Page 112 - How America's Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times

Steering the Ship and Inspiring the Crew C99

Colin’s leadership style makes a big difference. It’s just who he is—
exceptionally down-to-earth and approachable. If you ask him a
question, he will answer it. He is honest, candid, and doesn’t try
to spin things.

Reed meets regularly with employees to let them know what the
resort’s business prospects look like. He is constantly reevaluating the
company’s business strategy. Gallineau went on to explain:

Nothing is sacred about how we execute. We are fortunate to have
remained as successful as we are through hard times. We don’t antic-
ipate layoffs, but if we had to, Colin would give people the straight
scoop. Our customers can change and sign on or off multiyear deals.
Our staff knows that things can change, and if they do, we ask them
to be a part of the change. The other thing about Colin—he truly
wants to understand employees, and he cares about them and their
families. He never penalizes leaders when someone below them in
their unit calls with a complaint. He handles it in a constructive,
noncritical way. We are not a “heads-are-going-to-roll” culture.

When asked to describe his own leadership style, Gallineau
responded:

Open, human, and accessible . . . I don’t want employees to be in-
timidated by me. I dine with them in our cyber cafe, park in no
special place, sit in no special place. They know me as a human
being, a fellow adult with a different role.

Ellis described the firm’s approach to hiring and developing
leaders:

At Gaylord, when new hires first meet our senior leaders, we tell
them, “We are not going to treat you like a number.” That means
we have to hire leaders who treat people right. Employees in many
other hotels don’t ever even see their property managers. Leaders at
Gaylord have to GET it—the way we do it here. We train our lead-