RITZ-CARLTON TURNS STRANGERS INTO A TEAM IN GRAND CAYMAN (01/10/2006)

28 Jun RITZ-CARLTON TURNS STRANGERS INTO A TEAM IN GRAND CAYMAN (01/10/2006)

Ritz Carlton Case Study

Ritz-Carlton turns strangers into a team in Grand Cayman (01/10/2006)
By Gay Nagle Myers
It was 8 a.m on Dec. 6, and the countdown had begun. Nine days till opening, and the crowd gathered in the Cayman Islands Royal Ballroom was rocking, roaring, shaking and shimmying under the direction of a veteran Ritz-Carlton management team. Balloons drifted overhead, music blared, and people danced in the aisles. A casual observer might have mistaken the activity for some kind of boisterous reunion.

But just minutes before, this had been a self-conscious group of 860 strangers milling about the hotel entrance, searching for team leaders, trainers, a familiar face.

They had arrived at the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman from around the globe, from as near as Bodden Town on Grand Cayman, from as far away as Romania and France. Others hailed from Mexico, Austria, Texas, the Philippines, London, Bahrain, South Africa and Hawaii. In all, they represented 42 nationalities, though 22% were Caymanian.

Each had survived a rigorous hiring process that included at least four interviews conducted in person or by phone, to be chosen from a pool of 14,000 applicants. Some had worked in hotels before, a few had transferred from far-flung Ritz-Carltons, and many had left jobs, families and homes behind to be part of launching this new Caribbean escape.

They were quickly learning that a great hotels opening involves far more than design, construction and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. This is especially true for Ritz-Carlton, whose flag already flies over 60 deluxe properties worldwide, with 21 more under construction.

For a company expanding this rapidly, the vetting, hiring and training of its “ladies and gentlemen” (as Ritz-Carlton employees are called) are key to maintaining continuity from hotel to hotel in the quality of services and facilities.

Ritz-Carltons answer to the challenge of providing initial staff training is known as the Countdown, a preopening, 10-day program that mixes equal parts hands-on training, brand evangelizing and lively motivational sessions. The event is overseen by a team of Ritz-Carlton managers from around the world — each a specialist in some area of hotel operations.

The only thing different about the December opening of the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman was that for the first time, a reporter was “embedded” to observe the Countdown.

Rallying The Troops

Back in the ballroom, nobody was sitting down. Even the usually implacable Kurt Tibbetts, the Cayman Islands leader of government business, and Charles Clifford, minister of tourism, were on their feet in the front row.

“I think this is for real,” Tibbetts shouted at Clifford as the music reached a crescendo.

Tibbetts was right. This was very real. It was the culminating event of a process that had begun six years earlier with the first shovelful of dirt at a ground-breaking ceremony for the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman in 1999.

Jean Cohen, the personable vice president and general manager known as “Mama” to many, strode on stage to a volley of applause and cheers. Looking out over her new staff, she said, “I have been waiting for you for so long. This is the happiest day of my life.” She quickly amended it to the “second happiest day of my life” with a nod toward her husband.

“Welcome to a beautiful home,” she said. “I am proud to see you on the front lines of this milestone event in the history of the Cayman Islands, and this Ritz-Carlton will be the jewel in the crown of Cayman Islands tourism.”

Seizing on the tourism theme, Tibbetts took to the podium. “Use this opportunity to become leaders in our tourism industry,” he said. “You are the vanguards for the next era of prosperity in the Cayman Islands. You are all members of one family now, no matter where you came from to work here.”

He added that he hoped to sample the new Ritz-Carltons facilities “whenever I can afford it.”

Clifford took it from there. “The Ritz-Carlton standards are high, but each of you has been selected because you are up to the task. Each of you is our partner in tourism.”

Both politicians asked the newcomers to honor the islands culture and heritage. “We are a God-fearing conservative island. Respect our traditions and ask your guests to do the same,” Tibbetts said.

Although the exuberance and enthusiasm of the Ritz-Carlton management team and its 80 trainers, who represent 3,000 years of experience, according to Cohen, may have surprised these new employees, they had no choice but to embrace it and run with it.

The outpouring and welcome were genuine, and part of a well-oiled, well-orchestrated and proven employee training program repeated at each Ritz-Carlton before it opens its doors.

