I was recently ‘professor for a day’ on the Hong Kong Polytechnic University hospitality programme where I met graduate students studying Service and Quality Management for Hospitality and Tourism. They were bright, had experience in the field and asked intelligent questions.
We were discussing service standards when one raised her hand. “In the hotel I work at, some colleagues feel overwhelmed by the standards they have to remember. How do you train standards in a way that’s not so overwhelming?”, she asked.
Her question highlights a challenge hotels and spas face in managing ‘standards inflation’.
This is driven by a number of factors, such as industry transience – as managers move from brand to brand, they take ‘good ideas’ they’ve learned to their new workplace, adding to the list as they go.
Industry organisations, such as Forbes, drive this too. They help operators benchmark by defining luxury standards and so brands that wish to compete for rankings and awards must also follow these to be successful.
The quest for differentiation also drives standards inflation – brands must adopt standards that set them apart – and guest expectations mean luxury brands have to keep raising the bar to surprise and delight them.
Balancing detail with human needs
There’s no easy solution. ‘Attention to detail’ is a defining aspect of luxury and it would be fair to say that if you’re not able to learn and pay attention to a large number of standards in your service delivery, then maybe a career in luxury is not for you!
If the culture is there, standards, audits and checklists are no longer overwhelming
However, operators need to create an enjoyable working environment and being bombarded with bureaucratic audits and checklists, or harangued by managers for not following SOPs creates an unpleasant working environment and a robotic service style.
What the best hospitality brands do is create a culture that doesn’t nitpick, but still encourages a high level of service.
Growing a strong culture means building the right team by attracting and promoting people who embody a high level of service and ensuring leaders are role models who inspire by living and breathing a service culture their colleagues can emulate.
A distilled focus is also vital – create a clear vision and mission for your brand that describes the kind of guest interactions you’re aiming for.
Ritz-Carlton’s famous motto: ‘We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen’ communicates a culture of mutual respect and humility that underpins the service standards that made Ritz-Carlton an icon of hospitality. Four Seasons emphasises its Golden Rule: ‘to treat others how we want to be treated,’ distilling hundreds of standards into a nine-word phrase that every employee can remember and embody through their daily actions.
It’s important to nurture your service culture. If the culture is there, standards, audits and checklists are no longer overwhelming. They become a useful tool that helps colleagues be the best they can be in pursuit of an inspiring mission.
Overwhelm checklist
1. Define standards: Employees should know the details that are important in customer interactions
2. Set a benchmarking goal: Find out what the criteria are to rise to the top and then align your standards
3. Establish brand-defining standards: What’s the ‘secret sauce’ that makes you unique?
4. Deliver continuous training: For luxury businesses, training in service is a daily ritual
5. Review and refine: Continually streamline standards to focus on those that are most important
6. Embed it into your culture: Don't build a list of standards. Create an inspiring mission to underpin what you want to deliver.
