Well here are a few that we'd actually like to see more of in the upcoming year.
1. Recognition to butchers.
The meat trend can occasionally start to feel a little tired, but letting customers know that your restaurant is accountable for the provenance of its meat and that it supports the dying art of butchery is a good thing.
2. Improved beer programs.
Small batch distilleries and microbreweries are finally reaching critical mass to get the beer movement really rolling. We'd like to see well-curated beer lists right next to the wine lists offering bottles from obscure, but terrific vineyards.
3. Less "artisan" this and "artisan" that.
There was a time when the word artisan actually meant something—it was produced by an artist. These days, anything handmade or rustic in appearance gets the artisan stamp. Let your food's flavor speak for itself. If it's truly made by an "artist," your customers should be able to taste it.
4. More diversity in meats and fish.
Even though chefs are becoming more adventurous about serving offal, we still see cow, pig, chicken, duck. How about more goat or wild boar? Or sea robins, barramundi, and mackeral, instead of the same half dozen fish that appear on every menu? Many alternative meats and fish are both more interesting, and sustainable—a double win for interested chefs and customers.
5. Strong bar programs that don't rely on flashy cocktails.
Lots of restaurants these days have house cocktails featuring multiple fresh-squeezed juices, infused or barrel-aged spirits, and three different acai/pomegranate/cardamom liqueurs, but ask them for a Negroni or a Sazerac, and you're met with blank stares (or worse—the bartender who pretends to know what the drink is, looks up the ingredients, then serves you your Manhattan shaken in a martini glass). Get the basics right, then work on the fancy drinks.
6. Drink pairing suggestions beyond wine.
Pick the perfect beverage for each of your dishes, whether it's wine, beer, or a nonalcoholic cocktail. Beverages help food shine—encourage your customers to choose good matches and you'll improve their experience while improving your bottom line.
7. Improved cheese programs.
We can never get enough good cheese, and tasting small-batch cheeses from small farms and producers is always interesting—provided that cheese list is well curated. To make things easier for cheese novices, it's always nice when "set menus" of three or five different choices are already picked—of course, the diner should always be given the choice to make his or her own groupings if desired. And for God's sake—do not serve fridge-cold cheese. Room temperature, please.
8. Smaller menus with fewer programs.
When we're confronted with a menu that's got Appetizers, Small Plates, Crudo, Salumi, Pastas, Main Courses, Side Dishes, and a half dozen other sections, we don't just get confused, we get annoyed. Customers don't come to restaurants to get a mental workout: your job is to do the work for them. Keep the menu simple, and make it clear how and how much customers are meant to order.
9. Don't list the name of your farmer or producer unless you've got something to say.
It doesn't mean much to a diner if your eggs come from Starry Grove Farm unless Starry Grove is doing something really special to make those eggs different from all the other eggs out there. Ask yourself: are your eggs really that different from the eggs they're using next door? If not, then we don't need to know about them.
10. Wording designed to inform customers rather than confuse them.
Menus written out as confusing lists of ingredients may be the hot trend designed to get your patrons to interact with the servers, but 99 percent of the time, we'd like to be able to figure out what's going on just by reading the menu. We prefer straightforward menus that describe the food in simple but evocative ways so we can at least get a sense of what we are about to eat. Also, plain English is almost always preferable. Is that sauce really an aioli, or is it just mayonnaise?
Oh, and for the record: We want more double crusted pies on dessert menus. Crumb toppings and crisps are a cop-out.
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
What 2011 Means to Me.
With resurgence in the hotel business, although not in all markets, and some job movement it seems that 2011 will be stronger than 2010. The changes that we see are the RevPar equations and logical movement to make the property as profitable as possible. There are other components that are the other side of the equation that is equally important one is the Menu costing and Profit Ratio models. The key is to get the best pricing from your vendor or be under a contract. The other part is the Profit model for meetings and Catering events. A preliminary P&L will give you a clear indication on adjustments that need to be made. Labor is another key element that hotels scrutinize to make money. They combine jobs, or scale back staff there seems a fine line on service at all levels. With Budgets in mind there is a time to know when to cross the line and when to cross back. Marketing your property correctly to achieve the most revenue streams and social marketing will get you the most exposure.
We at Sutter & Pine Hospitality are ready to assist you in Development, Operations, and Training, Control systems, helping you make the right decisions for 2011.
We at Sutter & Pine Hospitality are ready to assist you in Development, Operations, and Training, Control systems, helping you make the right decisions for 2011.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
To Pay Or Not To Pay…Sense or Dollars….
A National Chain has decided to take the first steps in eliminating their free rewards program. At checkout a staff member would ask for you Rewards card or email address. They decided to switch to a program in which you have to pay $20.00 to join the basic plan which to gain anything from this plan as it stands, you the customer would have to spend $200.00 a year in the store to get back your original $20.00,so to include that your break even point is really $220.00 before you get nothing. If it were a hotel chain, your sign up would be free and your points accumulate and accrue. If you get points in their plan which equates to roughly $5.00 you have 30 day to use them, with no rollover or accrual.
The one part which makes no sense is that the employee’s were sent a letter telling them to support the program, or that they would be written up in disciplinary form, getting hit with a stick does not make the donkey move faster. The customer base they have to work with at the store in particular is Latino from Mexico, and the email required to start the process doesn’t allow them to accept Mexico emails or their base is elderly and don’t have emails or computers. It is funny how none of this is taken into consideration during the design or implementation of the new system.
It won’t work for any of the reasons I mentioned who wants to Pay to Play, and support by a staff who has their hands tied to make it work, who is threatened with disciplinary action. Some companies need to do more to get more.
The one part which makes no sense is that the employee’s were sent a letter telling them to support the program, or that they would be written up in disciplinary form, getting hit with a stick does not make the donkey move faster. The customer base they have to work with at the store in particular is Latino from Mexico, and the email required to start the process doesn’t allow them to accept Mexico emails or their base is elderly and don’t have emails or computers. It is funny how none of this is taken into consideration during the design or implementation of the new system.
It won’t work for any of the reasons I mentioned who wants to Pay to Play, and support by a staff who has their hands tied to make it work, who is threatened with disciplinary action. Some companies need to do more to get more.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Make your hotel more profitable : Strategy #12 – Diversify Your Revenue Stream
(John Hogan brings some valid points for 2011)
The hospitality industry has many components, including lodging, food service, beverage service, meetings, tourism, entertainment, attractions and more.
Running a successful, profitable hotel and/or restaurant has parallels with
the stock market : one must diversify to maximize profitability and to
minimize risk. The risks are even more apparent today considering the current economic climate, which requires thinking about the future as well as the present.
Today, you may have a solid brand (local or national), a good location, a base of regular guests and are holding your own in your competitive set comparative numbers. On the other hand, you have been having some staff turnover, your profit margins are not always consistent and there always seems to be a new competitor entering the market.
Your business could become stronger, more balanced and able to strengthen market penetration if you carefully examined some options and expanded your offerings with some diversity of service and products. These could include:
1.Adding retail space and/or items. Conrad Hilton set the pace two generations ago and the industry is again about to expand this approach in deeper ways
2.Making your services more accessible. This is especially true in food services, with major and smaller players experimenting with delis, carry-out for select popular items, etc.
3.Exploring the potential for appropriate size party catering services. Hosting special events off-site, IF you can do it well and profitably.
4.Finding your niche. It could be weddings, showers, corporate team building, etc
5.If you have a hotel restaurant , assess the periods of volume and see if there are options, such as making your restaurant available for larger functions on slow periods. You could also find a niche in renting the
entire place for private parties on known slow days or in high demand seasons, like corporate holiday parties.
6.Assessing your current or potential meeting room space and determine if the need is met in the market. This could bring in group business not currently using your facilities.
7.Creating profitable partnerships. There are likely several other local businesses that would like to reachyour customer base. Come up with creative ways to give such partners advertising access to yourcustomers…for a fee.
The hospitality industry has many components, including lodging, food service, beverage service, meetings, tourism, entertainment, attractions and more.
Running a successful, profitable hotel and/or restaurant has parallels with
the stock market : one must diversify to maximize profitability and to
minimize risk. The risks are even more apparent today considering the current economic climate, which requires thinking about the future as well as the present.
Today, you may have a solid brand (local or national), a good location, a base of regular guests and are holding your own in your competitive set comparative numbers. On the other hand, you have been having some staff turnover, your profit margins are not always consistent and there always seems to be a new competitor entering the market.
Your business could become stronger, more balanced and able to strengthen market penetration if you carefully examined some options and expanded your offerings with some diversity of service and products. These could include:
1.Adding retail space and/or items. Conrad Hilton set the pace two generations ago and the industry is again about to expand this approach in deeper ways
2.Making your services more accessible. This is especially true in food services, with major and smaller players experimenting with delis, carry-out for select popular items, etc.
3.Exploring the potential for appropriate size party catering services. Hosting special events off-site, IF you can do it well and profitably.
4.Finding your niche. It could be weddings, showers, corporate team building, etc
5.If you have a hotel restaurant , assess the periods of volume and see if there are options, such as making your restaurant available for larger functions on slow periods. You could also find a niche in renting the
entire place for private parties on known slow days or in high demand seasons, like corporate holiday parties.
6.Assessing your current or potential meeting room space and determine if the need is met in the market. This could bring in group business not currently using your facilities.
7.Creating profitable partnerships. There are likely several other local businesses that would like to reachyour customer base. Come up with creative ways to give such partners advertising access to yourcustomers…for a fee.
Make Your Hotel More Profitable and Successful – 2011 is the critical time to invest in Your Talent and Your Team
(John is a great friend and former Instructor, he has keen insight.)
“Learning is not compulsory… neither is survival.”
W. Edwards Deming (1900-1993)
Deming was known as the father of the Japanese post-war industrial revival and regarded by many as the leading quality guru in the United States. Trained as a statistician, his expertise was used during World War II to assist the United States in its effort to improve the quality of war materials. He was invited to Japan at the end of World War II, where Japanese industrial leaders and engineers asked how long it would take to shift the perception of the world from the existing paradigm that Japan produced cheap, shoddy imitations to one of producing innovative quality products. Deming told the group that if they would follow his directions, they could achieve the desired outcome in five years. Few of the leaders believed him, but were ashamed to say so and would be embarrassed if they failed to follow his suggestions. Looking back, Dr. Deming observed, "They surprised me and did it in four years."
For much of the past three years, many industries have faced somber financial challenges. Hospitality in literally all segments struggled to find ways to meet the global financial meltdown in 2008 and 2009 and the 2010 scorecard shows mixed year-end results. Erosion of revenue and profitability from 2006-2007 periods, and the loss of both long-term customers and loyal staff are all issues faced.
As recently as last week in the HVS Career Network , there was discussion of a growing demand from their clients for top talent, especially at the middle-management level. Their report stated that the middle management group was considered a “ traditionally neglected group” of employees, but they were a crucial link between top management and line employees and responsible for turning business strategies into tangible outcomes.
In my career, I have experienced four major economic recessions that all dramatically hurt our industry for a period and I have participated in four recoveries. I agree with the HVS assessment that “Hoteliers have come to realise that now more than ever the quality of the workforce is the key market differentiator, and are ramping up their talent sourcing and retention strategies.”
Now is the critical time for hospitality business owners and managers to invest in their talent and team if they hope to make their Hotel More Profitable and Successful. Rebuilding our center of attention into a business recovery over the next 12 months means that now is the time to pay attention to those professionals in our organizations who are the key components of why guests will stay with our businesses.
I commented in several columns a year ago that it is a sometimes a hardship in the cost-conscious operations facing many businesses today for managers to leave their properties for professional development. It is also a reality that there is seldom any longer dedicated time for meaningful on-the-job training, which had habitually been a strong element of the hospitality industry’s career advancement path. There are many issues facing the complex world of hospitality and today’s business owners and managers need to be aware of that diversity, regardless of their own business focus.
As an individual who has been involved with well thought-out learning as both an academic and a corporate educator, I have come to recognize that delivering a balance of real-world business skills and comprehension with structured learning is essential to long-term success.
“Learning is not compulsory… neither is survival.”
W. Edwards Deming (1900-1993)
Deming was known as the father of the Japanese post-war industrial revival and regarded by many as the leading quality guru in the United States. Trained as a statistician, his expertise was used during World War II to assist the United States in its effort to improve the quality of war materials. He was invited to Japan at the end of World War II, where Japanese industrial leaders and engineers asked how long it would take to shift the perception of the world from the existing paradigm that Japan produced cheap, shoddy imitations to one of producing innovative quality products. Deming told the group that if they would follow his directions, they could achieve the desired outcome in five years. Few of the leaders believed him, but were ashamed to say so and would be embarrassed if they failed to follow his suggestions. Looking back, Dr. Deming observed, "They surprised me and did it in four years."
For much of the past three years, many industries have faced somber financial challenges. Hospitality in literally all segments struggled to find ways to meet the global financial meltdown in 2008 and 2009 and the 2010 scorecard shows mixed year-end results. Erosion of revenue and profitability from 2006-2007 periods, and the loss of both long-term customers and loyal staff are all issues faced.
As recently as last week in the HVS Career Network , there was discussion of a growing demand from their clients for top talent, especially at the middle-management level. Their report stated that the middle management group was considered a “ traditionally neglected group” of employees, but they were a crucial link between top management and line employees and responsible for turning business strategies into tangible outcomes.
In my career, I have experienced four major economic recessions that all dramatically hurt our industry for a period and I have participated in four recoveries. I agree with the HVS assessment that “Hoteliers have come to realise that now more than ever the quality of the workforce is the key market differentiator, and are ramping up their talent sourcing and retention strategies.”
Now is the critical time for hospitality business owners and managers to invest in their talent and team if they hope to make their Hotel More Profitable and Successful. Rebuilding our center of attention into a business recovery over the next 12 months means that now is the time to pay attention to those professionals in our organizations who are the key components of why guests will stay with our businesses.
I commented in several columns a year ago that it is a sometimes a hardship in the cost-conscious operations facing many businesses today for managers to leave their properties for professional development. It is also a reality that there is seldom any longer dedicated time for meaningful on-the-job training, which had habitually been a strong element of the hospitality industry’s career advancement path. There are many issues facing the complex world of hospitality and today’s business owners and managers need to be aware of that diversity, regardless of their own business focus.
As an individual who has been involved with well thought-out learning as both an academic and a corporate educator, I have come to recognize that delivering a balance of real-world business skills and comprehension with structured learning is essential to long-term success.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Measure Twice Cut Once…Communication is Key.
This past weekend I helped out a neighbor with a roofing job, and a few things came roaring back to me. My neighbor called me late and asked if I could help him out, so I went with him, and he told me that there would be two others also and it would be a fast job to remove shingles from a roof. We get there and he had explained how easy it was going to be and put the shingles in a dumpster in front of the house like under the eaves, Well, two big things didn’t happen…the other two guys didn’t show up…and the dumpster was behind the house, and 15 feet away. This immediately posed problems, it was going to take longer to remove them, and getting the shingles to the dumpster was going to take twice as long.
We worked all day and 2/3’s the way finished removing them but the clean up was going to be a long hard task. If everyone had showed up it would have been easier. Secondly the person tasked with the placement of the dumpster had it placed wrong, and thusly did have to pay for it in the long run. So it reminded me of the hotel days of being short staffed, of better yet..a snow day or night as it were, and the 3rd shift couldn’t make it in. It was brutal but we’d make it through. As for the dumpster it was a long day of picking up shingles and debris and taking it to the roll off container. If it was communicated correctly and placed correctly and the other people had shown up it would have been easier. Eliminating a step to save time and money.
We worked all day and 2/3’s the way finished removing them but the clean up was going to be a long hard task. If everyone had showed up it would have been easier. Secondly the person tasked with the placement of the dumpster had it placed wrong, and thusly did have to pay for it in the long run. So it reminded me of the hotel days of being short staffed, of better yet..a snow day or night as it were, and the 3rd shift couldn’t make it in. It was brutal but we’d make it through. As for the dumpster it was a long day of picking up shingles and debris and taking it to the roll off container. If it was communicated correctly and placed correctly and the other people had shown up it would have been easier. Eliminating a step to save time and money.
Monday, December 6, 2010
13 Best Practices for Hospitality Training Managers & Directors
Keys to Success
A Common Sense Approach to Success in the Hospitality Industry
The forecasts of recovery for the hospitality industry range from "next quarter to next year" depending on where one is located in the world. For those of us who have been in the industry for more than 15 years, we have come to realize that the cycle will reverse itself and we need to be ready to greet guests, serve them efficiently and exceed their exceptions.
The responsibility for ensuring that all associated receive initial and ongoing training to provide that excellent and consistent service varies by type of hospitality business. Larger hotels and companies have internal training staffs. Many branded hotels have access to their brand's general training offerings for a fee and online learning continues to grow.