That its employees are Ritz-Carltons most valuable asset was hammered home time and again during the training program, which was punctuated by motivational speeches, intensive on-the-job training, pep rallies, beach parties, vision statements and even a fashion show of dos and donts where management modeled fashion bloopers.

Always Carry The Credo

Simon Cooper, president and CEO, who was recovering from knee surgery, addressed the group via a taped video message. “Our strategy is simple,” he said. “Ritz-Carlton is the authentic voice of luxury in the world. Guest service is our most important responsibility. We are service professionals.”

As if on cue, out came the laminated cards bearing the Ritz-Carlton credo, Employee Promise and the 20 basic steps that would govern their hotel duties.

“You carry this card at all times,” said John Cottrill, senior vice president. “These words will become as familiar to you as your own name. Our philosophy will become the way you live your life here. We are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.”

In fact, that mantra formed the crux of the next 10 days. Credit for it is given to Horst Schulze, president and chief operating officer of Ritz-Carlton from 1983 to 2001. During that time, the Ritz-Carlton flag went up at 33 properties around the world, and the philosophy was honed to perfection.

Before the foot-stomping music swelled again from giant speakers to signal the end of the welcoming session, Michael Ryan, the hotels owner and developer, had the last word. “I had a dream, and you are it,” Ryan said. “That dream was born when I saw a sign and realized I could build on Seven Mile Beach the finest resort in the world.”

“But,” he said, “a hotel is just a building until it has a soul. It takes nine months to make a child. It took me almost nine years to make this child. I pass on to each of you the vision of what this resort can be.”

After a standing ovation, another round of cheering, and a recitation of the Employee Promise, the ballroom emptied.

Team leaders and trainers assembled their disparate groups. Each trainer held aloft a sign with his department name. From what had looked at first like a disorganized milling of people emerged Ritz-Carltons newest dishwashers, housekeepers, valets, bellmen, front desk personnel, caterers, engineers, chefs, spa therapists, landscapers, waiters, bartenders, laundry staff, kids program coordinators, water sports operators, accountants and golf and tennis instructors.

It had been a heady, intensive immersion. “Geez, I never expected this,” said Sadie, a Ritz-Carlton housekeeper. “At my last job, I wasnt even told where the locker room was. I had to buy my own uniform, and my supervisor spent about 10 minutes telling me which rooms to clean.”

Sadie (Ritz-Carlton employees are identified by their first names) and her colleagues happily trailed their group leader into the spic-and-span housekeeping department.

Throughout the hotel that afternoon, groups huddled in lounges and meeting rooms with their teams and flip charts. In between talks and training, they toured their $500 million new home, from its kitchens (designed by Eric Ripert) to the penthouses on the seventh floor of the Residences. Around them, carpenters, painters, carpet installers and electricians toiled on the finishing touches. Outside, landscaping crews laid down mulch and sod, an activity that went on until 11 p.m. each night under the glare of generator lights.

Everyone, it seemed, was in Countdown mode.

Already, friendships were forming. Edgar in food and beverage, newly arrived from Austin, Texas, where hed worked in a restaurant for years, met Jose from Pueblo, Mexico. They were pleased they would be working together at 7, the hotels oceanfront restaurant.

“I wasnt sure about this at first,” Edgar said. “I thought this was just corporate talk, but now I dont think so. I think they really mean it.”

Employee Empowerment

Marcus, already a Ritz-Carlton convert after four years at the Ritz-Carlton, Half Moon Bay near San Francisco, teamed up with Edgar, a former Hyatt employee from Toronto. “Were going to bunk in together at an apartment near here,” Marcus said.

Both were part of the guest services staff. “Were on the front line, were the go-to guys,” Marcus said proudly. “We welcome guests. Were their first contact. We give them a cold towel, a welcome drink, escort them to their room and do the room tour. We get to know them because we see them coming and going.”

Leroy, the charismatic head of the concierge staff, had only to cross West Bay Road in Grand Cayman for his new job. “Id been at the Hyatt [Regency Beach Suites] for several years, but I heard they were hiring here, and I wanted this job.”

Describing the employee training as “amazing,” Leroy said that he had no qualms about switching employers. “Ritz-Carlton gives us everything we need to do a great job. Theres no way I can go wrong.”

