For some reason, a lot of younger managers feel as though the moment they graduate from college and find a job, their employees will respect them right out the gate. Experience often finds line employees of hotels treat new managers much like sergeants treat new lieutenants in the military… you haven’t earned my respect until you have proven yourself under fire.
In many cases, line employees have been working in the industry for decades and know their job inside and out. A fresh face from college is NOT going to tell them how to do their job. And, if they do, the backlash is immediate and severe. With that comes a lack of respect that may never be breached.
Simply put… respect must be earned. The best way to earn the respect of your employees is to respect them, their jobs, and what they mean to the overall operation.
One of the things that bothered me the most upon entering the hotel industry was the way far too many managers looked down at the employees in the hotel that earned the least amount of money but were the lifeblood of the hotel. The lack of respect they often get and how they are looked down upon is both sickening and heartbreaking.
To put it bluntly, they have some of the worst jobs in the hotel. They work harder than just about anyone else, yet they make the least amount of money. If they don’t show up for work, to quote “A Few Good Men,” “Who’s gonna do it? You?”
When I first entered the hotel industry, I was about as green as it got in terms of hotel sets. I had spent my entire career to that point in the restaurant industry. I could duplicate just about any recipe and could run circles around the service staff but dropping a dance floor or doing a classroom set… I had no idea.
To say my head houseman was skeptical is being very kind. I knew I had to earn his respect and the only way to do that, at least in my opinion, was to roll up my sleeves and work side-by-side with him until I learned how to do the job. I leaned on him extensively over my first month until I completely understood the nuances of the room sets. He respected that and while I could never do his job as well as he could, I did understand the job and knew how to manage it.
That particular houseman was with me virtually my entire career at that hotel. On more than one occasion, he bailed me out of trouble in tight sets simply because he WANTED to work hard for me because I appreciated the work he did.
The server staff presented a similar challenge. They all knew I was some hotshot fine dining restaurant manager, but this was a hotel and as far as they were concerned, I knew nothing. Now, I have to admit, knowing service was my strong point, I came off far too strong at first. I assumed they were going to respect me because of my reputation.
After a couple of weeks of back and forth, which was creating obvious tension, I knew I had to prove to this staff that I could run a room just as good, if not better, than any of them. I actually put myself on a station with another server during a wedding and put my assistant manager in charge of the shift for the day.
When the staff assignments were given out, I could hear them yucking it up in the back hall, expecting me to fall flat on my face. To their surprise, our station was immaculate and maintained during the entire service. Our guests never left their seats during the meal because I made sure I got everyone’s drinks for them. On top of everything else, my partner walked with about $100 in side tips from the table because our guests were so happy with the service.
That one shift changed everything in terms of success. All of a sudden, the staff started to respect my recommendations for buffet setups and points of service because they finally respected my knowledge.
Now, as you climb the ranks, “proving” yourself on the floor is not a viable option, but proving your knowledge and abilities is possible. As a Director of Catering, you can ask another manager to sit in on one of your site visits and contract negotiations. This serves the purpose of letting him or her see you perform your duties as well as a way to welcome their input and questions about how the process is taking place.
Basically, you need to treat your staff as equals not as underlings. While it is clear you are in charge, you cannot look down on them. The case in Miami that just cost a hotel operator $2.5 million is positive proof of that. There, managers were referring to dishwashers as “slaves.” If they were calling them that, you know they were disrespecting them in other ways as well.
Like I said… if you want respect, you also have to give it. More importantly, you need to understand you have to earn respect because it is not a given regardless of how high up the food chain you are.
Looking for hotel managers that can take your operation to the next level? Joseph David International has been successfully placing managers in the hotel industry for more than a decade. To learn more about our hospitality recruiting services, click here.
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