Late last year, I authored a column titled "A Baker's Dozen" of Strategies for Hospitality Human Resource Managers" that offered specific recommendations that included an overview on training. With the continuing turbulence facing our industry and shaky global economies still identified each month, the responsibility to find the time and resources to train becomes more critical. Like politics, business is often "local" and we must be ready to greet those guests when our local conditions present themselves positively. We need to remember to foundations of our successes and not accept the negativity of the naysayers.
"We learn by example and by direct experience because
there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction."
Malcolm Gladwell, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, 2005
This column addresses the very core of all hotels: the one-on-one interaction of associates and guests. Without the proper planning and implementation of staffing and service, a hospitality business that interacts with guests 24 hours a day for 365 days a year has little chance for ongoing success.
Smaller hotels likely do not always have staff dedicated only to training, but the responsibility remains the same regardless of hotel or staff size. Today's hospitality training team must be effective communicators who can share best practices and examples of "how to" because there always seem to be crises. Those crises might be anything from technology problems to staffing shortages, but thriving in a multiple priority environment is often a requirement
"A Baker's Dozen" of Strategies for Hospitality Training Managers & Directors
Training differs somewhat from HR roles, in that it often tends to be two fold and more action oriented.
Planning
1.Plan, produce and monitor the annual training budget. Successful training efforts do not just happen. A team leader must work with HR and department heads to identify probable needs and create a viable plan to help operations meet those needs.
2.Formulate all learning & professional development related policies and procedures and update routinely. As with business forecasts, training needs to be anticipated and evaluated at least quarterly.
3.Prepare appropriate training needs analyses and career development plans. This is as much for the individual participating in training as it is for the organization. We all like to know "what's in it for me" and having career path potentials can assist both department heads and associates "think ahead."
4.Plan, produce and monitor the annual learning & professional development master schedule. Training needs to be ingoing. When one steps back and recognizes the changes in technology, the green movement, online learning and more, it becomes obvious that as in #2 above, there is a logical need for a longer term plan with the requirement for updates.
Delivery and Evaluation
1.Support the timely scheduling and posting of the following month's Training Calendar, incorporating security and safety training sessions to all Department Heads and Executive Committee Members monthly. With the increasing potential of terrorism in hotels and hospitality businesses, the need to regularly review updates and the property's plans are essential.
2.Assist the Quality Assurance or other managers in monitoring and consolidating month-end training activity reports from all departments. Some properties have limited training staff, but all information relating to professional development and training activities should be recapped in monthly training activity recaps. We all recall the expression, "what gets measured, gets done!"
3.Assess changes in guest needs, the hotel's guest mix, and industry and competitive trends. Markets change, products and services evolve and having someone who interacts with the front line regularly is an excellent resource to recommend appropriate product, service and operational changes that might improve the guest experience and associate satisfaction. Properties that set our to establish and maintain market domination frequently enjoy outstanding financial results.
4.Monitor and ensure that all training and development programs are carried out within the allocated budget. Budgets should be regularly reviewed and adjusted as needed, but not overlooked. Training is not the place for major savings, unless perhaps one is considering delaying a major new initiative for a short period of time such as one quarter.
5.Identify and make available external instructors as necessary to fulfill training objectives. This column has focused on internal trainers, but there are times when external resources are essential.
6.Conduct New Hire Orientation program for all new employees using current property, brand and/or corporate standards. The expression about making the right first impression remains essential.
7.Lead New Manager Orientation, clearly reviewing associate handbook information, brand, corporate and property standards. New managers must understand the organizational values and operating procedures from day one.
8.Oversee and/or conduct compliance courses. As in #5 that discussed safety and security, the need for attention to reasonable care continues to grow. Programs that address product safety and potential liability, such as TIPS and Food Handler, and others involving Safety and/or Security should be addressed, monitored and measured. Some may be mandated by local, provincial/state and/or national government agencies, but attention must be ramped up here. Part of my work includes expert witness and/or consulting on legal issues and there needs to be specific attention paid to these issues by the major brands, as well as individual hotel owners, managers and franchisees.
9.Lead by example. I have personally been an advocate in my career in ongoing learning. Professional certifications in a wide range of specialties in learning and operations are extremely beneficial because everyone benefits. Trainers need positive leadership and interpersonal skills, yet must also maintain a sense of perspective for those learning.
A Common Sense Approach to Success in the Hospitality Industry
The forecasts of recovery for the hospitality industry range from "next quarter to next year" depending on where one is located in the world. For those of us who have been in the industry for more than 15 years, we have come to realize that the cycle will reverse itself and we need to be ready to greet guests, serve them efficiently and exceed their exceptions.
The responsibility for ensuring that all associated receive initial and ongoing training to provide that excellent and consistent service varies by type of hospitality business. Larger hotels and companies have internal training staffs. Many branded hotels have access to their brand's general training offerings for a fee and online learning continues to grow.
Late last year, I authored a column titled "A Baker's Dozen" of Strategies for Hospitality Human Resource Managers" that offered specific recommendations that included an overview on training. With the continuing turbulence facing our industry and shaky global economies still identified each month, the responsibility to find the time and resources to train becomes more critical. Like politics, business is often "local" and we must be ready to greet those guests when our local conditions present themselves positively. We need to remember to foundations of our successes and not accept the negativity of the naysayers.
"We learn by example and by direct experience because
there are real limits to the adequacy of verbal instruction."
Malcolm Gladwell, Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, 2005
This column addresses the very core of all hotels: the one-on-one interaction of associates and guests. Without the proper planning and implementation of staffing and service, a hospitality business that interacts with guests 24 hours a day for 365 days a year has little chance for ongoing success.
Smaller hotels likely do not always have staff dedicated only to training, but the responsibility remains the same regardless of hotel or staff size. Today's hospitality training team must be effective communicators who can share best practices and examples of "how to" because there always seem to be crises. Those crises might be anything from technology problems to staffing shortages, but thriving in a multiple priority environment is often a requirement
"A Baker's Dozen" of Strategies for Hospitality Training Managers & Directors
Training differs somewhat from HR roles, in that it often tends to be two fold and more action oriented.
Planning
1.Plan, produce and monitor the annual training budget. Successful training efforts do not just happen. A team leader must work with HR and department heads to identify probable needs and create a viable plan to help operations meet those needs.
2.Formulate all learning & professional development related policies and procedures and update routinely. As with business forecasts, training needs to be anticipated and evaluated at least quarterly.
3.Prepare appropriate training needs analyses and career development plans. This is as much for the individual participating in training as it is for the organization. We all like to know "what's in it for me" and having career path potentials can assist both department heads and associates "think ahead."
4.Plan, produce and monitor the annual learning & professional development master schedule. Training needs to be ingoing. When one steps back and recognizes the changes in technology, the green movement, online learning and more, it becomes obvious that as in #2 above, there is a logical need for a longer term plan with the requirement for updates.
Delivery and Evaluation
1.Support the timely scheduling and posting of the following month's Training Calendar, incorporating security and safety training sessions to all Department Heads and Executive Committee Members monthly. With the increasing potential of terrorism in hotels and hospitality businesses, the need to regularly review updates and the property's plans are essential.
2.Assist the Quality Assurance or other managers in monitoring and consolidating month-end training activity reports from all departments. Some properties have limited training staff, but all information relating to professional development and training activities should be recapped in monthly training activity recaps. We all recall the expression, "what gets measured, gets done!"
3.Assess changes in guest needs, the hotel's guest mix, and industry and competitive trends. Markets change, products and services evolve and having someone who interacts with the front line regularly is an excellent resource to recommend appropriate product, service and operational changes that might improve the guest experience and associate satisfaction. Properties that set our to establish and maintain market domination frequently enjoy outstanding financial results.
4.Monitor and ensure that all training and development programs are carried out within the allocated budget. Budgets should be regularly reviewed and adjusted as needed, but not overlooked. Training is not the place for major savings, unless perhaps one is considering delaying a major new initiative for a short period of time such as one quarter.
5.Identify and make available external instructors as necessary to fulfill training objectives. This column has focused on internal trainers, but there are times when external resources are essential.
6.Conduct New Hire Orientation program for all new employees using current property, brand and/or corporate standards. The expression about making the right first impression remains essential.
7.Lead New Manager Orientation, clearly reviewing associate handbook information, brand, corporate and property standards. New managers must understand the organizational values and operating procedures from day one.
8.Oversee and/or conduct compliance courses. As in #5 that discussed safety and security, the need for attention to reasonable care continues to grow. Programs that address product safety and potential liability, such as TIPS and Food Handler, and others involving Safety and/or Security should be addressed, monitored and measured. Some may be mandated by local, provincial/state and/or national government agencies, but attention must be ramped up here. Part of my work includes expert witness and/or consulting on legal issues and there needs to be specific attention paid to these issues by the major brands, as well as individual hotel owners, managers and franchisees.
9.Lead by example. I have personally been an advocate in my career in ongoing learning. Professional certifications in a wide range of specialties in learning and operations are extremely beneficial because everyone benefits. Trainers need positive leadership and interpersonal skills, yet must also maintain a sense of perspective for those learning.
Monday, November 22, 2010
What to Do About Waste
A look at how some restaurants are cutting down.
When New York City–based burger concept 4food opened its first location in August, the media buzz it generated mostly stemmed from its innovative use of technology and social media. Plasma TV screens adorn its walls, including one that scrolls customer tweets. iPads are used to order food. And diners can save their specialized burger orders to an online database, available for anybody to order in the future—an act that credits the customer with 25 cents on later 4food visits.
But one of the most innovative features about 4food’s first unit isn’t wowing customers with its flashy technology. In fact, it’s in the basement’s washroom.
For the founders of 4food, it’s a critical component to an operation they hope to be as sustainable as possible—and a tool that might be a sign of things to come for a fast food industry that’s creating billions of pounds of waste annually.
The composting machine that 4food keeps in its basement disposes of all food and packaging waste the restaurant generates.
“It’s capable of composting up to 400 pounds of food waste and compostable packaging in a 24-hour period,” says Michael Shuman, cofounder and manager of 4food. “The amazing thing is, it runs on microorganisms, so it runs 24/7/365—we just feed it enzymes on a weekly basis.”
The product churned out by 4food’s composter, which is manufactured by a food disposal company called Orca Green, is just as interesting as the tool itself.
“It turns [waste] into drainage water,” Shuman says. “There’s no compost super sludge; this water just gets drained away.” The machine will also compost the waste from 4food’s next four or five locations as well.
4food’s solution to diverting its waste from landfills is a bright idea in an industry desperate to figure out what to do about waste. Although a composting machine like 4food’s is a capital investment not every operator can afford, some experts say just sticking to the status quo is ultimately too harmful to the environment—and to an operation’s bottom line.
Michael Oshman, president of the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), says waste in the restaurant industry has become a major issue—so major, in fact, that the GRA lists “Waste Reduction and Recycling” as one of its seven Green Restaurant Certification Standards.
“Restaurants can easily put out a few hundred thousand pounds of waste every year,” Oshman says. “And that’s one restaurant. Multiply that by almost a million, and you get a lot.”
Making the transition to a system that reduces waste sent to a landfill, however, is not one that a lot of operators feel they can make, especially in a down economy.
“Restaurants have a very tight margin and operate at a very quick pace,” says Jack Macy, commercial zero waste coordinator for San Francisco’s Department of the Environment. “There’s a perception that if it’s a lot more work, they’re not going to want to do it without really big incentives. The reality is it doesn’t have to be more work at all. … But to get people’s attention, it always helps to have incentives.”
And indeed there are incentives for restaurants to begin reducing the waste they send to landfills. The GRA, for example, awards a Green Restaurant Certification to restaurants that accumulate at least 100 points in the organization’s point system. In the “Waste Reduction and Recycling” category, restaurants are required to divert plastics, glass, aluminum, cardboard, and paper from landfills; recycle grease for biodiesel or energy purposes; and compost preconsumer food, the food that is leftover from production.
When New York City–based burger concept 4food opened its first location in August, the media buzz it generated mostly stemmed from its innovative use of technology and social media. Plasma TV screens adorn its walls, including one that scrolls customer tweets. iPads are used to order food. And diners can save their specialized burger orders to an online database, available for anybody to order in the future—an act that credits the customer with 25 cents on later 4food visits.
But one of the most innovative features about 4food’s first unit isn’t wowing customers with its flashy technology. In fact, it’s in the basement’s washroom.
For the founders of 4food, it’s a critical component to an operation they hope to be as sustainable as possible—and a tool that might be a sign of things to come for a fast food industry that’s creating billions of pounds of waste annually.
The composting machine that 4food keeps in its basement disposes of all food and packaging waste the restaurant generates.
“It’s capable of composting up to 400 pounds of food waste and compostable packaging in a 24-hour period,” says Michael Shuman, cofounder and manager of 4food. “The amazing thing is, it runs on microorganisms, so it runs 24/7/365—we just feed it enzymes on a weekly basis.”
The product churned out by 4food’s composter, which is manufactured by a food disposal company called Orca Green, is just as interesting as the tool itself.
“It turns [waste] into drainage water,” Shuman says. “There’s no compost super sludge; this water just gets drained away.” The machine will also compost the waste from 4food’s next four or five locations as well.
4food’s solution to diverting its waste from landfills is a bright idea in an industry desperate to figure out what to do about waste. Although a composting machine like 4food’s is a capital investment not every operator can afford, some experts say just sticking to the status quo is ultimately too harmful to the environment—and to an operation’s bottom line.
Michael Oshman, president of the Green Restaurant Association (GRA), says waste in the restaurant industry has become a major issue—so major, in fact, that the GRA lists “Waste Reduction and Recycling” as one of its seven Green Restaurant Certification Standards.
“Restaurants can easily put out a few hundred thousand pounds of waste every year,” Oshman says. “And that’s one restaurant. Multiply that by almost a million, and you get a lot.”
Making the transition to a system that reduces waste sent to a landfill, however, is not one that a lot of operators feel they can make, especially in a down economy.
“Restaurants have a very tight margin and operate at a very quick pace,” says Jack Macy, commercial zero waste coordinator for San Francisco’s Department of the Environment. “There’s a perception that if it’s a lot more work, they’re not going to want to do it without really big incentives. The reality is it doesn’t have to be more work at all. … But to get people’s attention, it always helps to have incentives.”
And indeed there are incentives for restaurants to begin reducing the waste they send to landfills. The GRA, for example, awards a Green Restaurant Certification to restaurants that accumulate at least 100 points in the organization’s point system. In the “Waste Reduction and Recycling” category, restaurants are required to divert plastics, glass, aluminum, cardboard, and paper from landfills; recycle grease for biodiesel or energy purposes; and compost preconsumer food, the food that is leftover from production.
What Colin Powell Says About Leadership
Powell said that his idea of what it is to be a leader evolved as he moved through various positions in public service. Among his key points:
•Leaders exist to give followers what they need to get their job done. It is the followers who go into battle and accomplish the tasks assigned.
•The most important part of leadership is instilling trust in those you command. If you have their trust, they will follow you anywhere. “Every human endeavor has leaders and followers, and your job as a leader is to inspire,” he said.•Leadership begins with goals. When the followers know what the goals are, everyone understands the importance of their own role for the common purpose.
•People want to know that you are serving a greater purpose than just your own. “Increasingly, our people want to see leaders who are respected, leaders who are selfless,” Powell said.
•Express appreciation. Make sure that those under your command understand that you appreciate what they are doing, Powell said. While serving as secretary of state, Powell said, he let people know he appreciated their work through personal visits and thank-you cards.
•Solve problems. A leader also needs to recognize when someone is not performing well. It is a leader’s job to identify the source of the problem, and fix it. “Leadership is problem-solving, and you are expected as leaders to know what’s going on throughout your organization,” he said.
.
•Leaders exist to give followers what they need to get their job done. It is the followers who go into battle and accomplish the tasks assigned.
•The most important part of leadership is instilling trust in those you command. If you have their trust, they will follow you anywhere. “Every human endeavor has leaders and followers, and your job as a leader is to inspire,” he said.•Leadership begins with goals. When the followers know what the goals are, everyone understands the importance of their own role for the common purpose.
•People want to know that you are serving a greater purpose than just your own. “Increasingly, our people want to see leaders who are respected, leaders who are selfless,” Powell said.
•Express appreciation. Make sure that those under your command understand that you appreciate what they are doing, Powell said. While serving as secretary of state, Powell said, he let people know he appreciated their work through personal visits and thank-you cards.
•Solve problems. A leader also needs to recognize when someone is not performing well. It is a leader’s job to identify the source of the problem, and fix it. “Leadership is problem-solving, and you are expected as leaders to know what’s going on throughout your organization,” he said.
