ‘Spirit of Delta’ – back in the 1980s when the airline was in financial trouble.

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Speaking of the tight-knit team culture that ran from top to bottom of the organization during his NFL days, Brady commented,

“We were successful for a long time because everybody’s job mattered. Every single person. Whoever would salt the parking lot on snowy days let us move forward. That’s one man’s job. You can’t take anyone or anything for granted.”

Brady’s appearance on Gaining Altitude’s Season 2 – which you can watch here – maintains the podcast’s track record of attracting elite-caliber guests. Previous individuals to appear on the show include Ginni Rometty, former chairman, president, and CEO of IBM, and Arthur M. Blank, co-founder of The Home Depot and owner of the Atlanta Falcons. While it would be difficult to measure Brady’s influence at the airline since he joined, Delta’s last quarterly results revealed record revenues and a $37 million profit, a major improvement on the $363 million loss recorded a year prior.

Delta experience

Almost a year since entering into a “unique partnership” with Delta, Brady has taken part in several initiatives, including meeting new Delta recruits on their first day on the job and flying on its annual ‘Breast Cancer One’ charity flight.

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When asked what has impressed him most, Brady said it was Delta’s system of communication across the breadth of its organization, which numbers almost 100,000 employees. Brady said,

“Communication between almost 100,000 members of the team every day, up-to-the-minute, in order to keep everything going right on time with no bumps in the road. That’s what I’ve learned from the most.”

A Delta Air Lines Airbus A350 in Team USA livery

Photo: Delta Air Lines

During his playing days, Brady would regularly fly with Delta on special charter flights and spoke highly of the experience. Delta is the official partner of Team USA and will be supporting the country’s athletes during their upcoming trip to Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Have you listened to the latest Gaining Altitude podcast featuring Tom Brady? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

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