Page 81 - The New Gold Standard

Be Relevant
foundation but also hand off an adaptive, sustainable company
with leadership that continues to challenge itself to be the best in
every corner of the world.”
Not only is the challenge to position business offerings in
a relevant way, but staff at all levels of the organization are en-
couraged to take ownership of building a sustainable company.
Simon continues, “I was conducting leadership training with
the Ladies and Gentlemen, and I left them with a quote of Sir
Edmund Hillary: ‘It’s not the mountain we challenge; it’s our-
selves.’ We have to challenge ourselves as long as we intend to
lead in this field because we will have external challenges. But
the whole idea of leadership is that you continually improve
yourself first.”

STRIKING GOLD

D What aspects of your product or service are essential to
your brand identity? What components can be changed, if
needed, to address geographic trends or cultural differ-
ences?
D Have you positioned your product or service in places
where your customers expect to find you?

D From a scenography perspective, how can you leverage the
essence of your location or setting to enhance the overall
experience of your customer?
D What do you do to challenge individuals throughout your
organization to share ideas that will keep your business rel-
evant and sustainable?

C Transitioning to Service Values D

This spirit of continual improvement for sustainability goes be-
yond the design and positioning of Ritz-Carlton hotels. In fact,

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