Page 45 - The New Gold Standard

Set the Foundation
They are words like ‘genuine care and comfort,’ ‘pledge,’ and
‘finest personal service,’ as well as ‘enlivens . . . instills, and fulfills
unexpressed wishes and needs.’ That is our business, and that is
what we are here to do. Above all else, and without regard to our
technical skills as bellmen, concierges, or Ladies and Gentlemen
in our laundry area, the Credo defines who and what we are at
Ritz-Carlton, and it is very clear when someone is and when
someone isn’t living up to what he or she pledges in the Credo.”
Maurice Pearson, who started with the company in loss pre-
vention and who has been promoted to an assistant director of
housekeeping, reflects, “I got into some trouble when I was
young, but I didn’t want to keep going down the wrong road. I
survived Iraq twice. I got out and made it home. The same day
I was supposed to come to Ritz-Carlton and fill out an applica-
tion, I got in a really bad car accident. But finally, I went through
the employment process and through my journey here, I was
named Employee of the Year at my hotel location. My goal is to
be a hotel general manager one day. The Credo has been so im-
portant for me, to provide service to guests and for my growth
and development. It sets you up for success. If you take it and
embrace it, you can’t do anything but excel here. Every word of
it is true. Every word.”
Maria Thompson, sales administrative assistant at The Ritz-
Carlton, Phoenix, puts it a little differently: “I think if the corpo-
rate world took our Credo and applied the concepts to whatever
industry they were in, and really applied it from the very top to
the very bottom of the organization, the world would be a better
place, in terms of corporate life. By a ‘better place’ I mean better
retention, happier managers, and greater profitability.”
Ultimately the value of the Credo or any other core cultural
roadmap is the opportunity it affords those inside the business
to realize how the ideal customer and staff experience looks and
feels. The true success of such a credo is whether or not it actu-
ally produces tangible experiences causing guests to enjoy “en-
livened senses, states of well-being, and fulfillment of unstated

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