.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Growing Your Career Up | (part 1 of 2)
(Kathleen Hogan write of using SWOT factors)
Remember your eagerness at the start of your hospitality career to “make your mark”? Your enthusiasm for working in your chosen field was high along with your confidence in all the possibilities of the future. Your drive to succeed was strong. That enthusiasm, confidence and drive were and still are your internal motivators.
It is likely that you will or have already felt those high levels of enthusiasm, confidence and drive diminish with time and circumstances. There are steps you can take to reset those internal motivators and grow your career with upward mobility. The first step is recognizing your responsibility in building your career. Rather than leaving your career path to chance, take control by becoming proactive in setting its course. Take constructive action steps to rekindle those internal motivators and jump start your career.
The September 2010 issue of the Chief Learning Officer magazine had an article, Real Leadership: The Meaning Behind Motivation by Graham Jones, that addressed the need for motivating yourself inside and out with a wonderful story. The story illuminates the importance of motivational balance.
If you feel you may have lost your edge, recognize the value in continuous learning. Learning, like your career, is a life-long journey, compelling each of us to learn more, adjust our thinking, refresh our passion, and update our skill sets in order to grow, thrive and contribute value.
Make it a habit to read 1 book about people in hospitality and/or business who have become successful in the area of your choice. Do this for each of the next 6 months and note how your horizons have expanded. Use many different sources and venues (books, magazines, social media, online services, etc.) when gathering information to limit biased perspectives.
Seek out additional training opportunities to build upon or enhance your existing skill sets.
Learn new skills.
There are many hospitality industry certificates and certifications available to those who want to build upon their knowledge base, CV expertise and career experience. Which certifications should be pursued is dependent on your area of focus and career goals. Certificates are very good stepping stones at the start of your career and may be earned much faster than certifications, which often require 2 to 5 years tenure in the same position.
For example, the Educational Institutes of the AH&LA (American Hotel & Lodging Association) and the National Restaurant Association offer certifications for administrators, educators, operators and suppliers in the hospitality industry. Search and find other sources of advanced certificates and certifications as part of advancing your career. Many hospitality professionals hold more than one certification.
There are certain exercises you can do to be better prepared and keep your career on track.
•Perform a SWOT analysis annually
•Set short and long range goals
•Identify your Motivational DNA
SWOT is the acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Performing a SWOT analysis is a standard tool used in business for measuring where a company is in relation to its business goals, competition, and future direction. The individual can effectively use the same tool in both their personal and career life.
Perform your own SWOT Analysis to establish a baseline measure of your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats as of today. This exercise brings into focus areas that may need more work, require additional education, certifications or skills, and those areas of strength that may afford you an advantage to build upon.
One way to identify your strengths is through the Strengths Finder book by Tom Rath and its accompanying online test, which lists and prioritizes your strengths. Knowing your strengths may reveal more possibilities for positions not previously considered, and the type of work environment most suitable for you. This knowledge may alter the direction you take in choosing who and where to work, doing what.
When you repeat the SWOT analysis annually, a career tracking and timeline begins to appear, which helps define your accomplishments and set (or reset) the future direction of your career path. Performing a SWOT analysis lends itself to setting career goals.
Part two will provide continued action steps in setting goals and identifying motivators to advance your career.
Remember your eagerness at the start of your hospitality career to “make your mark”? Your enthusiasm for working in your chosen field was high along with your confidence in all the possibilities of the future. Your drive to succeed was strong. That enthusiasm, confidence and drive were and still are your internal motivators.
It is likely that you will or have already felt those high levels of enthusiasm, confidence and drive diminish with time and circumstances. There are steps you can take to reset those internal motivators and grow your career with upward mobility. The first step is recognizing your responsibility in building your career. Rather than leaving your career path to chance, take control by becoming proactive in setting its course. Take constructive action steps to rekindle those internal motivators and jump start your career.
The September 2010 issue of the Chief Learning Officer magazine had an article, Real Leadership: The Meaning Behind Motivation by Graham Jones, that addressed the need for motivating yourself inside and out with a wonderful story. The story illuminates the importance of motivational balance.
If you feel you may have lost your edge, recognize the value in continuous learning. Learning, like your career, is a life-long journey, compelling each of us to learn more, adjust our thinking, refresh our passion, and update our skill sets in order to grow, thrive and contribute value.
Make it a habit to read 1 book about people in hospitality and/or business who have become successful in the area of your choice. Do this for each of the next 6 months and note how your horizons have expanded. Use many different sources and venues (books, magazines, social media, online services, etc.) when gathering information to limit biased perspectives.
Seek out additional training opportunities to build upon or enhance your existing skill sets.
Learn new skills.
There are many hospitality industry certificates and certifications available to those who want to build upon their knowledge base, CV expertise and career experience. Which certifications should be pursued is dependent on your area of focus and career goals. Certificates are very good stepping stones at the start of your career and may be earned much faster than certifications, which often require 2 to 5 years tenure in the same position.
For example, the Educational Institutes of the AH&LA (American Hotel & Lodging Association) and the National Restaurant Association offer certifications for administrators, educators, operators and suppliers in the hospitality industry. Search and find other sources of advanced certificates and certifications as part of advancing your career. Many hospitality professionals hold more than one certification.
There are certain exercises you can do to be better prepared and keep your career on track.
•Perform a SWOT analysis annually
•Set short and long range goals
•Identify your Motivational DNA
SWOT is the acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Performing a SWOT analysis is a standard tool used in business for measuring where a company is in relation to its business goals, competition, and future direction. The individual can effectively use the same tool in both their personal and career life.
Perform your own SWOT Analysis to establish a baseline measure of your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats as of today. This exercise brings into focus areas that may need more work, require additional education, certifications or skills, and those areas of strength that may afford you an advantage to build upon.
One way to identify your strengths is through the Strengths Finder book by Tom Rath and its accompanying online test, which lists and prioritizes your strengths. Knowing your strengths may reveal more possibilities for positions not previously considered, and the type of work environment most suitable for you. This knowledge may alter the direction you take in choosing who and where to work, doing what.
When you repeat the SWOT analysis annually, a career tracking and timeline begins to appear, which helps define your accomplishments and set (or reset) the future direction of your career path. Performing a SWOT analysis lends itself to setting career goals.
Part two will provide continued action steps in setting goals and identifying motivators to advance your career.
A Framework for Managing Change
Endra Larkin writes about Change and adaption.
When Charles Darwin wrote ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change’, he clearly wasn’t talking about the hotel industry. Yet, his words do hold relevance for hoteliers today, because there are major changes afoot in our industry which will transform the competitive landscape in the years ahead. Of course, change is nothing new in hotels – it has always been an industry where a critical success factor is the ability to evolve in response to shifting consumer and market dynamics; however, the pace of change is quickening, a trend that seems likely to continue.
As a result, all hotel leaders need to be comfortable in personally dealing with change and, more importantly, in helping their employees to cope with it; particularly with regard to those changes which are substantial in nature. For major change, applying a structured, but not rigid, approach to implementation is advisable; one which takes into account the not inconsequential human relations issues associated with any change. Unfortunately, many leaders mishandle the process and this can lead to significant resentment and conflict, much of which is avoidable if some basic principles for managing change are applied.
People and Change
In terms of coping with change, it is not an exaggeration to say that many people tend to struggle with it - to varying degrees - and as a rule, the bigger the change, the greater the likelihood they will struggle. Because of this, gaining commitment at the outset is sometimes seen as the trickiest part of the change management process – and it is undoubtedly a challenge – but sustaining change is perhaps more difficult; often, far more so than we realise.
In an article entitled, Change or Die published in Fast Company Magazine, Alan Deutschman highlighted some startling points about our collective inability to sustain change. Here are some extracts of his article which are relevant here:
. . . What if a well-informed, trusted authority figure said you had to make difficult and enduring changes in the way you think and act? If you didn't, your time would end soon -- a lot sooner than it had to. Could you change when change really mattered? When it mattered most?
Yes, you say?
Try again.
Yes?
You're probably deluding yourself.
You wouldn't change.
Don't believe it? You want odds? Here are the odds, the scientifically studied odds: nine to one. That's nine to one against you. How do you like those odds?
Where did those odds come from? In his article, Mr. Deutschman goes on to refer to a presentation given by Dr. Edward Miller, the Dean of the Medical School and CEO of the Hospital at Johns Hopkins University, which focuses on an individual’s inability to change:
. . . He [Dr Miller] turned the discussion to patients whose heart disease is so severe that they undergo bypass surgery, a traumatic and expensive procedure that can cost more than $100,000 if complications arise. About 600,000 people have bypasses every year in the United States, and 1.3 million heart patients have angioplasties -- all at a total cost of around $30 billion. The procedures temporarily relieve chest pains but rarely prevent heart attacks or prolong lives. Around half of the time, the bypass grafts clog up in a few years; the angioplasties, in a few months. The causes of this so-called restenosis are complex. It is sometimes a reaction to the trauma of the surgery itself. But many patients could avoid the return of pain and the need to repeat the surgery -- not to mention arrest the course of their disease before it kills them -- by switching to healthier lifestyles. Yet very few do. "If you look at people after coronary-artery bypass grafting two years later, 90% of them have not changed their lifestyle," Miller said. "And that's been studied over and over and over again . . . Even though they know they have a very bad disease and they know they should change their lifestyle, for whatever reason, they cannot"
If people struggle to sustain change even when life and death are at stake, this undoubtedly has implications for managing change in the workplace. And, apart from collective personal failings in terms of change, the hotel environment –customer-driven as it is – creates the ideal conditions for a particular change initiative to slide off the agenda, once the initial implementation steps have happened. No doubt you will have experienced this at some stage: for example, you will have seen cases where a big deal was made around a certain change for a while, but slowly over time, lack of follow through, or shifting focus led to few tangible outcomes being achieved in the longer term. It is fair to say that hotels can, at times, suffer from the ‘flavour-of-the-month’ syndrome.
In light of this, creating a compelling case for change and getting ‘buy-in’ from employees undoubtedly remain critical early steps in managing change; and, experience shows that the more involvement people have in determining the nature and direction of changes affecting them, the more easily they will support the implementation process. However, even when the desire to change has been harnessed, people can easily fall back into old habits, or commitment can wane over time; therefore, creating the conditions to sustain change is also a vital concern. The change process must be effectively managed beyond the early stages and leaders need to really focus on how to bed-down and sustain change, as much as they do on getting people onside from the beginning. In achieving this, the following framework can be helpful:
A Framework for Managing Change
By Enda Larkin
Following a framework such as this provides long-term focus for the change management effort; it provides a template to harness commitment from the start; helps to plan for implementation and, most important of all, emphasises the need to stick with the change. In applying a framework such as this, keep the following general points in mind about managing change:
•Change must lead to tangible benefits, if employees are expected to buy into it;
•Change must be ‘sold’ to employees; forcing change through, whilst on rare occasions unavoidable, is rarely effective;
•Change just for the sake of it winds people up and should be avoided;
•Include employees in decision making around change, where possible;
•The bigger the change, the more difficult it can be for employees, so strong leadership is essential in making the change happen;
•The implementation of change should be time bound, for dragged out change can be disheartening;
•Make sure to define and communicate clear implementation plans and that deadlines are adhered to;
•Show benefits to employees as early as possible in the change process, so people see the value of it;
•Offer lots of support and guidance to employees as they seek to work through the change;
•Recognise that change processes provide ideal opportunities for the negative team members to ‘stir things up’. Pay particular attention to the influence they are exerting at such times.
When Charles Darwin wrote ‘It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change’, he clearly wasn’t talking about the hotel industry. Yet, his words do hold relevance for hoteliers today, because there are major changes afoot in our industry which will transform the competitive landscape in the years ahead. Of course, change is nothing new in hotels – it has always been an industry where a critical success factor is the ability to evolve in response to shifting consumer and market dynamics; however, the pace of change is quickening, a trend that seems likely to continue.
As a result, all hotel leaders need to be comfortable in personally dealing with change and, more importantly, in helping their employees to cope with it; particularly with regard to those changes which are substantial in nature. For major change, applying a structured, but not rigid, approach to implementation is advisable; one which takes into account the not inconsequential human relations issues associated with any change. Unfortunately, many leaders mishandle the process and this can lead to significant resentment and conflict, much of which is avoidable if some basic principles for managing change are applied.
People and Change
In terms of coping with change, it is not an exaggeration to say that many people tend to struggle with it - to varying degrees - and as a rule, the bigger the change, the greater the likelihood they will struggle. Because of this, gaining commitment at the outset is sometimes seen as the trickiest part of the change management process – and it is undoubtedly a challenge – but sustaining change is perhaps more difficult; often, far more so than we realise.
In an article entitled, Change or Die published in Fast Company Magazine, Alan Deutschman highlighted some startling points about our collective inability to sustain change. Here are some extracts of his article which are relevant here:
. . . What if a well-informed, trusted authority figure said you had to make difficult and enduring changes in the way you think and act? If you didn't, your time would end soon -- a lot sooner than it had to. Could you change when change really mattered? When it mattered most?
Yes, you say?
Try again.
Yes?
You're probably deluding yourself.
You wouldn't change.
Don't believe it? You want odds? Here are the odds, the scientifically studied odds: nine to one. That's nine to one against you. How do you like those odds?
Where did those odds come from? In his article, Mr. Deutschman goes on to refer to a presentation given by Dr. Edward Miller, the Dean of the Medical School and CEO of the Hospital at Johns Hopkins University, which focuses on an individual’s inability to change:
. . . He [Dr Miller] turned the discussion to patients whose heart disease is so severe that they undergo bypass surgery, a traumatic and expensive procedure that can cost more than $100,000 if complications arise. About 600,000 people have bypasses every year in the United States, and 1.3 million heart patients have angioplasties -- all at a total cost of around $30 billion. The procedures temporarily relieve chest pains but rarely prevent heart attacks or prolong lives. Around half of the time, the bypass grafts clog up in a few years; the angioplasties, in a few months. The causes of this so-called restenosis are complex. It is sometimes a reaction to the trauma of the surgery itself. But many patients could avoid the return of pain and the need to repeat the surgery -- not to mention arrest the course of their disease before it kills them -- by switching to healthier lifestyles. Yet very few do. "If you look at people after coronary-artery bypass grafting two years later, 90% of them have not changed their lifestyle," Miller said. "And that's been studied over and over and over again . . . Even though they know they have a very bad disease and they know they should change their lifestyle, for whatever reason, they cannot"
If people struggle to sustain change even when life and death are at stake, this undoubtedly has implications for managing change in the workplace. And, apart from collective personal failings in terms of change, the hotel environment –customer-driven as it is – creates the ideal conditions for a particular change initiative to slide off the agenda, once the initial implementation steps have happened. No doubt you will have experienced this at some stage: for example, you will have seen cases where a big deal was made around a certain change for a while, but slowly over time, lack of follow through, or shifting focus led to few tangible outcomes being achieved in the longer term. It is fair to say that hotels can, at times, suffer from the ‘flavour-of-the-month’ syndrome.
In light of this, creating a compelling case for change and getting ‘buy-in’ from employees undoubtedly remain critical early steps in managing change; and, experience shows that the more involvement people have in determining the nature and direction of changes affecting them, the more easily they will support the implementation process. However, even when the desire to change has been harnessed, people can easily fall back into old habits, or commitment can wane over time; therefore, creating the conditions to sustain change is also a vital concern. The change process must be effectively managed beyond the early stages and leaders need to really focus on how to bed-down and sustain change, as much as they do on getting people onside from the beginning. In achieving this, the following framework can be helpful:
A Framework for Managing Change
By Enda Larkin
Following a framework such as this provides long-term focus for the change management effort; it provides a template to harness commitment from the start; helps to plan for implementation and, most important of all, emphasises the need to stick with the change. In applying a framework such as this, keep the following general points in mind about managing change:
•Change must lead to tangible benefits, if employees are expected to buy into it;
•Change must be ‘sold’ to employees; forcing change through, whilst on rare occasions unavoidable, is rarely effective;
•Change just for the sake of it winds people up and should be avoided;
•Include employees in decision making around change, where possible;
•The bigger the change, the more difficult it can be for employees, so strong leadership is essential in making the change happen;
•The implementation of change should be time bound, for dragged out change can be disheartening;
•Make sure to define and communicate clear implementation plans and that deadlines are adhered to;
•Show benefits to employees as early as possible in the change process, so people see the value of it;
•Offer lots of support and guidance to employees as they seek to work through the change;
•Recognise that change processes provide ideal opportunities for the negative team members to ‘stir things up’. Pay particular attention to the influence they are exerting at such times.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Hotel Survival Strategies Start with Minimizing Vulnerability
“Be contrarian – leave that chocolate on the pillow,”
The bevy of hotel investors who purchased assets at the peak of the market with the intent of repositioning are now the most vulnerable in today’s economy. This “repositioning” segment of the market is in survival mode, yet creative owners are employing new survival strategies to combat challenges.
