| I'm at a work conference staying in a resort in the Blue | | | | previous function and the room wasn't cleaned |
| Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. | | | | properly. I'm a big believer in using checklists for |
| I've blogged before about how delivering service is like | | | | delivering services. If someone had a list of things to |
| putting on a performance - if it's not rehearsed well, it | | | | check off, they would have been reminded to check |
| can go badly. Well, there have been a few elements | | | | the light shade. |
| to this hotel stay that haven't gone too well that | | | | In the room |
| possibly could have been avoided. Here are some | | | | My room doesn't have a clock radio, or any kind of |
| examples, and some ideas to stop them happening in | | | | clock. Strange for a hotel room. It also doesn't have a |
| your business. | | | | list of internal phone numbers, so if I wanted to phone |
| You need good staff to deliver on your promise | | | | reception to enquire about getting a clock or a wakeup |
| There's two aspects to this point - having good staff | | | | call, I don't know what number to call. |
| and having enough staff. | | | | I'm also a little frustrated with the room cleaner. There's |
| Here's some interesting events: | | | | a sign that tells me to leave in the bath any towels I |
| - When we initially arrived, we went straight into our | | | | want cleaned and to hang up any ones I want to |
| sessions until 5.00pm. We then went to check in to | | | | re-use. This morning I've hung my towel up on the |
| discover the hotel only had one staff member working | | | | towel rail together with my bath mat so I can use them |
| at reception - there were over 50 of us. So checking | | | | again tomorrow. I come back to the room tonight and |
| in took a little longer than it should have. And the hotel | | | | they've been replaced with new ones! |
| didn't create a good first impression. | | | | Don't tell me you're going to do one thing, but then do |
| - At breakfast they had insufficient staff to clear the | | | | the opposite. One of the key elements of delivering |
| tables. At one stage it looked like over 60% of the | | | | good service is being reliable and doing what you say |
| tables were empty, but hadn't been cleared. I had no | | | | you're going to do, not saying one thing and doing |
| option but to sit at a table with someone else's dirty | | | | another. |
| plates. | | | | Deliver on your promise |
| - During the breaks in our sessions, there were a | | | | When you look at this resort on the web, it looks great. |
| couple of times that no staff came into the room to | | | | And it is. It's in a great location and has great facilities. |
| clear the rubbish, top up the water etc. | | | | But good service isn't just about looking good; it's about |
| Sorry if I'm stating the obvious, but they know in | | | | delivering on your promise. And this place hasn't |
| advance how many guests they have staying there | | | | delivered on its promise. |
| so you'd think they could get the staffing right. | | | | Reflection |
| Check the premises | | | | Have a think about the areas I've highlighted her and |
| In our meeting room I looked up at the light shade and | | | | think about the equivalents in your business. Are there |
| saw a 'Happy Birthday' balloon sitting on top of it, right | | | | areas involving staff that you can improve on, or |
| up by the ceiling. It was obviously left behind from a | | | | processes or service delivery? |