A common tendency in the first stage is for hotel employees to feel that the major results areas are financial: the generation of sales, minimization of costs, and maximization of income. Although every business seeks these things, it is the pursuit of guest satisfaction that will produce the financial successes here. In marketing, this is the difference between product orientation and customer orientation. Product orientation focuses on the product being offered (the hotel room, the meal, the drink) while customer orientation focuses on the needs and wants of the customer. The latter realizes that products and services should be developed only in response to those needs and wants. Thus, in addition to setting objectives in the traditional areas of business, it is necessary here to set objectives that deal with guest satisfaction.
Guest-oriented results
The procedure for ensuring customer orientation as key results areas are determined is to answer some questions: What do guests need and want? What facilities and services should be provided to satisfy those needs and wants? With what attitude and manner should we serve guests?
Inter-Continental Hotels has developed a process for answering these questions. Sessions typically include 12 people led by 2 trainers. The general manager may participate but has no veto power over others' suggestions.
Participants are divided into three groups of 4, and each group is assigned one of the three questions above. Each group selects someone to record and report on everyone's answers, and participants are asked to put themselves in the role of guests in developing responses.
The training manual for these exercises lists numerous possible responses to the question: "What do guests need and want?" These include a clean room, comfortable bed, good food, dependable reservation, responsible front desk, bath or shower, restaurant, bar, meeting rooms, courteous and prompt attention, newsstand, cigar counter, shops, coffee shop, telephone or telegraph, laundry or valet, car park, local information, mailbox and ballroom.
In an actual group situation, participants came up with the following suggestions of what guests are looking for: value for their money, comfort in the guest room, entertainment, quick service, personal recognition, friendliness, staff people who listen, good laundry service, barber and beautician, travel information, shopping, responsible reservations handling, banking facilities, good valet service, massage, good food, telex, credit, security, car service, travel arrangements and pool with sauna.
By helping to determine what is important from a guest's point of view, rather than relying on the training manual suggestions, the employees are more likely to accept these areas of concern as their own.
In answer to the second question, "What facilities and services should be provided to satisfy those needs and wants?" the training manual suggests several responses: rooms with baths, a front service desk, cashier, bar, restaurant, coffee shop, garage, reservations, meals served in the room, messages and telephone service, baggage handling, valet, credit, information, wine cellar, meeting rooms, news and cigar shop, pool, courtesy car, laundry, sauna, registration, vault for valuables, catering, theater tickets, sightseeing tours, meeting equipment, checkroom and travel service.
The group, on the other hand, suggested a guest information desk, global reservations, next-destination arrangements, secretarial service, multilingual services, fast laundry, flowers, security, hair dressing, shops, banking, responsible message service, sports arrangements, car rental, dependable room service, TV with in-room movies, a variety of restaurants, nursing, baby-sitting, parking with a car valet, newspapers from other cities, deluxe rooms, air-conditioning, banquet facilities, conference facilities and outside catering.
At first glance it would appear the writers of the training manual underestimated the ability of this group to match the provision of facilities to the determination of guest needs.
The third part of this exercise seeks to answer: "With what attitude and manner should we serve guests?" Typical manual responses are to regard the guest as boss, be polite, cordial, pleasant, tactful, respectful, hospitable, friendly, courteous, patient, efficient, thorough, gracious, good-natured, considerate, and thoughtful, respond promptly, anticipate needs, hold guests in high regard and provide individual attention.
Group participants countered with their own, smaller list, with suggestions to recognize guests and to be professional in doing one's job, happy, calm, available to guests, punctual, respectful, an understanding listener, sales oriented and positive.
Financially oriented results
If the hotel is successful in meeting the needs of its guests, the results will show up in better financial performance. However, satisfying all guest needs may also result in a loss to the hotel. In order to determine the extent to which the business has met the needs of the guests at a profit to itself, objectives must be set in financial areas.
Objectives will vary depending on the size of the property, but the following listing of corporate results areas from Inter-Continental Hotels will serve as a guide.
- Marketing objectives in such areas as sales, industry position, corporate position, and the identification and development of prime markets. Examples include an increase in sales, occupancy, the average room rate, food and beverage sales, average sales per cover, store rentals, inter-hotel sales (for chains), in-hotel sales, and local sales.
- Production and operating objectives in the areas of quality, productivity and cost. Examples include the ratio of payroll to sales and room costs to other expenses, food and beverage costs and other expenses, administrative and general expenses, utility costs, and sales per employee-hour.
- Financial and control objectives in the areas of cash and inventory turnover, credit, and employment of resources. Examples include the ratio of gross operating profit to sales, profits for the room, food and beverage, and minor operating departments, the ratio of current assets to current liabilities and of sales to inventories, the average collection period, number of times taxes were earned, and times the average room rate was earned.
- Personnel objectives in recruitment, organization and development. Examples include development of a training program to provide career advancement opportunities for key personnel, and lower labor turnover.
- Community and company relations objectives relating to community involvement. Examples include improving the local image and local acceptance of the hotel.
- Research, development, and technical objectives in the areas of product, services, and process improvement, new product and new service development, and preventive maintenance. Examples include conducting market research of the community, investigating and reporting on national and international tourism trends, and developing and implementing a program of preventive maintenance.
Remember that employees will relate to objectives involving guest satisfaction much more than to financial objectives. Employees also will be more dedicated to achieving those objectives if they are involved in setting them.
Setting objectives
Once the major results areas are understood, objectives can be set and employees involved in the process.
First, the general manager prepares guest and financial goals for the hotel. These goals are distributed to department managers and supervisors.
Next, supervisors and department managers are asked to list the hotel goals and performance indicators that apply to their department and then list proposed departmental goals, preparing a worksheet for each. (Examples of key performance indicators and a worksheet for departmental goals are given in Exhibit 20 and Exhibit 21.)
The entire group then divides into smaller study groups consisting of people from one department or related departments. One person is elected to speak for each subgroup. Through discussion, a consensus is reached about the hotel goals that relate to that department and the best performance indicators that apply. The two departmental goals that the subgroup considers the most productive are selected.
Finally, the results of all subgroup discussions are reported back to the entire group.
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