Jim Dayton

Vice President Technology—Platforms & Architecture

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Jim Dayton serves as Vice President Technology—Platforms & Architecture. In this role, he is responsible for building out modern foundational data and technology platforms used and leveraged by development Teams. The Team's work includes Cloud and DevOps development platforms as well as all enterprise data platforms comprising analytics, optimization, integration, data lake, and data warehouse. Jim also leads the Technology Architecture function, responsible for the overall technical design of Southwest's systems to ensure the resiliency, security, and effectiveness of the Company's technology solutions.

Jim previously led cybersecurity as Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), overseeing all aspects of cybersecurity across Southwest Airlines' facilities, airports, and aircraft, including security engineering, operations, incident response, threat intelligence, risk management, compliance, and vulnerability management. Before transitioning to the CISO role in November 2021, he served as Vice President, Technology–Operations Portfolio, supporting Southwest's complex operating systems such as Flight Operations, Inflight Operations, Network Operations Control (NOC), Safety & Security, and Technical Operations Departments. Jim worked closely with these Teams to deliver new technologies to enhance critical operating capabilities for Southwest.

Since joining Southwest in 2012, Jim has served as a Leader in multiple areas of Technology, including Operations Recovery, Network Planning, and Revenue Management. Jim was the Technology Delivery Leader for Southwest's multi-year Reservation System implementation.

Prior to Southwest Airlines, Jim worked as a Director of Consulting at several companies, including PeopleSoft, i2 Technologies, and Oracle. He previously worked at Capital One Auto Finance as Director of Loan Servicing Systems.

Jim earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering from Louisiana State University, a Master of Science in Management Information Systems from The University of Texas at Dallas, and a Master of Business Administration from Southern Methodist University. Jim and his wife, Leigh, are proud parents to a daughter, Jen Jen.