Employee empowerment came up in another motivational talk on day two. By that time, everyone was more relaxed. Bonds were forming quickly. Employees high-fived and quizzed one another on the credo. Most had memorized it by now.

Cooper had referred to this empowerment in his video message. “Our luxury customers are looking for unique, memorable and pleasant experiences. We have a $4.5 million computer system that collects guests preferences based on input from each of you.”

Its a clever system. Each employee carries a pad and pencil to record guest preferences. (Every uniform is designed with a pocket for just such a pad.)

“Collect at least one a day and leave it in the mailbox in the locker room,” Cooper instructed them. “Our staff inputs this information into the computer. That way whenever and wherever this guest stays at a Ritz-Carlton anywhere, we know in advance that he prefers Evian water, or she likes white wine or their children are celebrating their birthdays during the hotel stay.”

Cohen was even more succinct: “You are a spy. You gather information that will make the guests stay even more memorable. If a golfer mentions to his caddy that hes a jogger, the caddy can request that a cold towel and a bottle of water be waiting in the guests room after his run.

“You are empowered to delight our guests. And, if a guest has a complaint or request, you can break away from your regular duties to correct a problem and fulfill a request. You own the complaint until you resolve it and record it.”

One housekeeper said, “I think this is what blew me away. I really can make a difference here. I always thought my job would just be cleaning rooms and changing beds.”

Jennifer Babson, guest reception manager, said, “Our guests have a lot of money. They dont have a lot of time. Were into creating memories. Its what you cant buy with money that our guests want.”

With six days to go, the trainees were drilled in the importance of eye contact, of addressing guests by name, of never standing with their backs to a guest.

Employees met with Caymanian historians for a crash course in culture, customs and heritage, plus what there is to see and do beyond Seven Mile Beach. Chefs whipped up sample menus, the wait staff served and fellow employees critiqued, criticized and cheered.

Housekeepers practiced making and remaking beds. Doormen opened and closed car doors and lobby doors dozens of times. Bartenders polished glasses and drilled each other on exotic drink ingredients.

The uniform room was busy. Tailors sat at sewing machines, altering, shortening, lengthening hundreds of different uniforms in a palette of pastels, each signifying a specific department and job category.

Ezzat Coutry, senior vice president, was everywhere. He sat in on sessions where employees wrote their departments vision statements, drafting and rewriting until everyone was satisfied.

“This was difficult for some of them,” Coutry said. “They couldnt believe that they could set their goals for their departments. Once they understood that it was for real, they rose to the challenge. These vision statements now hang in each department, something they see and read every day and can take measure of how theyre performing in their jobs.”

Jose, a potwasher for 10 years in other Ritz-Carltons, had no problem with the vision statement. “Ive done them before. Its one reason I love my job,” he said.

During a walk-through of the special events department, where plans were being laid for the Teddy Bear Teas for children during Christmas and for beach fireworks on New Years Eve, Coutry said the “genuine care and comfort of our employees is our mission. It is unethical to hire them without giving them the proper training.”

All the training culminated one day before the Dec. 15 opening with a boisterous employee beach party celebrating in Cohens words, “the newest ladies and gentlemen of the Ritz-Carlton.”

From raw recruits just 10 days earlier, unsure and nervous, had emerged a poised and polished army of employees eager to get to work.

They were a privileged group in the history of this particular hotel. Future hires would go through the same intensive training — replete with the credo and philosophy drills — but without the evangelizing and motivational elements so important to Ritz-Carltons team building.

Following a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony the next morning, the massive doors swung open to welcome the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Caymans first guests — a wedding party of 40 that originally had planned the event for the Ritz-Carlton, Cancun but had had to change plans after Hurricane Wilma closed the Cancun resort.

To contact reporter Gay Nagle Myers, send e-mail to gmyers@travelweekly.com.
In six years and 72 days, a resort rises in Grand Cayman

A hotel often begins with one persons vision. The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman was the dream of hotel owner and developer Michael Ryan. But the realization of that dream took six years to build and required that Ryan overcome setbacks, including local politics, the post-9/11 falloff in travel and the wrath of Hurricane Ivan.