“When the bottom fell out of the hotel market in the fall of 2008, owners and lenders were abruptly faced with net income levels that plummeted by 35 to 50 percent. Their ability to rethink and execute dramatically different short-term operating strategies often became the defining element for survival,” said Amelia Lim, an executive vice president and expert hotel advisor for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels’ Strategic Advisory & Asset Management experts have been at the forefront of guiding hotel owners in survival mode through the past several months. The firm’s market-driven analyses uncovered six points of vulnerability that struggling hotels should avoid to mitigate long-term impacts to profitability, and to maximize revenue and existing customer relations:
1.Buck the Status Quo and Maintain Marketing Resources.
Hotels have slashed sales staff, PR, marketing, often at costs that may not be apparent in the short-term. Given the prevalent thought of “If nothing’s happening in the market and cash flows are anemic, why should I spend on sales and marketing payroll?” – they’ve hit bone.
“Cutting marketing spend is an understandable and immediate reaction in a hostile environment,” said Lim “Declining demand and average daily rates (ADRs) are temporary, as our market research has conclusively shown. However, the level of guest goodwill and market perception of any hotel’s quality profile is just as temporary.”
If a hotel were to defensively scale back on its PR efforts and marketing outreach in a major way, it would be highly exposed to the risk of an opportunistic competitor gaining market share by its willingness to maintain a consistent message to the market. “The resounding message here is: don’t cut back the channel that feeds you. Keep a steady level of promotions out to the customer base, or risk losing customers,” Lim said.
2.Direct Guests to Proprietary Web Sites for Maximum Profit.
Many high-end hotels are resorting to mass-market channels to off-load inventory. “These are very expensive channels of distribution with a 25 percent fee off the top of revenue – so they end up netting 75 percent,” said Lim. “This is often seen with the independents that do not have the benefit of an affiliation with a sales and marketing group such as Leading Hotels of the World or Preferred Hotels & Resorts. Often, the more profitable way to go is to direct guests to your proprietary Web site.” The implementation of a holistic promotion strategy to channel bookings to a profitable proprietary Web site has been successfully executed at many of the hotels which Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels asset manage.
3.Release the Commitment to High ADR Rates and Introduce Variation.
Hotels need a fairly sophisticated analysis of the proper mix of ADR and occupancy to navigate today’s market. This requires market-specific experience and technical expertise. It also requires operators to sometimes relax their commitment to upholding ADRs.
“While a high ADR is a logical objective, hotels often can yield more profit by adopting a savvy strategy that embraces more modest ADR objectives at the right times,” Lim said. “Do you sell one room for $1,000, or do you sell 10 rooms for $100 each? While the RevPAR technically works out to be the same, there’s a lot more to consider in the balance. The answer lies beyond simple math, and calls for an analytic approach that combines quantitative and qualitative measures of success. The equation is further complicated when considering the incremental profits from other sources within the hotel that any one occupied room brings to the bottom line.”
4.Combat the AIG Effect with Creative Customer Solutions.
“There have been anecdotal accounts of guests requesting luxury hotel names not appear on their receipt,” said Lim. “The reported $20 bag of chips from the minibar of Le Uber Luxury Resort really sticks in the craw of public opinion when 3 percent of the company’s headcount has just been impacted by workforce reductions.”
The connotation of the hotel name and its implied positioning are points worth considering in any sales and marketing strategy. Seek ways to offset any resistance associated with extravagance given that austerity is the rallying cry of the day.
5.Explore Brand Flexibility.
Brands are allowing the delay of investment of capital dollars to help hotels ease into new standards while retaining the flag. Good mid- and long-term strategists will analyze levels of flexibility available within existing brand standards. Very often, relationships with the brands and a well-documented case on how guest satisfaction will not be materially impacted even in the absence of immediate implementation can also facilitate the phasing-in of brand standards in a manner that cushions bottom-line impact, yet preserves long-term asset value.
6.Divide and Conquer Roles: Asset Manager and Property Manager.
An asset manager should not be confused with an onsite property manager. The main value that the asset manager brings is not to dictate how to staff the property, or opine on the blueprints of the hotel’s new elevator as a property manager would, but to ensure that these plans fit in to the overall value proposition.
The asset manager is there to ensure that all the overall strategic vision is maintained and monitor operating activity at a high level. The property manager is responsible for the day-to-day and detailed execution. Understanding and allowing the division of tasks between property manager and asset manager allows the respective areas of expertise to play out in concert, with the effect of maximizing long-term asset value.
The bevy of hotel investors who purchased assets at the peak of the market with the intent of repositioning are now the most vulnerable in today’s economy. This “repositioning” segment of the market is in survival mode, yet creative owners are employing new survival strategies to combat challenges.
“When the bottom fell out of the hotel market in the fall of 2008, owners and lenders were abruptly faced with net income levels that plummeted by 35 to 50 percent. Their ability to rethink and execute dramatically different short-term operating strategies often became the defining element for survival,” said Amelia Lim, an executive vice president and expert hotel advisor for Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels’ Strategic Advisory & Asset Management experts have been at the forefront of guiding hotel owners in survival mode through the past several months. The firm’s market-driven analyses uncovered six points of vulnerability that struggling hotels should avoid to mitigate long-term impacts to profitability, and to maximize revenue and existing customer relations:
1.Buck the Status Quo and Maintain Marketing Resources.
Hotels have slashed sales staff, PR, marketing, often at costs that may not be apparent in the short-term. Given the prevalent thought of “If nothing’s happening in the market and cash flows are anemic, why should I spend on sales and marketing payroll?” – they’ve hit bone.
“Cutting marketing spend is an understandable and immediate reaction in a hostile environment,” said Lim “Declining demand and average daily rates (ADRs) are temporary, as our market research has conclusively shown. However, the level of guest goodwill and market perception of any hotel’s quality profile is just as temporary.”
If a hotel were to defensively scale back on its PR efforts and marketing outreach in a major way, it would be highly exposed to the risk of an opportunistic competitor gaining market share by its willingness to maintain a consistent message to the market. “The resounding message here is: don’t cut back the channel that feeds you. Keep a steady level of promotions out to the customer base, or risk losing customers,” Lim said.
2.Direct Guests to Proprietary Web Sites for Maximum Profit.
Many high-end hotels are resorting to mass-market channels to off-load inventory. “These are very expensive channels of distribution with a 25 percent fee off the top of revenue – so they end up netting 75 percent,” said Lim. “This is often seen with the independents that do not have the benefit of an affiliation with a sales and marketing group such as Leading Hotels of the World or Preferred Hotels & Resorts. Often, the more profitable way to go is to direct guests to your proprietary Web site.” The implementation of a holistic promotion strategy to channel bookings to a profitable proprietary Web site has been successfully executed at many of the hotels which Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels asset manage.
3.Release the Commitment to High ADR Rates and Introduce Variation.
Hotels need a fairly sophisticated analysis of the proper mix of ADR and occupancy to navigate today’s market. This requires market-specific experience and technical expertise. It also requires operators to sometimes relax their commitment to upholding ADRs.
“While a high ADR is a logical objective, hotels often can yield more profit by adopting a savvy strategy that embraces more modest ADR objectives at the right times,” Lim said. “Do you sell one room for $1,000, or do you sell 10 rooms for $100 each? While the RevPAR technically works out to be the same, there’s a lot more to consider in the balance. The answer lies beyond simple math, and calls for an analytic approach that combines quantitative and qualitative measures of success. The equation is further complicated when considering the incremental profits from other sources within the hotel that any one occupied room brings to the bottom line.”
4.Combat the AIG Effect with Creative Customer Solutions.
“There have been anecdotal accounts of guests requesting luxury hotel names not appear on their receipt,” said Lim. “The reported $20 bag of chips from the minibar of Le Uber Luxury Resort really sticks in the craw of public opinion when 3 percent of the company’s headcount has just been impacted by workforce reductions.”
The connotation of the hotel name and its implied positioning are points worth considering in any sales and marketing strategy. Seek ways to offset any resistance associated with extravagance given that austerity is the rallying cry of the day.
5.Explore Brand Flexibility.
Brands are allowing the delay of investment of capital dollars to help hotels ease into new standards while retaining the flag. Good mid- and long-term strategists will analyze levels of flexibility available within existing brand standards. Very often, relationships with the brands and a well-documented case on how guest satisfaction will not be materially impacted even in the absence of immediate implementation can also facilitate the phasing-in of brand standards in a manner that cushions bottom-line impact, yet preserves long-term asset value.
6.Divide and Conquer Roles: Asset Manager and Property Manager.
An asset manager should not be confused with an onsite property manager. The main value that the asset manager brings is not to dictate how to staff the property, or opine on the blueprints of the hotel’s new elevator as a property manager would, but to ensure that these plans fit in to the overall value proposition.
The asset manager is there to ensure that all the overall strategic vision is maintained and monitor operating activity at a high level. The property manager is responsible for the day-to-day and detailed execution. Understanding and allowing the division of tasks between property manager and asset manager allows the respective areas of expertise to play out in concert, with the effect of maximizing long-term asset value.
5 Reasons Using A Qualified Consultant Could Make a Huge Difference in Your Hospitality Business
(John is a former Instructor of my, a good friend, and has some great points..)
“CEOs who don’t use outside advice run the risk to internalizing too much. They never realize their full potential, and they miss a lot of opportunities.”
George Clement, CEO Clement Communication, Inc.
There are CEOs of many descriptions and the weak economy reinforced that fact to me in a current assignment. I am in the middle of a four city series of programs for Meetings Quest 2010 where I am leading discussions and sharing ideas on optimizing meetings success. Attendees include professional meeting planners from corporations and associations of all sizes, hotel managers and sales teams, representatives from convention and visitors’ bureaus, suppliers that serve all of the previous groups and independent professionals in the hospitality business.
When I say I am “sharing ideas” and facilitating the general session, that role does not mean I am doing all of the talking. As a career hotelier and educator, I am leading discussions on ways to optimize meeting success from various perspectives of professional meeting planners and hotels. In each of the sessions to date, there has been almost 50% of the time for the program devoted to smaller group discussions on problems facing all of these professionals in the same industry, but that have slightly different roles and responsibilities.
Those discussions have included certain elements of Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, and #5 in particular – Seek First to Understand, and then to be Understood. The process is highly interactive and the groups are divided into smaller teams for active and inclusive discussions that involve literally everyone in the 100+ attendee audiences. Within the discussions, attendees first define the components of what may or may not be outside of their area of expertise and then defend or refine those definitions when challenged or questioned by others in the audience.
This format requires guidance and a steady pace by the moderator with invigorating results for the group. The interactive discussions among the attendees appear to create a desire for continued dialogue.
This leads me to the title of this short column – the use of qualified consultants as a means of acting as a change agent or a stimulant to progress through dialogue, thought, and discussion of alternatives and the creation of action plans.
Many of us have heard that “A consultant is someone who borrows your watch to tell you the time, and then keeps the watch.1 ” While the downside potential is clearly present when using external resources or consultants, there is also the upside of being able to address serious challenges and solve problems before they evolve into full-blown crises.
Five Reasons Using a Qualified Consultant include:
1.Making Time Count
No one can re-create “time”, but using the right resource can make a difference in how at least some time is spent. A challenge facing many hospitality businesses is answered by using another of Covey’s Seven Habits with his #7, Sharpen the Saw, that addresses the need to be able to renew one’s sense of value and awareness. When dealing with daily operations of staffing, marketing, purchasing, planning and meeting guest expectations, operators are likely aware of the problem centers and the areas where one could maximize results. The predicament often faced is that in dealing with the day-to-day business needs, one cannot and does not focus on them long enough to take action and generate results. A Qualified Consultant can tackle the time issue with a specific plan that uses time effectively and can generate results.
2.Finding True Impartiality
In most segments of the hospitality industry, it is very likely to become "People and Process” focused, due to volume and the 24 hours per day pressure of operations. Familiarity can become comfortable and we run the real risk of losing objectivity needed to assess our approaches to consider change needed to make improvements. A Qualified Consultant can bring a balance of professionalism and objectivity and share both proven best practices and their experience where and when one needs it.
3.Considering Different Perspectives and Approaches
As mentioned in the introduction, there are many different perspectives in business today and they do not need to be perceived as confrontational. A Qualified Consultant can help identify those perspectives from several angles and then offer a number of alternatives on how to proceed.
4.Understanding The Needs
Needs differ from perspectives, in that the business has certain legal, ethical and financial obligations to meet in order for the business to succeed on an ongoing basis. A Qualified Consultant is an excellent “listener” who will take the time to hear and assess you and your team's thoughts. They can use their expertise and interaction with other organizations and operating businesses to work with you in addressing your situations, be they solving people or process issues, to launching new campaigns or effectively monitoring capital improvement programs.
5.Exploring and Recommending Cost Effective Solutions
In many organizations, the answers have “always” been to add a new position, increase the advertising or lower the prices to solve a particular problem. A Qualified Consultant will likely consider those approaches as possible solutions, but will more often include a range of researched options that offer likely outcomes.
1 Advertising executive Carl Ally (1924-1999) was credited with the saying in 1965 about people who are not fond of consultants.
“CEOs who don’t use outside advice run the risk to internalizing too much. They never realize their full potential, and they miss a lot of opportunities.”
George Clement, CEO Clement Communication, Inc.
There are CEOs of many descriptions and the weak economy reinforced that fact to me in a current assignment. I am in the middle of a four city series of programs for Meetings Quest 2010 where I am leading discussions and sharing ideas on optimizing meetings success. Attendees include professional meeting planners from corporations and associations of all sizes, hotel managers and sales teams, representatives from convention and visitors’ bureaus, suppliers that serve all of the previous groups and independent professionals in the hospitality business.
When I say I am “sharing ideas” and facilitating the general session, that role does not mean I am doing all of the talking. As a career hotelier and educator, I am leading discussions on ways to optimize meeting success from various perspectives of professional meeting planners and hotels. In each of the sessions to date, there has been almost 50% of the time for the program devoted to smaller group discussions on problems facing all of these professionals in the same industry, but that have slightly different roles and responsibilities.
Those discussions have included certain elements of Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, and #5 in particular – Seek First to Understand, and then to be Understood. The process is highly interactive and the groups are divided into smaller teams for active and inclusive discussions that involve literally everyone in the 100+ attendee audiences. Within the discussions, attendees first define the components of what may or may not be outside of their area of expertise and then defend or refine those definitions when challenged or questioned by others in the audience.
This format requires guidance and a steady pace by the moderator with invigorating results for the group. The interactive discussions among the attendees appear to create a desire for continued dialogue.
This leads me to the title of this short column – the use of qualified consultants as a means of acting as a change agent or a stimulant to progress through dialogue, thought, and discussion of alternatives and the creation of action plans.
Many of us have heard that “A consultant is someone who borrows your watch to tell you the time, and then keeps the watch.1 ” While the downside potential is clearly present when using external resources or consultants, there is also the upside of being able to address serious challenges and solve problems before they evolve into full-blown crises.
Five Reasons Using a Qualified Consultant include:
1.Making Time Count
No one can re-create “time”, but using the right resource can make a difference in how at least some time is spent. A challenge facing many hospitality businesses is answered by using another of Covey’s Seven Habits with his #7, Sharpen the Saw, that addresses the need to be able to renew one’s sense of value and awareness. When dealing with daily operations of staffing, marketing, purchasing, planning and meeting guest expectations, operators are likely aware of the problem centers and the areas where one could maximize results. The predicament often faced is that in dealing with the day-to-day business needs, one cannot and does not focus on them long enough to take action and generate results. A Qualified Consultant can tackle the time issue with a specific plan that uses time effectively and can generate results.
2.Finding True Impartiality
In most segments of the hospitality industry, it is very likely to become "People and Process” focused, due to volume and the 24 hours per day pressure of operations. Familiarity can become comfortable and we run the real risk of losing objectivity needed to assess our approaches to consider change needed to make improvements. A Qualified Consultant can bring a balance of professionalism and objectivity and share both proven best practices and their experience where and when one needs it.
3.Considering Different Perspectives and Approaches
As mentioned in the introduction, there are many different perspectives in business today and they do not need to be perceived as confrontational. A Qualified Consultant can help identify those perspectives from several angles and then offer a number of alternatives on how to proceed.
4.Understanding The Needs
Needs differ from perspectives, in that the business has certain legal, ethical and financial obligations to meet in order for the business to succeed on an ongoing basis. A Qualified Consultant is an excellent “listener” who will take the time to hear and assess you and your team's thoughts. They can use their expertise and interaction with other organizations and operating businesses to work with you in addressing your situations, be they solving people or process issues, to launching new campaigns or effectively monitoring capital improvement programs.
5.Exploring and Recommending Cost Effective Solutions
In many organizations, the answers have “always” been to add a new position, increase the advertising or lower the prices to solve a particular problem. A Qualified Consultant will likely consider those approaches as possible solutions, but will more often include a range of researched options that offer likely outcomes.
