Feature: Robert Ambrose
Providing Consistent Guest Service In Hospitality
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Are we really educating our employees about the process?
e know that providing superior guest service doesn’t just happen. It requires a team of highly skilled employees to deliver a consistent service product. To achieve a great experience for the guest, the employee must be focused on keeping their own service “bar” raised, in order to offer the guest a memorable and consistent experience. In my lectures, I have stated how a team that is developed through education-based programs in service can reach that goal. It is up to management to make sure the employees receive such an education. Providing your employees with an on-going series of educational programs is important. It will help your organization reach that positive “moment of truth,” within your customer base. The Dictionary of Business defines a customer moment of truth as the moment, “the customer is given the opportunity to form an impression about a company…” This means the customer has formed an opinion in reaction to the services delivered. The guest service decisive moment in the hospitality and tourism industry occurs every time a guest and employee have an exchange. That opinion could change several times during a customer’s visit. It is based on the collective encounters each customer has with all the employees of your organization. From an employee’s face-to-face encounter to an automated product presentation, the levels of service an organization offers are the sum of that special moment of truth. When an employee suspects that a guest may be experiencing a negative moment of truth, it is important that they recognize it. The employee must take control and turn it around to produce a positive employee/guest experience. If they suspect the customer is not satisfied, they must bring in the next level of management support, hopefully turning a negative into a positive. Front-line employees are one-to-one with customers. That is why it is so important to prepare the employees for these interactions by defining your organization’s culture and laying out the “parameters of operation,” 14
through facilitated learning programs. Employees, through your organization’s strategic
educational programs, can learn about the result of their action or inaction when they are faced with a customer moment. The learning experience regarding the moment of truth is important for long-term employee growth; accordingly, it must be part of your organization’s culture of employee education. In the book Moments of Truth, by Jan Carlson (1987) strategies are explained to address a customer-driven economy. In it she states, “Get rid of the horizontal barriers to communication. Turn middle management away from the role of administrator and into leaders and facilitators for the frontlines…” Your operation managers must be involved in the ongoing analysis about the moments of truth in order to continue to work with the front-line employees for the consistency of the operation. And finally, understand through the “social media channels” that a customer’s moment of truth can be shared in an instant. Good or bad, it is out there for all to see. If your organization has suffered a service wound and you read about it on a social media platform, own
it, and take immediate steps to face it publicly to repair the damage. Customers can be very forgiving when they know that someone is listening. A moment of truth validates an organization in the marketplace. It’s important not to lose the opportunity to make it a positive one. “Strategic marketing” initiatives, through niche opportunities, are about a more focused view that takes advantage of specialized opportunities of service. This could include a more definable approach to the generational differences of your customers, the messaging of non-gaming amenities offered by your property, and a sensible analysis of where technology can be applied to keep the customer momentum going during their stay. The use of smart-phone apps or kiosk check-in for a hotel, technical management systems, and software enhancements for restaurant and bar management have all contributed to a more consistent operating www.casinolifemagazine.com