• 1997: Ritz-Carlton approaches Ryan about developing in the Cayman Islands. He purchases the Holiday Inn on Seven Mile Beach and wins approval to combine it with adjacent land for a 144-acre, 356-room resort. The project includes 93 residential units, of which 24 are to be placed in hotel inventory when not owner-occupied.

• 1998: Greg Norman signs on to design a golf course, opting for a “superlative” nine-hole course — a first in the region — instead of a “mediocre” 18-hole course.

• 1999: Ground is broken for the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman on Sept. 23, but the Cayman Islands National Trust files objections that halt construction for the next two to three years.

• 2001: Ryan prevails in the courts and secures from the Royal Bank of Scotland the largest-ever Cayman development loan. When construction resumes, Ryan institutes training and certification measures that result in a perfect safety record during two million man hours. Tourism falls off after 9/11, but the Ritz-Carlton project presses on, passing the $100 million mark in sales of residential units.

• 2002: Ryan wins approval to build to a height of seven stories, up from five, sparking an expansion boom on Seven Mile Beach.

• 2003: Jean Cohen, then Ritz-Carltons vice president for the Northeast and Midwest, is named vice president and general manager of the Grand Cayman property. She and Ryan begin assembling their dream team, including restaurateur Eric Ripert; La Prairie Spa; tennis coach Nick Bollettieri and marine ecologist Jean-Michel Cousteau.

• 2004: Sixty days before opening, Hurricane Ivan slams Grand Cayman. The Ritz-Carlton does not have a single broken window, earning it the nickname “The Rock.” Ryan charters aircraft to evacuate employees and residents. The project soon resumes, fueled by sales of two more residences.

• 2005: Training of the hotels 860 employees begins on Dec. 5, and the doors open 10 days later — six years, two months and 22 days after the groundbreaking. — G.N.M.

Question and Response Format please!

Ritz-Carlton case study (50 points): This case study will require that students outline the processes, systems, and human resource strategies commonly utilized within the industry to ensure that high quality customer experiences are consistently delivered to hotel guests. (LO8)

Detailed instructions: After reading The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company case study, by Sandra Sucher and Stacy McManus (2001 and revised in 2005), please respond to each of the following questions or prompts:

1. “Service” can be an elusive concept. What is the essence of The Ritz-Carlton Experience? What is Ritz-Carlton selling?

2. As a prologue to the case study, Sandra Bucher and Stacy McManus open with a quote from the Analects of Confucius, which states: “The Master said, Govern the people by regulations, keep order among them by chastisements, and they will flee from you, and lose all self-respect. Govern them by moral force, keep order among them by ritual, and they will keep their self-respect and come to you of their own accord.” What is the significance of this quote and how does it relate to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company and the effective practice of management in general? What strategies and processes does the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company employ in their effort to “govern them by moral force and keep order among them by ritual” while ensuring that the “ladies and gentlemen” of Ritz-Carlton keep their self-respect?

3. Creating a customer-centered organizational culture that motivates associates to deliver exceptional, personalized service is critical to Ritz-Carltons success. When opening a new hotel, what process does Ritz-Carlton employ to quickly establish the appropriate organizational culture within just a seven (7) day period? Explain the process step-by-step. Please list each step and explain why each step is important.

4. Outline and explain the Ritz-Carlton service processes (e.g. Three Steps of Service, The Motto, The Credo, etc.) that Ritz-Carlton employs to ensure that their service consistently exceeds the expectations of hotel guests.

5. Explain how Ritz-Carlton responds to service deficiencies (guest problems). What steps does Ritz-Carlton take to improve the guest experience? What are the risks, challenges, benefits, and rewards associated with service innovation?

6. Explain the relationship between Millennium Partners and Ritz-Carlton. Who is Brian Collins and what is his relationship with Ritz-Carlton?

7. Brian Collins has requested that James McBride, the General Manager of the new Ritz-Carlton in suburban Washington D.C. consider changing the seven (7) day countdown process. Why does he suggest changing the process and, based upon your analysis of the case, do you feel that the process should be changed? Why or why not?

Please submit a single PDF or Word document with your responses to each of these questions or prompts through Canvas. Feel free to do additional research on Ritz-Carlton to supplement the information in case study. Please be certain to include appropriate supporting documentation and references with your submission.