1 Advertising executive Carl Ally (1924-1999) was credited with the saying in 1965 about people who are not fond of consultants.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Walking after Midnight: How to Avoid Being Relocated from Your Hotel
(Daniel Carig has some valid and useful points, I used to hate walking people. You can aslo find a link to his blog on our page.)
If you’re a frequent traveler, this scenario might be all too familiar. It’s late. You stagger to the front desk of your hotel, bruised and battered by the horrors of modern travel, only to be welcomed with the words, “I’m sorry, but we don’t have a room for you.”
“What?” you cry. “But I have a confirmation … here! … It says my reservation is guaranteed!”
Silly you. Don’t you know that the credit card number you provide at time of reservation guarantees one thing only: that the hotel will charge you if you don’t show up?
As hotel occupancies climb, relocates are making a comeback. As a long-time hotelier, I have the dubious distinction of having performed scores of relocates in my career, and I know how inconvenient and frustrating it can be for travelers.
But you’re not as helpless as you might feel. While there’s no surefire way to avoid being relocated, there are ways to fight the odds – and, if your number is irrevocably up, to negotiate the most favorable terms.
What exactly is a relocate? Also known as walking or bumping, relocates occur when a hotel has more reservations than rooms. Like airlines, hotels overbook in order to maximize occupancy, banking on cancellations and no-shows, and sometimes we get caught with our pants down. Unlike airlines, however, we don’t announce overbookings to a holding lounge full of travelers or ask for volunteers. We handle relocates discreetly, swiftly dispatching you to another hotel while giving you little choice in the matter.
The early bird catches the room. Hotels typically assign rooms as guests arrive, so our options decrease as the day progresses. If we’re sold out and you arrive late, you’re vulnerable. But then you also might be upgraded, since suites are often the last to go. Not a gambler? Call the hotel in advance to say you’ll be arriving late and ask them to hold your room. And always do your homework; if a hotel is a chronic walker, you’ll read about it in online reviews.
You are what you pay. I didn’t tell you this, but the higher your rate, the more preferential your treatment. Reserve the presidential suite, and we won’t dare walk you. Book through an online travel company, which keeps up to 30% of your rate, and you’re vulnerable. Book through an opaque website, and you’re a walking target. It’s not that we don’t love you, we just love our more loyal and lucrative guests better.
Are you on the no-walk list? The truth is, sometimes we do have a room – just not for you. Depending on the hotel, certain guests never get walked, like loyalty club members, frequent guests, corporate clients, VIPs and tattooed bikers. If you don’t qualify, you can always try pleading your case; in cases of undue hardship rooms can miraculously materialize. You can also try arriving in a wedding dress or clutching a heart monitor. But if there’s no room, there’s no room.
Trade up, not down. The good news is the hotel will pay for your room that night, plus taxi fare and a long distance call. But here’s a dirty little secret: hotels prefer to relocate to a slightly inferior hotel, hoping you’ll come running back into our arms on your next visit. You have the right to insist on a comparable hotel. Hell, we’re paying, so why not ask for the Four Seasons? But if the city is full, you might well be cozying up with the farm animals at the Barnyard Inn.
You’ll never believe this, but … It’s hard to admit we had the gall to sell your room to someone else, so some employees invent little white lies like burst water pipes, electrical problems or guests who refused to check out. A truly unscrupulous hotel might try to foist the blame on you, claiming your reservation was mysteriously canceled or booked for this date five years ago. Always get an email confirmation at time of reservation, check it for accuracy, and bring it with you. If you mixed up the month and year, that’s your bad, not ours.
Now don’t get all huffy. Yes, relocating is evil, unforgiveable really, and hotels do it largely out of greed and incompetence. But it’s not a conspiracy, and we’re not singling you out for having cheap luggage or travel hair. Mostly it’s a numbers game. Chances are the long-suffering graveyard agent who relocates you had nothing to do with overbooking the hotel. So cut him some slack, be firm but pleasant, and resist the theatrics and hostage-takings. If you need to vent, save it for the general manager.
If you’re a frequent traveler, this scenario might be all too familiar. It’s late. You stagger to the front desk of your hotel, bruised and battered by the horrors of modern travel, only to be welcomed with the words, “I’m sorry, but we don’t have a room for you.”
“What?” you cry. “But I have a confirmation … here! … It says my reservation is guaranteed!”
Silly you. Don’t you know that the credit card number you provide at time of reservation guarantees one thing only: that the hotel will charge you if you don’t show up?
As hotel occupancies climb, relocates are making a comeback. As a long-time hotelier, I have the dubious distinction of having performed scores of relocates in my career, and I know how inconvenient and frustrating it can be for travelers.
But you’re not as helpless as you might feel. While there’s no surefire way to avoid being relocated, there are ways to fight the odds – and, if your number is irrevocably up, to negotiate the most favorable terms.
What exactly is a relocate? Also known as walking or bumping, relocates occur when a hotel has more reservations than rooms. Like airlines, hotels overbook in order to maximize occupancy, banking on cancellations and no-shows, and sometimes we get caught with our pants down. Unlike airlines, however, we don’t announce overbookings to a holding lounge full of travelers or ask for volunteers. We handle relocates discreetly, swiftly dispatching you to another hotel while giving you little choice in the matter.
The early bird catches the room. Hotels typically assign rooms as guests arrive, so our options decrease as the day progresses. If we’re sold out and you arrive late, you’re vulnerable. But then you also might be upgraded, since suites are often the last to go. Not a gambler? Call the hotel in advance to say you’ll be arriving late and ask them to hold your room. And always do your homework; if a hotel is a chronic walker, you’ll read about it in online reviews.
You are what you pay. I didn’t tell you this, but the higher your rate, the more preferential your treatment. Reserve the presidential suite, and we won’t dare walk you. Book through an online travel company, which keeps up to 30% of your rate, and you’re vulnerable. Book through an opaque website, and you’re a walking target. It’s not that we don’t love you, we just love our more loyal and lucrative guests better.
Are you on the no-walk list? The truth is, sometimes we do have a room – just not for you. Depending on the hotel, certain guests never get walked, like loyalty club members, frequent guests, corporate clients, VIPs and tattooed bikers. If you don’t qualify, you can always try pleading your case; in cases of undue hardship rooms can miraculously materialize. You can also try arriving in a wedding dress or clutching a heart monitor. But if there’s no room, there’s no room.
Trade up, not down. The good news is the hotel will pay for your room that night, plus taxi fare and a long distance call. But here’s a dirty little secret: hotels prefer to relocate to a slightly inferior hotel, hoping you’ll come running back into our arms on your next visit. You have the right to insist on a comparable hotel. Hell, we’re paying, so why not ask for the Four Seasons? But if the city is full, you might well be cozying up with the farm animals at the Barnyard Inn.
You’ll never believe this, but … It’s hard to admit we had the gall to sell your room to someone else, so some employees invent little white lies like burst water pipes, electrical problems or guests who refused to check out. A truly unscrupulous hotel might try to foist the blame on you, claiming your reservation was mysteriously canceled or booked for this date five years ago. Always get an email confirmation at time of reservation, check it for accuracy, and bring it with you. If you mixed up the month and year, that’s your bad, not ours.
Now don’t get all huffy. Yes, relocating is evil, unforgiveable really, and hotels do it largely out of greed and incompetence. But it’s not a conspiracy, and we’re not singling you out for having cheap luggage or travel hair. Mostly it’s a numbers game. Chances are the long-suffering graveyard agent who relocates you had nothing to do with overbooking the hotel. So cut him some slack, be firm but pleasant, and resist the theatrics and hostage-takings. If you need to vent, save it for the general manager.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Inject A Dose Of Economy-Proofing In Your Property
Many hotels around the country have made major changes in operations to run a more efficient operation – a must in this slower economy. But many hotel operators are missing opportunities, and some might not know where to start on what can seem like an overwhelming task.
The good news is that whether it’s improving an underperforming property, simply weathering the economic storm, or taking over a new hotel, owners and managers can usually make some relatively quick and easy changes to deliver an immediate boost to the bottom line.
Here’s a to-do list to consider, across some key operational departments, to inject a dose of economy-proofing in your property:
Management
•Designate individuals to oversee:
◦A reduction of workforce, if needed, to better match occupancy levels
◦An energy savings program
◦Working with vendors to help reduce such expenses as food, beverage, and supplies
•Call on all receivable accounts to offer a discount if their balance is paid off early
•Institute a green program in housekeeping to reduce linen turnaround
Maintenance
•Change or clean all HVAC and PTAC filters (which enhances performance and efficiency of the equipment)
•Check all window and door seals; caulk and insulate where possible
•Check and repair ALL leaky toilets, tubs, showers and sinks in guestrooms, public areas, and the kitchen
•Check and replace all defective sink aerators (sink aerators save water)
•Reduce the landscaping water cycles where possible, and use mulch (which reduces recurring water bills)
•Change your exterior lighting timer switches to turn on and off by zones. For example, create zones of every third lamp, and have each zone turn on 30 minutes apart, then off 30 minutes apart, instead of all at once
•Convert lighting to low wattage bulbs wherever possible
◦Converting to florescent tubes in your shops and back of the house will save money
•Convert all exit signs from incandescent to LED lighted signs
•Install motion sensors in offices and shops, including laundry and housekeeping, to ensure lights are off when no one is in the room – also great for public restrooms
•Use setback thermostats and thermostat guards for all back-of-the-house areas, public areas and meeting space
Housekeeping
•Make sure that housekeeping staffers are cleaning light bulbs as part of their daily cleaning
•Wash full loads of laundry ONLY – partial loads waste energy
•Implement a linen and towel re-use program where guests choose whether or not to have linens and terry towels cleaned daily
•Reduce your bathroom amenities, without affecting guest service (and if your property is franchised, verify compliance with your franchise agreement)
•Educate room attendants to conserve energy while cleaning guestrooms
•In occupied rooms, set the thermostats to 72 degrees
•Close all drapes in the summertime, and open them all in the wintertime. If closing them all the way is not an option, close them half or three-quarters of the way
•Use cold-water laundry washing where possible
Food & Beverage
•If the hotel restaurant’s business is slow, change the hours of operation of the restaurant to operate at the minimum requirement
•Change menus to adopt more cost-effective items
•Reduce your inventory levels and work with your purveyors to minimize deliveries
•Increase your inventories in all the hotel’s mini-marts
Human Resources Department
•Join forces among properties wherever applicable
•Work with all in-house department heads to increase efficiency
To incorporate many of these types of measures, managers and owners often need to break long-held habits and instill new ones. Establishing some form of encouragement or incentive for employees can help new policies take hold quicker.
And even though these efforts can be a challenge to implement, they will pay off. And in this economy, it’s hard to find a hotel that couldn’t be helped by taking at least some cost-cutting measures.
The good news is that whether it’s improving an underperforming property, simply weathering the economic storm, or taking over a new hotel, owners and managers can usually make some relatively quick and easy changes to deliver an immediate boost to the bottom line.
Here’s a to-do list to consider, across some key operational departments, to inject a dose of economy-proofing in your property:
Management
•Designate individuals to oversee:
◦A reduction of workforce, if needed, to better match occupancy levels
◦An energy savings program
◦Working with vendors to help reduce such expenses as food, beverage, and supplies
•Call on all receivable accounts to offer a discount if their balance is paid off early
•Institute a green program in housekeeping to reduce linen turnaround
Maintenance
•Change or clean all HVAC and PTAC filters (which enhances performance and efficiency of the equipment)
•Check all window and door seals; caulk and insulate where possible
•Check and repair ALL leaky toilets, tubs, showers and sinks in guestrooms, public areas, and the kitchen
•Check and replace all defective sink aerators (sink aerators save water)
•Reduce the landscaping water cycles where possible, and use mulch (which reduces recurring water bills)
•Change your exterior lighting timer switches to turn on and off by zones. For example, create zones of every third lamp, and have each zone turn on 30 minutes apart, then off 30 minutes apart, instead of all at once
•Convert lighting to low wattage bulbs wherever possible
◦Converting to florescent tubes in your shops and back of the house will save money
•Convert all exit signs from incandescent to LED lighted signs
•Install motion sensors in offices and shops, including laundry and housekeeping, to ensure lights are off when no one is in the room – also great for public restrooms
•Use setback thermostats and thermostat guards for all back-of-the-house areas, public areas and meeting space
Housekeeping
•Make sure that housekeeping staffers are cleaning light bulbs as part of their daily cleaning
•Wash full loads of laundry ONLY – partial loads waste energy
•Implement a linen and towel re-use program where guests choose whether or not to have linens and terry towels cleaned daily
•Reduce your bathroom amenities, without affecting guest service (and if your property is franchised, verify compliance with your franchise agreement)
•Educate room attendants to conserve energy while cleaning guestrooms
•In occupied rooms, set the thermostats to 72 degrees
•Close all drapes in the summertime, and open them all in the wintertime. If closing them all the way is not an option, close them half or three-quarters of the way
•Use cold-water laundry washing where possible
Food & Beverage
•If the hotel restaurant’s business is slow, change the hours of operation of the restaurant to operate at the minimum requirement
•Change menus to adopt more cost-effective items
•Reduce your inventory levels and work with your purveyors to minimize deliveries
•Increase your inventories in all the hotel’s mini-marts
Human Resources Department
•Join forces among properties wherever applicable
•Work with all in-house department heads to increase efficiency
To incorporate many of these types of measures, managers and owners often need to break long-held habits and instill new ones. Establishing some form of encouragement or incentive for employees can help new policies take hold quicker.
And even though these efforts can be a challenge to implement, they will pay off. And in this economy, it’s hard to find a hotel that couldn’t be helped by taking at least some cost-cutting measures.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
The Oldest Profession Or Not…
How technology has changed with RevPar, Twitter, Linked In, Facebook, and Foursquare…not that it’s a bad thing with IT and social media, the expanse and growth of these mediums have grown so much, that it is a foregone conclusion that to be in touch, and current you need these and also the phones and their apps.
In true management form, there are those that don’t use these to reach their Markets. Today you need to be plugged in 24/7. In keeping with operations and development there need to be a disconnect so that you can do the MBWA..you as a Manager need to be seen at the Front Desk, Car Park, Doormen, in the Port Cochre, in the Bar, in the Restaurant, patrol the Meeting rooms, BOH, Hallways, as my friend, who is a well known Hotel Company president, to quote him, “Nothing important happens in your office”. I agree with that, as I came up in the hotel business, there were 2 types of Managers, the one’s that were never in their office, and those that never seemed to leave them. Of the ones I still keep in touch with and are successful, were never in their office. I think it comes down to having the right blend, like a good wine of coffee, or cocktail, it’s how it’s made.
And like a good food, they followed a recipe. I will relate a story I told, Hoteling is the oldest profession, and I normally don’t push religion, but in this case, I refer to the birth of Jesus, he was born in a manger , why, because the Inn was full, why?, it was the holiday season.”, as for the other oldest profession, they had to go somewhere, so I rest my case, Hospitality is the oldest profession, and if the internet was around back then, Mary and Joseph would have had a reservation at the inn, and the donkey would have gotten parked for them.
In true management form, there are those that don’t use these to reach their Markets. Today you need to be plugged in 24/7. In keeping with operations and development there need to be a disconnect so that you can do the MBWA..you as a Manager need to be seen at the Front Desk, Car Park, Doormen, in the Port Cochre, in the Bar, in the Restaurant, patrol the Meeting rooms, BOH, Hallways, as my friend, who is a well known Hotel Company president, to quote him, “Nothing important happens in your office”. I agree with that, as I came up in the hotel business, there were 2 types of Managers, the one’s that were never in their office, and those that never seemed to leave them. Of the ones I still keep in touch with and are successful, were never in their office. I think it comes down to having the right blend, like a good wine of coffee, or cocktail, it’s how it’s made.
And like a good food, they followed a recipe. I will relate a story I told, Hoteling is the oldest profession, and I normally don’t push religion, but in this case, I refer to the birth of Jesus, he was born in a manger , why, because the Inn was full, why?, it was the holiday season.”, as for the other oldest profession, they had to go somewhere, so I rest my case, Hospitality is the oldest profession, and if the internet was around back then, Mary and Joseph would have had a reservation at the inn, and the donkey would have gotten parked for them.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Hospitality Conversations – Understanding the Developing Perspectives in Quality Assurance
John Hogan captures and relates some great insight.
The terms “Quality and Excellence” are often very hard to explain in a single word, yet as consumers, we seem to know instantly if the hospitality service or product we are receiving is of the caliber we expected. In this two part series on Quality, I spoke at some length with John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director of Quality Assurance at LRA Worldwide, Inc., (www.lraworldwide.com/index.html) a well-known, international company that works with many different types of hospitality and service businesses.
