Page 94 - The New Gold Standard

PRINCIPLE 2: EMPOWER THROUGH TRUST
his company’s steadfast commitment to and passion for selec-
tion, training, and empowerment, the Ladies and Gentlemen of
the Ritz-Carlton consistently generate extraordinary customer
experiences. Simon shares, “Of course we always love to hear the
epic tales of Ladies and Gentlemen doing something seemingly
on a par with helping a guest by rushing off and stopping an air-
plane by throwing themselves under it; those types of stories are
always amazing. But I like the subtle actions that tell a guest, ‘I
know what you’ve gone through,’ or ‘Here’s a little thing to let
you know you matter.’”
In order for staff to continually and subtly act in ways that
not only satisfy but delight customers, leaders must understand
the importance of identifying talent and developing methods for
selecting top candidates.
In a world in which human resources conferences typically
feature speakers talking about “talent wars,” “talent crises,” or an
emerging workforce that lacks the service ethic of prior genera-
tions, how does Ritz-Carlton consistently find men and women
who exceed customer expectations?
The obvious, but wrong, answer would be that they attract
the best by having an overly generous compensation plan. Si-
mon explains, “When I speak to different groups, one of the
things I’m always worried about is that the audience thinks just
because we’re at the luxury end of the business, we can attract a
different kind of employee. So one of the things I always do is
remind audiences that our Ladies and Gentlemen come from ex-
actly the same labor force, backgrounds, and quality of life that
theirs do. We’re not paying a premium; we pay the same as oth-
ers in our industry. It’s really how we select our people and what
we do when they join our family.”
To truly understand the success of Ritz-Carlton, one must
understand leadership’s approach to the staff selection process.

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