Page 109 - The New Gold Standard

Select—Don’t Hire
great hotels might train well at the salesperson or concierge level,
but not as well below midlevel. Across the board, Ritz-Carlton
has the best overall training of staff that I’ve ever seen.” In sup-
port of her observations, Robin reflects on an experience she had
at The Ritz-Carlton, Dallas: “The hotel had been open only a few
weeks, and we went to the ribbon cutting. When I pulled in to
valet my car, the staff member didn’t give me a ticket. He took
my car, remembered me, and brought my car back to me per-
fectly and amazingly. All of this was done early on in the life of
that hotel. The only way you can exceed a customer’s expecta-
tion is through excellent training, great processes, . . . and like
the valet who was parking cars that day, hiring staff members
who fully buy into your culture.”
Robin’s comments summarize the end goal for all training:
It is offered to provide the tools necessary so that every staff mem-
ber believes in the mission and delivers consistent excellence.

C Maintaining a Vital and D
Engaged Workforce

Employees who leave companies typically do so after about a
year, but according to recent research, 90 percent make the deci-
sion to stay or leave within six months of employment. With
a firm understanding of the speed with which employees can
become disillusioned and disengaged from their work, Ritz-
Carlton leadership has established something called “Day 21.”
On the twenty-first day on the job, after becoming certified in
the operational standards of their positions, staff members are
given a forum to freely discuss the positives and negatives they
have encountered in their first three weeks. The newly hired
Ladies and Gentlemen can talk openly about things such as
whether they have been given all the tools they’ve needed to
achieve success, the quality of their job trainer, and whether the
culture described to them at orientation is present in the employ-
ees’ day-to-day experiences. Day 21 becomes an opportunity to

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