In this Hospitality Conversation, I asked John to share some insights on trends and different approaches that his firm is seeing in Quality Assurance. In Part 1, he provided an overview of Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection formats and Brand and Product Evaluations. While both are still used by a good number of organizations, he described them informally as “past and recent past” in that they were building blocks to the next and third evolving trend. The LRA professionals view the Branded Experience Evaluations as the most forward looking and exciting of programs, because they are more all encompassing of the entire guest experience and are inclusive of many more facets of the guest stay.
Question 1: You earlier in our conversation that both the Traditional and the Brand and Product Evaluation QA formats were still widely used. Why the need for yet another program for hoteliers to learn and adapt to? Is this more than “change for the sake of change?’’
Answer: Good question and let me answer in two parts. There are a good number of companies that find the first two approaches work well for them. They tend to be smaller, more rooms-only or select service properties and these approaches may meet their needs for the near future. The third type of Quality Assurance program, Branded Experience Evaluations, is meaningful for all types of properties because it supports all of the touch points in the guest experience, ranging from marketing to reservations to each service delivered.
This is not “change for the sake of change,’’ but rather is meant to address the expanding demand for QA programs to support more departments and specific brand culture. These include marketing initiatives, service commitments, guest touch points, brand language, facility overviews and more. The first two QA approaches touch some of these, but not nearly enough for the travelers of today who are growing in their sophistication and expectations.
Question 2: In Part 1 of our conversation, you shared that Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection focus on cleanliness, facility condition, certain life safety related items and they are evaluated by corporate operations groups and/or the QA group. You said the Brand and Product Evaluations were more Operational Focused and these QA efforts were jointly evaluated and “owned” by both operations and brand marketing for the first time, with a focus on “brand influence” How do the Branded Experience Evaluations differ?
Answer: With the growth and increased influence of a number of major brands, the standards are all the same, as hotel ownership has made the decision that those standards are part of solid business practices.
The Branded Experience Evaluations differ from the first two I outlined in that they are clearly more flexible and can be prescriptive. The consultant will know the specific performance of a property in advance, such as external ratings, satisfaction scores submitted from a third party and the focus is both subjective and objective, which is very different from a numbers-only rating QA approach.
The assessment and views of the professional consultant are welcomed. They might be presented in a narrative (using the brand terms) that is valuable for the property, and may or may have a score attached. These programs also look to evaluate if the marketing message and service commitment of the brand are reaching the customer, as those are considered essential for the brand long-term strategy success.
Question 3: With so many types of service and continuously expanding brands, does this Branded Experience approach work at all types of properties?
Answer: The QA Landscape is certainly becoming more extensive and wider in scope as hotels expand into more entertainment and try to create a culture of their own. More properties are focusing on the total experience vacation, becoming more destination oriented and working to personalize their specialty markets.
There are some differences. The luxury and life-style brands tend to “step out of the box” and require more relevant measurement techniques that focus on measuring their unique service culture. Full-Service brands increase focus on service delivery, while Select Service focuses on product differentiation, while maintaining the core elements they find their guest value. Economy properties may only have one visit per year, but may be a longer evaluation in that visit, appropriate for each brand.
Visits overall are un-announced and the approach may differ somewhat by brand and by kind of property (resort, airport, destination, suburban) to gain more focused information.
Question 4: Doesn’t this approach mean less monitoring and longer times between visits? A great deal can happen or rum amok in six to twelve months, can’t it?
Answer: It could, but the visits are not the only interaction the property has. There are many factors today considered, including the commitment of the owners to meet the agreed upon brand standards. When one includes all of the measurements available, such as GSS, self-audits, associate engagement surveys, social media, online reviews and more, there is too much information available for a property to drift too astray without being on the radar. Putting all of these together leads to a more accurate balanced scorecard. If there is a problem identified, a re-audit or extra visits (for a fee) are arranged and charged to the individual properties.
Question 5: You mentioned the “self-audit”. I really enjoyed the self-directed Tool-Centered Audit that your LRA Director of Information Technology, Michael Getter, shared with me. Do hotel managers really use this tool?
Answer: More managers embrace this each month because it really helps them to assess their entire property in each area. For example, we have some companies that have extremely detailed self-audit area that assign “owners” by physical area or department. Some use strictly “yes or no” responses, while others provide areas of concentration that might look at 50 or more specific topics. These can be addressed by a schedule (weekly, monthly, quarterly) and comparisons and improvements noted. They can be used as means to build pride and/or address certain projects that may have been identified as an area needing attention..
They can also assist a hotel build a case for needed capital improvements and for owners and management groups to evaluate circumstances with limited bias. Each company can create its’ own values, which allows for them to excel at what their guests feel is important.
Closing question: John, your bio says you have evaluated over 1,000 properties – can you name a favorite?
Answer: That would certainly put me on the spot, wouldn’t it? I will share that I have had exceptional hospitality service at a select service property in Arkansas from the night auditor, which pleasantly surprised me. I have also experienced exceptional attention by a major city 5 star hotel staff that also exceeded my expectations by the “little things” they noted in my reservation call that they delivered on. These two examples illustrate the reality of how much “hospitality is a people business”
Keys to Success Hospitality Tip of the Week:
Focus on Quality ”Quality cannot be a sometimes thing by some people. Create teams by involvement through meaningful Quality Assurance Programs. Concentrate on Quality and Quantity will follow. Lead by visible example – being “in-touch” yields proactive results.”
John Hogan, Hotel Common Sense Philosophy #3
The terms “Quality and Excellence” are often very hard to explain in a single word, yet as consumers, we seem to know instantly if the hospitality service or product we are receiving is of the caliber we expected. In this two part series on Quality, I spoke at some length with John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director of Quality Assurance at LRA Worldwide, Inc., (www.lraworldwide.com/index.html) a well-known, international company that works with many different types of hospitality and service businesses.
In this Hospitality Conversation, I asked John to share some insights on trends and different approaches that his firm is seeing in Quality Assurance. In Part 1, he provided an overview of Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection formats and Brand and Product Evaluations. While both are still used by a good number of organizations, he described them informally as “past and recent past” in that they were building blocks to the next and third evolving trend. The LRA professionals view the Branded Experience Evaluations as the most forward looking and exciting of programs, because they are more all encompassing of the entire guest experience and are inclusive of many more facets of the guest stay.
Question 1: You earlier in our conversation that both the Traditional and the Brand and Product Evaluation QA formats were still widely used. Why the need for yet another program for hoteliers to learn and adapt to? Is this more than “change for the sake of change?’’
Answer: Good question and let me answer in two parts. There are a good number of companies that find the first two approaches work well for them. They tend to be smaller, more rooms-only or select service properties and these approaches may meet their needs for the near future. The third type of Quality Assurance program, Branded Experience Evaluations, is meaningful for all types of properties because it supports all of the touch points in the guest experience, ranging from marketing to reservations to each service delivered.
This is not “change for the sake of change,’’ but rather is meant to address the expanding demand for QA programs to support more departments and specific brand culture. These include marketing initiatives, service commitments, guest touch points, brand language, facility overviews and more. The first two QA approaches touch some of these, but not nearly enough for the travelers of today who are growing in their sophistication and expectations.
Question 2: In Part 1 of our conversation, you shared that Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection focus on cleanliness, facility condition, certain life safety related items and they are evaluated by corporate operations groups and/or the QA group. You said the Brand and Product Evaluations were more Operational Focused and these QA efforts were jointly evaluated and “owned” by both operations and brand marketing for the first time, with a focus on “brand influence” How do the Branded Experience Evaluations differ?
Answer: With the growth and increased influence of a number of major brands, the standards are all the same, as hotel ownership has made the decision that those standards are part of solid business practices.
The Branded Experience Evaluations differ from the first two I outlined in that they are clearly more flexible and can be prescriptive. The consultant will know the specific performance of a property in advance, such as external ratings, satisfaction scores submitted from a third party and the focus is both subjective and objective, which is very different from a numbers-only rating QA approach.
The assessment and views of the professional consultant are welcomed. They might be presented in a narrative (using the brand terms) that is valuable for the property, and may or may have a score attached. These programs also look to evaluate if the marketing message and service commitment of the brand are reaching the customer, as those are considered essential for the brand long-term strategy success.
Question 3: With so many types of service and continuously expanding brands, does this Branded Experience approach work at all types of properties?
Answer: The QA Landscape is certainly becoming more extensive and wider in scope as hotels expand into more entertainment and try to create a culture of their own. More properties are focusing on the total experience vacation, becoming more destination oriented and working to personalize their specialty markets.
There are some differences. The luxury and life-style brands tend to “step out of the box” and require more relevant measurement techniques that focus on measuring their unique service culture. Full-Service brands increase focus on service delivery, while Select Service focuses on product differentiation, while maintaining the core elements they find their guest value. Economy properties may only have one visit per year, but may be a longer evaluation in that visit, appropriate for each brand.
Visits overall are un-announced and the approach may differ somewhat by brand and by kind of property (resort, airport, destination, suburban) to gain more focused information.
Question 4: Doesn’t this approach mean less monitoring and longer times between visits? A great deal can happen or rum amok in six to twelve months, can’t it?
Answer: It could, but the visits are not the only interaction the property has. There are many factors today considered, including the commitment of the owners to meet the agreed upon brand standards. When one includes all of the measurements available, such as GSS, self-audits, associate engagement surveys, social media, online reviews and more, there is too much information available for a property to drift too astray without being on the radar. Putting all of these together leads to a more accurate balanced scorecard. If there is a problem identified, a re-audit or extra visits (for a fee) are arranged and charged to the individual properties.
Question 5: You mentioned the “self-audit”. I really enjoyed the self-directed Tool-Centered Audit that your LRA Director of Information Technology, Michael Getter, shared with me. Do hotel managers really use this tool?
Answer: More managers embrace this each month because it really helps them to assess their entire property in each area. For example, we have some companies that have extremely detailed self-audit area that assign “owners” by physical area or department. Some use strictly “yes or no” responses, while others provide areas of concentration that might look at 50 or more specific topics. These can be addressed by a schedule (weekly, monthly, quarterly) and comparisons and improvements noted. They can be used as means to build pride and/or address certain projects that may have been identified as an area needing attention..
They can also assist a hotel build a case for needed capital improvements and for owners and management groups to evaluate circumstances with limited bias. Each company can create its’ own values, which allows for them to excel at what their guests feel is important.
Closing question: John, your bio says you have evaluated over 1,000 properties – can you name a favorite?
Answer: That would certainly put me on the spot, wouldn’t it? I will share that I have had exceptional hospitality service at a select service property in Arkansas from the night auditor, which pleasantly surprised me. I have also experienced exceptional attention by a major city 5 star hotel staff that also exceeded my expectations by the “little things” they noted in my reservation call that they delivered on. These two examples illustrate the reality of how much “hospitality is a people business”
Keys to Success Hospitality Tip of the Week:
Focus on Quality ”Quality cannot be a sometimes thing by some people. Create teams by involvement through meaningful Quality Assurance Programs. Concentrate on Quality and Quantity will follow. Lead by visible example – being “in-touch” yields proactive results.”
John Hogan, Hotel Common Sense Philosophy #3
What Making Ice Cubes Taught Me About Marketing
Ann Handley writes about her interpetition of How to Make Ice Cubes..
My junior year in college, I took a nonfiction-writing course. For one of our first assignments, the professor had each of us write a step-by-step how-to of something that we knew how to do well, but intended for an audience that would be unfamiliar to the task.
“Write instructions as if you were conveying them to someone from an alien planet,” the professor advised.
At the time, I found the assignment asinine: Why are we wasting time writing how-tos and recipes rather than exploring worlds we didn’t know? Where was the craft in that? And so to mock the assignment and express my derision, I chose to write a “recipe” on the simplest thing I could imagine: How to Make Ice Cubes. “Great idea,” the professor said simply, with an irritatingly blank expression.
Of course, what my writing professor knew—and I didn’t—was that it’s a lot harder to write what you know very well than it is to research and explain what you are less intimate with. What’s more, simple concepts you take for granted can suddenly take on enormous complexity: How do you explain the concept of an “ice cube tray” if you can’t use the words “ice cube”? What’s water? Where does it come from?
The point of it was to exercise our ability to view things from the reader’s perspective, and to convey the familiar but complex with simplicity, brevity, and clarity. Which I learned was extremely hard to do.
For the past six months, I’d been writing—with C.C. Chapman—a new version of How to Make Ice Cubes: Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business—as the title suggests, a book about how to create all kinds of online content that inspires your customers to become your fans. It’s a subject I know well, having been developing online content for almost 14 years. And so I have a renewed appreciation for how difficult it is to express what you know so well in a way that uniquely clarifies and succinctly enlightens—and does so in an engaging way.
So what does this have to do with you, or with the marketing of your business?
Everything. Because what marketers do is convey information about their products and services with simplicity, brevity, clarity—in an engaging way. It’s not unlike teaching, either, because marketers frequently develop content and other messages that don't just simply talk about their products, but inform and educate their audience in an effort to convey why those products matter.
Did you ever hear the expression, “Those who can—do. And those who can’t—teach”? The pejorative premise is that those who master something—whether it’s making chicken vindaloo, or ice cubes, or writing books—make a living doing that thing. While those who don't master that something spend their miserable lives bossing others around, and telling them how to do the things they themselves can’t.
Of course, the truth is anything but: The best teachers tend to know their subject better than anyone. Their true genius is that they can take what they know very well and—like a good writer and a skilled marketer—convey it in a way that engages.
(That quote about teaching, by the way, is sometimes attributed to journalist and social critic HL Mencken, and sometimes to the writer George Bernard Shaw. Since Mencken was a one-time fan boy of Shaw's (he published a book on Shaw’s plays in 1905), many peg Shaw as the quote’s author. And by “many” I mean my local public librarians, whom I trust because librarians tend to be correct on issues such as these.)
The thing about good writing and great teaching is that they have an awful lot to do with good marketing. Just as good writing requires you to consider the reader, and good teaching insists that you engage the pupil, good marketing forces you to consider the world from your customer’s point of view: Is your marketing speaking directly to your customer’s pains, or wants, or needs?
What’s more: Does your marketing speak with true empathy? Is your message resonating with your customers because you are inspired to share it? Are you offering them something they truly want to know? Or are you just a bore who is talking about yourself?
“The trick is always to look at your business or brand from the outside in,” Richard Branson wrote on this site recently. “Instead of looking strictly through the prism of the latest quarterly financials, attempt to see yourself as your customers see you.”
Buried in that piece is a gem of a suggestion, as a kind of litmus test about whether your own business regards its customers with empathy: Try calling your own customer service line, Branson suggests, adding, “Just finding the number can be interesting.”
As business owners, we are all entrenched in the day-to-day of running the business, which can make it difficult sometimes to step outside of our own purview and look at things with the fresh perspective of a customer.
Branson’s idea is one way of doing that; here are some other ideas for seeing things from a customer’s point of view.
Express the key thing your product or service does for your customers in a single sentence. This isn’t the value-proposition elevator speech, which is often about what you do, not what you do for your customer.
Try to express the gist of what you want to say in a single sentence. (That’s a trick from journalism school.) This applies well to business marketing, too: What do you want your prospect or customer to know, first and foremost? I bumbled over a way to succinctly express what our book was about until I practiced what I'm preaching here. (I tried to say too much, because I knew the subject—like I knew ice cubes—too well.) Similarly, this Boston restaurant looks at its business from the customer’s perspective, when it could have just advertised, “Patio seating.” The difference is subtle, but powerful.
Ask customer service. The front line is a great source for feedback, so ask them: What are customers contacting us about? What problems do they have? How might you help them resolve their issues?
Better yet, call your customers. Richard Branson
talks about doing this in the early days of Virgin. If Richard Branson had the time, don’t you?
Show how your products live in the world. Show how your business (or its products or services) exists in the real world: how people use your products; how those products add value to people’s lives, ease their troubles, help shoulder their burdens, and meet their needs.
Even if you are a company that sells to other companies, focus on how your products or services touch the lives of people. By the way, when you are writing about people, another good rule of thumb from journalism school is this: Be specific enough to be believable, universal enough to be relevant.
Consider this video that Boston agency Captains of Industry created for a company called Vitality. Its product, the GloCap, is a drug prescription bottle cap that’s connected wirelessly to the Internet and is able to send alerts to remind patients when it’s time to take their medicines. Rather than focus on the functionality of the bottle or the cool technology behind it, the video focuses how the bottle helps one grandfather maintain his independence and how it allows his family to relax a little, knowing that he's taking his meds.
Monitor search keywords. What keywords are people using when they land on your site? Your blog? Monitoring those keywords tells you what your would-be customers are interested in and actively looking for.
Monitor social media keywords, too. Monitoring social conversations and trending keyword topics on Twitter, blogs, and status updates can be a rich source of customer feedback. Doing so gives you a sense of what people are talking about in real time and what matters to your customers now.
