In the heat of a busy service, with phones ringing and guests waiting, the first thing to collapse is usually communication. Information gets shouted, emails get skimmed, and nuance is lost.
In many industries, a miscommunication causes a delay. In the luxury hotel business, it causes a disaster. A missed dietary requirement, a forgotten VIP preference, or a tone-deaf response to a complaint can destroy years of brand loyalty in seconds.
Effective Communication is not just about being articulate; it is the central nervous system of your operation.
The Two-Way Street
We often train staff on what to say—scripting their responses to standard queries. But real mastery lies in how they listen.
Dr. Iwan Dietschi argues that the most powerful tool in a hotelier’s arsenal is not their voice, but their ears. Active listening—hearing what the guest is not saying—is what separates a transaction from an experience.
Furthermore, internal communication is the bedrock of trust. If a General Manager cannot communicate their vision clearly to the housekeeping team, that vision will never reach the guest room. The message must be consistent from the boardroom to the basement.
Bridging the Gap
In Mastering Hospitality, the chapter on communication goes deep into the psychology of interaction. It covers the crucial differences between communicating with guests versus communicating with stakeholders and owners.
You will learn how to adapt your style to different audiences, how to deliver difficult feedback to your team without demotivating them, and how to use non-verbal cues to read a room instantly.
Communication is a skill that can be engineered and improved. It is the bridge between your strategy and your execution.
Master the Message
Don’t let poor communication undermine your hard work. Learn the techniques to ensure your message lands correctly every single time.
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