Page 60 - The New Gold Standard

PRINCIPLE 1: DEFINE AND REFINE
tracking information to share information in a minicorporate
TV broadcast. I started looking into a similar internal cable
broadcast option, but we did not have that kind of electronic in-
frastructure, so that option would have been too costly. We
opted for a modification of the culinary lineup process.”
For some leaders, this process of daily reflection on values
and shared storytelling might seem eerily like “thought control,”
and participants at Ritz-Carlton do acknowledge that there are
both limitations to and strengths of the lineup. Cherie Y. Webb,
manager of learning, The Ritz-Carlton, Atlanta, reveals that
throughout seven years, “I can’t say that every lineup has moti-
vated me, but I honestly can say almost all of the time I feel en-
ergized when I leave lineup. I guess it might seem repetitive or
that sometimes it did not hit the mark, but really each of us is
responsible for making the lineup great.”
While at times lineup can fail to inspire the participants, it
is most often likely to afford a comforting and safe place for in-
formation sharing and the creation of a Ritz-Carlton identity.
For example, during Hurricane Wilma, when many other busi-
nesses with less-practiced daily communication rituals might
have experienced communication breakdowns, Ritz-Carlton
staff came together as they always had—through the lineup
process.
According to guest Jonathan G. Foss, “I noticed the staff do-
ing their daily meetings at the beginning of each shift three times
a day during the whole crisis. I thought that was just incredible.
They were adhering to their values. While things like lineup are
often cancelled during crises in other businesses, lineup actually
served as a place for staff to obtain hope, information, and sup-
port.” Fred Boutouba, manager on duty/guest relations, who
was in charge of the staff during Hurricane Wilma, stated,
“Once you embrace the Ritz-Carlton philosophy, once you live
it on a daily basis and in your daily life, it is really hard to let
go. Lineup is a standard. It’s the only way to get everybody
informed about the situation you are about to face. I think it’s a

40