Leverage online tools. Various online tools for customer relationship management are available to help companies stay customer-focused. If you lack time to build online support, or don't have much moderating manpower, consider something like Get Satisfaction.
Think of it as a “social support” for a user base that never sleeps: Get Satisfaction provides interconnected widgets and dedicated forums that let customers pose questions and offer help to each other any hour of the day or night. The secret lies in how the information is presented (intuitively) and shared (through Facebook, Twitter mentions, and other media). See the support page for Mint.com for a sense of how this works.
What else would you add? What other ways can you maintain a focus on your customer?
My junior year in college, I took a nonfiction-writing course. For one of our first assignments, the professor had each of us write a step-by-step how-to of something that we knew how to do well, but intended for an audience that would be unfamiliar to the task.
“Write instructions as if you were conveying them to someone from an alien planet,” the professor advised.
At the time, I found the assignment asinine: Why are we wasting time writing how-tos and recipes rather than exploring worlds we didn’t know? Where was the craft in that? And so to mock the assignment and express my derision, I chose to write a “recipe” on the simplest thing I could imagine: How to Make Ice Cubes. “Great idea,” the professor said simply, with an irritatingly blank expression.
Of course, what my writing professor knew—and I didn’t—was that it’s a lot harder to write what you know very well than it is to research and explain what you are less intimate with. What’s more, simple concepts you take for granted can suddenly take on enormous complexity: How do you explain the concept of an “ice cube tray” if you can’t use the words “ice cube”? What’s water? Where does it come from?
The point of it was to exercise our ability to view things from the reader’s perspective, and to convey the familiar but complex with simplicity, brevity, and clarity. Which I learned was extremely hard to do.
For the past six months, I’d been writing—with C.C. Chapman—a new version of How to Make Ice Cubes: Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) That Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business—as the title suggests, a book about how to create all kinds of online content that inspires your customers to become your fans. It’s a subject I know well, having been developing online content for almost 14 years. And so I have a renewed appreciation for how difficult it is to express what you know so well in a way that uniquely clarifies and succinctly enlightens—and does so in an engaging way.
So what does this have to do with you, or with the marketing of your business?
Everything. Because what marketers do is convey information about their products and services with simplicity, brevity, clarity—in an engaging way. It’s not unlike teaching, either, because marketers frequently develop content and other messages that don't just simply talk about their products, but inform and educate their audience in an effort to convey why those products matter.
Did you ever hear the expression, “Those who can—do. And those who can’t—teach”? The pejorative premise is that those who master something—whether it’s making chicken vindaloo, or ice cubes, or writing books—make a living doing that thing. While those who don't master that something spend their miserable lives bossing others around, and telling them how to do the things they themselves can’t.
Of course, the truth is anything but: The best teachers tend to know their subject better than anyone. Their true genius is that they can take what they know very well and—like a good writer and a skilled marketer—convey it in a way that engages.
(That quote about teaching, by the way, is sometimes attributed to journalist and social critic HL Mencken, and sometimes to the writer George Bernard Shaw. Since Mencken was a one-time fan boy of Shaw's (he published a book on Shaw’s plays in 1905), many peg Shaw as the quote’s author. And by “many” I mean my local public librarians, whom I trust because librarians tend to be correct on issues such as these.)
The thing about good writing and great teaching is that they have an awful lot to do with good marketing. Just as good writing requires you to consider the reader, and good teaching insists that you engage the pupil, good marketing forces you to consider the world from your customer’s point of view: Is your marketing speaking directly to your customer’s pains, or wants, or needs?
What’s more: Does your marketing speak with true empathy? Is your message resonating with your customers because you are inspired to share it? Are you offering them something they truly want to know? Or are you just a bore who is talking about yourself?
“The trick is always to look at your business or brand from the outside in,” Richard Branson wrote on this site recently. “Instead of looking strictly through the prism of the latest quarterly financials, attempt to see yourself as your customers see you.”
Buried in that piece is a gem of a suggestion, as a kind of litmus test about whether your own business regards its customers with empathy: Try calling your own customer service line, Branson suggests, adding, “Just finding the number can be interesting.”
As business owners, we are all entrenched in the day-to-day of running the business, which can make it difficult sometimes to step outside of our own purview and look at things with the fresh perspective of a customer.
Branson’s idea is one way of doing that; here are some other ideas for seeing things from a customer’s point of view.
Express the key thing your product or service does for your customers in a single sentence. This isn’t the value-proposition elevator speech, which is often about what you do, not what you do for your customer.
Try to express the gist of what you want to say in a single sentence. (That’s a trick from journalism school.) This applies well to business marketing, too: What do you want your prospect or customer to know, first and foremost? I bumbled over a way to succinctly express what our book was about until I practiced what I'm preaching here. (I tried to say too much, because I knew the subject—like I knew ice cubes—too well.) Similarly, this Boston restaurant looks at its business from the customer’s perspective, when it could have just advertised, “Patio seating.” The difference is subtle, but powerful.
Ask customer service. The front line is a great source for feedback, so ask them: What are customers contacting us about? What problems do they have? How might you help them resolve their issues?
Better yet, call your customers. Richard Branson
talks about doing this in the early days of Virgin. If Richard Branson had the time, don’t you?
Show how your products live in the world. Show how your business (or its products or services) exists in the real world: how people use your products; how those products add value to people’s lives, ease their troubles, help shoulder their burdens, and meet their needs.
Even if you are a company that sells to other companies, focus on how your products or services touch the lives of people. By the way, when you are writing about people, another good rule of thumb from journalism school is this: Be specific enough to be believable, universal enough to be relevant.
Consider this video that Boston agency Captains of Industry created for a company called Vitality. Its product, the GloCap, is a drug prescription bottle cap that’s connected wirelessly to the Internet and is able to send alerts to remind patients when it’s time to take their medicines. Rather than focus on the functionality of the bottle or the cool technology behind it, the video focuses how the bottle helps one grandfather maintain his independence and how it allows his family to relax a little, knowing that he's taking his meds.
Monitor search keywords. What keywords are people using when they land on your site? Your blog? Monitoring those keywords tells you what your would-be customers are interested in and actively looking for.
Monitor social media keywords, too. Monitoring social conversations and trending keyword topics on Twitter, blogs, and status updates can be a rich source of customer feedback. Doing so gives you a sense of what people are talking about in real time and what matters to your customers now.
Leverage online tools. Various online tools for customer relationship management are available to help companies stay customer-focused. If you lack time to build online support, or don't have much moderating manpower, consider something like Get Satisfaction.
Think of it as a “social support” for a user base that never sleeps: Get Satisfaction provides interconnected widgets and dedicated forums that let customers pose questions and offer help to each other any hour of the day or night. The secret lies in how the information is presented (intuitively) and shared (through Facebook, Twitter mentions, and other media). See the support page for Mint.com for a sense of how this works.
What else would you add? What other ways can you maintain a focus on your customer?
Monday, October 4, 2010
What Are you Wearing..? You're Not Wearing That Are You ?
When you get up in the morning , just like when you went to elementary school, you dress yourself and look your best. What do you take into consideration when you get dress today ?
The question is this: Does how you look when you leave the house affect how others perceive you? Do Clothes make a difference?. But Do clothes make the manager? My early bosses certainly thought so. After a few deep thought after discussions, I finally agreed to clean up my act. And yes, that made a huge difference in my decisions.
Those stories put aside, the truth is that people notice how you dress, consciously and subconsciously. Actions may speak louder than words, but until they get to judge your behavior, which can take a while, people will inevitably trust their initial impressions.
How you dress matters. How much it matters really depends on how clued-in or clueless you are about this sort of thing. It also depends on what you’ve got under the hood in terms of brains, experience, and reputation.
I ran into another consultant who told of a time very early in their career, the were showing new homes, and it was a Saturday right before closing, and a gentleman walked in in dusty, clothes from a day in fields farming. He asked to see a model home, he was told that there were none available that would be in his price range, he left, and several days later, after returning from lunch, the gentleman was back there speaking with her boss, he was dressed in a suit, and he was introduced, and the consultant was sheepish, and the man bought the properties he needed, and he spoke of the previous meeting, and how he was dressed, needless to say two things happened, the consultant left that job shortly thereafter, and the man , well, he went on to become President of the United States.
On the other hand, when I became a consultant I started dressing a little differently. People noticed and commented. One COO said I looked more like a bum than an executive. Another said I should see a Barber. And that’s just what they said. Who knows what they were thinking. First time through I grew a goatee, and a ponytail. I was rejected from a famous retailer because I dressed like a hippie, and shown the door in a luxury hotel , which I was asked to consult by the company president who is a good friend.
The point is that people notice. They also have preconceived notions about people who dress a certain way. I know I do:
· When someone’s smartly dressed in business attire, I think sharp and savvy. Unless of course he turns out to be an idiot. Then he’s just an idiot in a suit.
· When an individual wears jeans and an untucked shirt to a business meeting, I think guts and self-confidence. Unless he turns out to be an idiot. Then, that’s right, he’s just a sloppy idiot.
· When folks wear business casual - khakis and polo shirts - I think mindless drone or middle manager who won’t take risks. (except for guys like me)
Again, the point is that, for better or worse, what you wear makes an impression. Here are 7 Tips to Enhance Your Management Presence instead of detracting from it:
1. Early in your career, spiff it up a bit. Later, when you’ve proven yourself, you can relax.
2. Dress for your audience. If you’re presenting or in an important meeting and key people will be wearing business attire, you should too. If you’re not sure, play it conservatively.
3. Dress the way you feel comfortable. Otherwise, it’ll show. No, it’s not okay to wear your pajamas. You’ve got to grow up and put on a suit sometime.
4. In most industries, super-fashionable attire is overdoing it. There are ways to stand out without looking like you’re trying to stand out. Get it?
5. Don’t dress like a drone or a clone, i.e. like everyone else, unless that’s really you or you’ve got so much under the hood that it doesn’t matter.
6. I don’t care how bright and cheerful you feel that morning; work isn’t a circus so don’t dress like a clown, i.e. the large woman from the old Drew Carey Show.
7. If you’re not Steve Jobs, don’t dress like him. He can pull it off; you can’t. Get your own damn uniform.
Dress for you audience, and Don’t judge others, you never know if the guy you just threw out because you didn’t like how he was dressed, might come back in, and turn out to be your new boss. My Dad always said “Never Judge a Book by it’s Cover, You need to read it a bit First.”
The question is this: Does how you look when you leave the house affect how others perceive you? Do Clothes make a difference?. But Do clothes make the manager? My early bosses certainly thought so. After a few deep thought after discussions, I finally agreed to clean up my act. And yes, that made a huge difference in my decisions.
Those stories put aside, the truth is that people notice how you dress, consciously and subconsciously. Actions may speak louder than words, but until they get to judge your behavior, which can take a while, people will inevitably trust their initial impressions.
How you dress matters. How much it matters really depends on how clued-in or clueless you are about this sort of thing. It also depends on what you’ve got under the hood in terms of brains, experience, and reputation.
I ran into another consultant who told of a time very early in their career, the were showing new homes, and it was a Saturday right before closing, and a gentleman walked in in dusty, clothes from a day in fields farming. He asked to see a model home, he was told that there were none available that would be in his price range, he left, and several days later, after returning from lunch, the gentleman was back there speaking with her boss, he was dressed in a suit, and he was introduced, and the consultant was sheepish, and the man bought the properties he needed, and he spoke of the previous meeting, and how he was dressed, needless to say two things happened, the consultant left that job shortly thereafter, and the man , well, he went on to become President of the United States.
On the other hand, when I became a consultant I started dressing a little differently. People noticed and commented. One COO said I looked more like a bum than an executive. Another said I should see a Barber. And that’s just what they said. Who knows what they were thinking. First time through I grew a goatee, and a ponytail. I was rejected from a famous retailer because I dressed like a hippie, and shown the door in a luxury hotel , which I was asked to consult by the company president who is a good friend.
The point is that people notice. They also have preconceived notions about people who dress a certain way. I know I do:
· When someone’s smartly dressed in business attire, I think sharp and savvy. Unless of course he turns out to be an idiot. Then he’s just an idiot in a suit.
· When an individual wears jeans and an untucked shirt to a business meeting, I think guts and self-confidence. Unless he turns out to be an idiot. Then, that’s right, he’s just a sloppy idiot.
· When folks wear business casual - khakis and polo shirts - I think mindless drone or middle manager who won’t take risks. (except for guys like me)
Again, the point is that, for better or worse, what you wear makes an impression. Here are 7 Tips to Enhance Your Management Presence instead of detracting from it:
1. Early in your career, spiff it up a bit. Later, when you’ve proven yourself, you can relax.
2. Dress for your audience. If you’re presenting or in an important meeting and key people will be wearing business attire, you should too. If you’re not sure, play it conservatively.
3. Dress the way you feel comfortable. Otherwise, it’ll show. No, it’s not okay to wear your pajamas. You’ve got to grow up and put on a suit sometime.
4. In most industries, super-fashionable attire is overdoing it. There are ways to stand out without looking like you’re trying to stand out. Get it?
5. Don’t dress like a drone or a clone, i.e. like everyone else, unless that’s really you or you’ve got so much under the hood that it doesn’t matter.
6. I don’t care how bright and cheerful you feel that morning; work isn’t a circus so don’t dress like a clown, i.e. the large woman from the old Drew Carey Show.
7. If you’re not Steve Jobs, don’t dress like him. He can pull it off; you can’t. Get your own damn uniform.
Dress for you audience, and Don’t judge others, you never know if the guy you just threw out because you didn’t like how he was dressed, might come back in, and turn out to be your new boss. My Dad always said “Never Judge a Book by it’s Cover, You need to read it a bit First.”
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Hospitality Conversations – Understanding the Developing Perspectives in Quality Assurance (Part 1 of 2)
Quality is one of those words that seem to be often defined as, "I'll know it when I see it", and yet less than stellar real world experiences in hospitality demonstrate that excellence does need additional definition.
Quality
•goods of the highest quality
•a characteristic of somebody or something
•an essential identifying nature or character of somebody or something
•the highest or finest standard - excellence
Assurance
•a declaration that inspires or is intended to inspire confidence
•confidence in personal ability or status
•freedom from uncertainty
•making something certain or overcoming doubt
In this series on Quality, I reached out to a well-known, international company that works with many different types of hotels, as well as other hospitality and service businesses. LRA Worldwide, Inc. [1] has worked with companies and brands for more than 20 years. The company, through research and consulting, works to assist their clients to better understand existing customer experiences and to identify unmet customer needs and wants.
For this Hospitality Conversation, I spoke at some length with John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director of Quality Assurance at LRA Worldwide, Inc.Question 1: What is your organization seeing in different approaches in maintaining and improving the delivery of excellence today? Are there trends?
Answer: We see that there are three phases or trends in quality assurance today and they are all rather distinct, but build on each other.
The first is the Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection format. Many brands still do variations of this. To answer your question on approach, these are not the "catch someone doing something wrong" inspections of earlier times, but meant to enforce the quality compliance aspects of franchise or brand agreements. These are usually announced visits and frequently focus on the physical product. They include a property tour and our team tries to interact with the hotel staff when possible.
Question 2:
With the Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection, what is the focus and who directs what is evaluated?
Answer:
The focus is on the fundamentals, which is usually cleanliness and facility condition. Certain life safety related items such as validating approved electronic door locks and brand-approved products are usually addressed. Items such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers may or may not be included.
These semi-annual traditional inspections are initiated and evaluated by corporate operations groups and/or the QA group. Brand fundamentals are usually limited to signage, logo use, some amenities and basic core products that may be considered important by the brand.
Question 3:
How are these traditional programs scored? Are they more focused on product or service issues?
Answer:
These programs are objective, scoring is well defined, fairly rigid, and there are penalty points for repeat violations. Depending on the brand, some portions of the inspections scores may be weighted and they are designed to "trigger" a failure for serious issues, which could lead to a default to the franchisee.
Service is generally not included in these traditional programs, although some properties may use local mystery shoppers to evaluate service
Question 4:
Are traditional programs still the main thrust of the industry efforts or are you seeing an evolution in some areas?
Answer:
Traditional programs continue to be used by a good number of brands and hotels, but we are finding it more of a "past" practice. Many companies in the past 3 to 5 years have moved to the second trend we see, which is more of a Focus on Operations.
These quality assurance programs are Brand and Product Evaluations that include a change meant to support the growing number of branded products. For example, consumers have likely heard of the "Heavenly Bed" even if they have not stayed at a Westin. There are examples of brand endorsed or approved coffees, coffee makers, soaps and other amenities.
The brand purchase specifications are now much more rigid in some companies, and the QA programs can adjust, as there are fewer deviations to monitor. The emphasis has shifted to be more of a sharing of best practices to ensure proper implementation of branded programs.
Question 5:
With this shift, which areas at the brand headquarters are evaluating these Operational Focused QA efforts?
With a nod to learning and training, these QA efforts are jointly evaluated and "owned" by both "operations" and "brand marketing" for the first time. The focus on "brand influence" is addressing segments of the audit for each brand within a portfolio and brands are now requesting more specifics to support their marketing message and promises.
Scoring is becoming more varied to drive the marketing promise and messages of the brand and there are now scorecards used, contrasted with the former "pass/fail" result. In addition, because many companies have brand segmentation, (luxury, lifestyle, full-service, select-service, economy); these QA programs are now more subjective, and not just objective scoring.
The Focus on Operations is also now including (depending on the brand) branded service culture, scripted service and QA is viewed as a supporttool to reinforce training initiatives and monitor service interactions, loyalty programs and other items a company might be focused on.
Compliance is checked more by looking at records and documentation during the property tour and the emphasis on life safety is emphasized as the responsibility of the owners rather than liability of the brand. These QA visits are not announced and the service portion may be anonymous and followed by an announced visit with property management. Audits tend to be scheduled annually, with re-visits for low performing properties
Hospitality Conversations – Understanding the developing perspectives in Quality Assurance (Part 2) will address the third evolving trend, which is considered by LRA professionals as the most forward looking and exciting. Part 2 will also discuss self-directed Tool-Centered Audits and offer specific suggestions for hoteliers in all market segments
John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Quality Assurance John Roberto is the leader of LRA's Quality Assurance Group, a member of the firm's Management Committee and one who played a key role in the formation of LRA's quality assurance, mystery shopping, inspection, and compliance programs. Now in his thirteenth year at LRA, John has traveled extensively around the world and has personally visited more than 1,000 hotel properties. At LRA, he is responsible for managing a number of major client relationships in the hospitality and leisure, sports and entertainment and food services industries. A graduate of Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA., his industry background includes positions with Stouffer Hotels, Four Seasons Hotels and luxury independent properties as well as service as Housing Manager for the 1990 Goodwill Games.
Keys to Success Hospitality Tip of the Week:
Focus on Quality
"Quality cannot be a sometimes thing by some people. Create teams by involvement through meaningful Quality Assurance Programs. Concentrate on Quality and Quantity will follow. Lead by visible example – being "in-touch" yields proactive results."
John Hogan, Hotel Common Sense Philosophy #3
Quality
•goods of the highest quality
•a characteristic of somebody or something
•an essential identifying nature or character of somebody or something
•the highest or finest standard - excellence
Assurance
•a declaration that inspires or is intended to inspire confidence
•confidence in personal ability or status
•freedom from uncertainty
•making something certain or overcoming doubt
In this series on Quality, I reached out to a well-known, international company that works with many different types of hotels, as well as other hospitality and service businesses. LRA Worldwide, Inc. [1] has worked with companies and brands for more than 20 years. The company, through research and consulting, works to assist their clients to better understand existing customer experiences and to identify unmet customer needs and wants.
For this Hospitality Conversation, I spoke at some length with John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director of Quality Assurance at LRA Worldwide, Inc.Question 1: What is your organization seeing in different approaches in maintaining and improving the delivery of excellence today? Are there trends?
Answer: We see that there are three phases or trends in quality assurance today and they are all rather distinct, but build on each other.
The first is the Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection format. Many brands still do variations of this. To answer your question on approach, these are not the "catch someone doing something wrong" inspections of earlier times, but meant to enforce the quality compliance aspects of franchise or brand agreements. These are usually announced visits and frequently focus on the physical product. They include a property tour and our team tries to interact with the hotel staff when possible.
Question 2:
With the Traditional Quality Assurance Inspection, what is the focus and who directs what is evaluated?
Answer:
The focus is on the fundamentals, which is usually cleanliness and facility condition. Certain life safety related items such as validating approved electronic door locks and brand-approved products are usually addressed. Items such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers may or may not be included.
These semi-annual traditional inspections are initiated and evaluated by corporate operations groups and/or the QA group. Brand fundamentals are usually limited to signage, logo use, some amenities and basic core products that may be considered important by the brand.
Question 3:
How are these traditional programs scored? Are they more focused on product or service issues?
Answer:
These programs are objective, scoring is well defined, fairly rigid, and there are penalty points for repeat violations. Depending on the brand, some portions of the inspections scores may be weighted and they are designed to "trigger" a failure for serious issues, which could lead to a default to the franchisee.
Service is generally not included in these traditional programs, although some properties may use local mystery shoppers to evaluate service
Question 4:
Are traditional programs still the main thrust of the industry efforts or are you seeing an evolution in some areas?
Answer:
Traditional programs continue to be used by a good number of brands and hotels, but we are finding it more of a "past" practice. Many companies in the past 3 to 5 years have moved to the second trend we see, which is more of a Focus on Operations.
These quality assurance programs are Brand and Product Evaluations that include a change meant to support the growing number of branded products. For example, consumers have likely heard of the "Heavenly Bed" even if they have not stayed at a Westin. There are examples of brand endorsed or approved coffees, coffee makers, soaps and other amenities.
The brand purchase specifications are now much more rigid in some companies, and the QA programs can adjust, as there are fewer deviations to monitor. The emphasis has shifted to be more of a sharing of best practices to ensure proper implementation of branded programs.
Question 5:
With this shift, which areas at the brand headquarters are evaluating these Operational Focused QA efforts?
With a nod to learning and training, these QA efforts are jointly evaluated and "owned" by both "operations" and "brand marketing" for the first time. The focus on "brand influence" is addressing segments of the audit for each brand within a portfolio and brands are now requesting more specifics to support their marketing message and promises.
Scoring is becoming more varied to drive the marketing promise and messages of the brand and there are now scorecards used, contrasted with the former "pass/fail" result. In addition, because many companies have brand segmentation, (luxury, lifestyle, full-service, select-service, economy); these QA programs are now more subjective, and not just objective scoring.
The Focus on Operations is also now including (depending on the brand) branded service culture, scripted service and QA is viewed as a supporttool to reinforce training initiatives and monitor service interactions, loyalty programs and other items a company might be focused on.
Compliance is checked more by looking at records and documentation during the property tour and the emphasis on life safety is emphasized as the responsibility of the owners rather than liability of the brand. These QA visits are not announced and the service portion may be anonymous and followed by an announced visit with property management. Audits tend to be scheduled annually, with re-visits for low performing properties
Hospitality Conversations – Understanding the developing perspectives in Quality Assurance (Part 2) will address the third evolving trend, which is considered by LRA professionals as the most forward looking and exciting. Part 2 will also discuss self-directed Tool-Centered Audits and offer specific suggestions for hoteliers in all market segments
John Roberto, Senior Vice President & Managing Director, Quality Assurance John Roberto is the leader of LRA's Quality Assurance Group, a member of the firm's Management Committee and one who played a key role in the formation of LRA's quality assurance, mystery shopping, inspection, and compliance programs. Now in his thirteenth year at LRA, John has traveled extensively around the world and has personally visited more than 1,000 hotel properties. At LRA, he is responsible for managing a number of major client relationships in the hospitality and leisure, sports and entertainment and food services industries. A graduate of Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA., his industry background includes positions with Stouffer Hotels, Four Seasons Hotels and luxury independent properties as well as service as Housing Manager for the 1990 Goodwill Games.
Keys to Success Hospitality Tip of the Week:
Focus on Quality
"Quality cannot be a sometimes thing by some people. Create teams by involvement through meaningful Quality Assurance Programs. Concentrate on Quality and Quantity will follow. Lead by visible example – being "in-touch" yields proactive results."
John Hogan, Hotel Common Sense Philosophy #3
Friday, September 24, 2010
Front Desk Drama: It is the D-A-S-H that makes the Difference
This is about Diane. She works at the front desk at a luxury hotel chain. She is enthusiastic, a real go-getter, but always manages to get in the middle of the front desk conflicts and drama. This leaves her feeling depressed and drained—and it started taking a toll on the quality of her work and her personal well being. Recently she snapped at a guest who was in the middle of a long-winded complaint. She immediately knew she had over personalized a comment the guest made and regretted her response. The guest escalated and became more irate and began picking out more small problems with her service and complained. Diane began to feel defensive. Now what was she suppose to do?
The bottom-line is we want to hear the guest’s complaints and problems! And when those problems are resolved quickly there is a 95% chance that guest will return! We need to prepare our front desk with the tools that will create success quickly. It is the D-A-S-H of time that makes the difference:
D: Defuse
A: Analyze
S: Self Talk
H: Handle it.
Here is what your hotel front-line employees need to know…
D-ASH: Defuse Yourself First
When you are triggered or your buttons are pushed the first person you need to gain control of is yourself. Stop playing the blame/shame game and finer pointing. Get control of yourself, you cannot control the guest nor anybody else. You know, you have tried to control other people, and it didn’t work, they never changed, and you only became more upset and lost more power and peace of mind. Stop trying to control the guest and take control of yourself by taking total responsibility for yourself and your emotions and your perceptions of the situation. First you get control of yourself then you can begin to control the situation and help the guest.
This is not always easy to do! You want to blame somebody, and you want to make the guest wrong, you want to feel self-righteous and better than them. Also, you are angry at yourself for letting a guest trigger you, how could you be so stupid, how could you be so unprepared and let yourself get out of control. You feel badly about your own triggered responses and it makes it harder for you to get unblocked mentally and emotionally.
Everyone makes mistakes. Let go of the fear of being out of control. Defuse yourself first. Gain control of yourself.
Prepare yourself positively by what you say to yourself, your own self talk; your internal dialogue might be something like this,
“This guest is really upset right now, I know it is not about me, they are upset about a situation and taking it out on me. I am going to have to take some extra time to find out what is really going on.”
Appear calm self assured and centered, even if you may not feel that way. Your anxiety can add fuel to the fire and even escalate tension and aggression. Use a modulated even flat tone of voice. If you notice your voice sounding tight, higher pitched or scared change or modify it. Lower your voice, ask questions and wait. Really listen to the guest responses. Help the guest save face and you will save face too.
DA-SH: Analyze the Situation
Analyze the situation. Imagine that you are a detective and you are carefully putting the pieces of a mystery together. Look for missing information, problem solve, look at all the symptoms before making a diagnosis. While you are doing this investigation be respectful towards the guest ask for their help.
Remember the guest believes you have the information or power to do something which you may or may not have. The guest may become more agitated while you are in this inquiry process because they may be very fearful or insecure about their position. Because they are feeling this way they may be throwing insults at you. Do not become defensive, this is not about you.
You are observing and accessing the situation asking questions, even showing empathy for the guest while gathering data. Empathize with feeling not with behavior, for example “you have a right to be angry but it is not okay to swear at me or my staff.” Show care and empathy. Apologize even if you are not involved. Maintain eye contact. Use their name. Write things down. Allow the guest to vent.
DAS-H: Self Talk
The most important conversation you will have all day long is the one you are having with yourself. What is the internal conversation going on in your head? I am not talking about hearing disembodied voices or psychotic breaks from reality. I am referring to your own inner dialogue, what are you saying to yourself. Becoming conscious of your inner dialogue and the perceptions and pictures you are creating in your mind. This will help you gain control and assess the situation.
Listen to what you are saying to yourself. Listen to the tone, the words, and the feelings behind the words. We are our own worst enemies at times. We are more critical of our self than anyone else could ever be. Use your self talk in a more encouraging way. You have to be our own best cheerleader. If you are waiting for someone else to tell you are doing a good job you may be waiting a very long time to get the “good job” or “congratulations” stroke from the boss or someone else.
Recognize your inner voice and tune into what you are saying and use it positively to promote your own inner sense of well being and self worth. Sometimes you need to just be quite, tell the negative inner voice to “shut-up and sit down”, or “thank you for sharing” and move on.
When you learn to have better control of the inner voice you also maintain a better control of the impulse to just blurt something that may be hurtful or damaging. Silence is always golden. There is whimsical yet wise phrase “who you are speaks so loudly I can hardly hear what you are saying.” Who you are, how you carry yourself, and your ability to hold your tongue speaks volumes.
Some front-line employees at hotels I have trained say to me “our tongues are bloody!” Well this is extreme, but the emotional and mental maturity to hold your tongue will always serve you and help you to hold on to your power.
DAS-H: Handle it and Move On
Do whatever you can to serve this guest and move on, do not dwell on the situation and play it over in your mind or make calls about it, or tell family and friends about this horrible guest encounter you had today. When you replay this in your mind you experience all the stress over and over. Let it go. Handle it and forget about it.
The bottom-line is we want to hear the guest’s complaints and problems! And when those problems are resolved quickly there is a 95% chance that guest will return! We need to prepare our front desk with the tools that will create success quickly. It is the D-A-S-H of time that makes the difference:
D: Defuse
A: Analyze
S: Self Talk
H: Handle it.
Here is what your hotel front-line employees need to know…
D-ASH: Defuse Yourself First
When you are triggered or your buttons are pushed the first person you need to gain control of is yourself. Stop playing the blame/shame game and finer pointing. Get control of yourself, you cannot control the guest nor anybody else. You know, you have tried to control other people, and it didn’t work, they never changed, and you only became more upset and lost more power and peace of mind. Stop trying to control the guest and take control of yourself by taking total responsibility for yourself and your emotions and your perceptions of the situation. First you get control of yourself then you can begin to control the situation and help the guest.
This is not always easy to do! You want to blame somebody, and you want to make the guest wrong, you want to feel self-righteous and better than them. Also, you are angry at yourself for letting a guest trigger you, how could you be so stupid, how could you be so unprepared and let yourself get out of control. You feel badly about your own triggered responses and it makes it harder for you to get unblocked mentally and emotionally.
Everyone makes mistakes. Let go of the fear of being out of control. Defuse yourself first. Gain control of yourself.
Prepare yourself positively by what you say to yourself, your own self talk; your internal dialogue might be something like this,
“This guest is really upset right now, I know it is not about me, they are upset about a situation and taking it out on me. I am going to have to take some extra time to find out what is really going on.”
Appear calm self assured and centered, even if you may not feel that way. Your anxiety can add fuel to the fire and even escalate tension and aggression. Use a modulated even flat tone of voice. If you notice your voice sounding tight, higher pitched or scared change or modify it. Lower your voice, ask questions and wait. Really listen to the guest responses. Help the guest save face and you will save face too.
DA-SH: Analyze the Situation
Analyze the situation. Imagine that you are a detective and you are carefully putting the pieces of a mystery together. Look for missing information, problem solve, look at all the symptoms before making a diagnosis. While you are doing this investigation be respectful towards the guest ask for their help.
Remember the guest believes you have the information or power to do something which you may or may not have. The guest may become more agitated while you are in this inquiry process because they may be very fearful or insecure about their position. Because they are feeling this way they may be throwing insults at you. Do not become defensive, this is not about you.
You are observing and accessing the situation asking questions, even showing empathy for the guest while gathering data. Empathize with feeling not with behavior, for example “you have a right to be angry but it is not okay to swear at me or my staff.” Show care and empathy. Apologize even if you are not involved. Maintain eye contact. Use their name. Write things down. Allow the guest to vent.
DAS-H: Self Talk
The most important conversation you will have all day long is the one you are having with yourself. What is the internal conversation going on in your head? I am not talking about hearing disembodied voices or psychotic breaks from reality. I am referring to your own inner dialogue, what are you saying to yourself. Becoming conscious of your inner dialogue and the perceptions and pictures you are creating in your mind. This will help you gain control and assess the situation.
Listen to what you are saying to yourself. Listen to the tone, the words, and the feelings behind the words. We are our own worst enemies at times. We are more critical of our self than anyone else could ever be. Use your self talk in a more encouraging way. You have to be our own best cheerleader. If you are waiting for someone else to tell you are doing a good job you may be waiting a very long time to get the “good job” or “congratulations” stroke from the boss or someone else.
Recognize your inner voice and tune into what you are saying and use it positively to promote your own inner sense of well being and self worth. Sometimes you need to just be quite, tell the negative inner voice to “shut-up and sit down”, or “thank you for sharing” and move on.
When you learn to have better control of the inner voice you also maintain a better control of the impulse to just blurt something that may be hurtful or damaging. Silence is always golden. There is whimsical yet wise phrase “who you are speaks so loudly I can hardly hear what you are saying.” Who you are, how you carry yourself, and your ability to hold your tongue speaks volumes.
Some front-line employees at hotels I have trained say to me “our tongues are bloody!” Well this is extreme, but the emotional and mental maturity to hold your tongue will always serve you and help you to hold on to your power.
DAS-H: Handle it and Move On
Do whatever you can to serve this guest and move on, do not dwell on the situation and play it over in your mind or make calls about it, or tell family and friends about this horrible guest encounter you had today. When you replay this in your mind you experience all the stress over and over. Let it go. Handle it and forget about it.
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