Leighnea Phillips was still a college student when she started at Del Lago Resort in May of 1986.  She attended a local university during the day and worked the 3-11 pm shift as a Front Desk Clerk.  She took the job initially because it worked into her college schedule, but through that position she was also able to start down her chosen career path, which was to be a Controller of a large company.  Though she never thought she would end up in the hospitality industry, she fell in love with it and never left.  Throughout her career at Del Lago, she has been an Income Auditor, Accounts Receivable Clerk, Accounting Office Manager, Assistant Controller, Controller, Data Analyst and Director of Operations.  Currently, Leighnea is the Resort Manager at Del Lago and has been with the property for 17 years and 4 months. 

Stories like Leighnea�s are common for our employees, such as with James Coumbe, Regional Sales Manager who started as a Bellman and has been with the property over 13 years.  Or Theresa Mentzer, Senior Conference Manager, who began as a Front Desk Clerk and has been with the property 18 years.  And Del Lago has loyal employees like Bonifacio Hernandez, who has been in Grounds Maintenance performing the same duties with a big smile for over 20 years at the property.  Retaining good employees isn�t easy, but there are certainly best practices that Del Lago has identified over the years in order to hold on to our top-notch employees.  Because the hotel industry slump over the past few years has left many hotel staff less motivated and less challenged in their work, implementing these practices are more important now than ever before. 
 
 

On the whole, Del Lago Resort has managed to keep a loyal and tenured staff through the downturn economy.  In fact, 41 percent of all Del Lago employees have been at the property more than five years.  Twenty percent have been a team member for 10 years or more.  And, average tenure within the Sales & Marketing Department is 8.68 years�quite high for the hospitality industry.  Undoubtedly, Del Lago�s ability to maintain an extremely high tenure relates directly to the soundness of the team: the compatibility, the exchanging and inspiring of creative ideas, the mentoring relationships, and the

Del Lago Resort 600 Del Lago Blvd Montgomery, Texas

Certainly there are employee retention challenges specific to the hospitality industry.  How do we address those challenges and what are some strategies to keep valuable employees? 

An Industry Like No Other

The hospitality industry is obviously customer-service driven.  If your employees aren�t satisfied in their jobs, their unhappiness is bound to spill over into their attitudes and behaviors toward clients and guests.  Most hospitality positions require people to be in constant communication with the public while servicing guests.  Because of this, employee satisfaction is vitally important to the success of your business.  Everyone knows that it costs much more to hire and train a new employee than it does to keep an existing employee.  However, besides the monetary benefits, tenured employees provide many more advantages to the company. 

Employees with high tenure in the hospitality industry can offer benefits to the company both internally and externally. Internally, employees know the business. They know what the issues and challenges are, and they are comfortable taking the lead or taking an active part in company decisions. These people are also more experienced and can also assist or be a mentor to newer employees when needed, taking the sole responsibility of guidance off of management.  Externally, tenured employees know the organization so well that they are knowledgeable when talking to customers.  They can anticipate problems or concerns with guests and clients more quickly and can address them correctly when they happen. 

Let�s examine some tactics for cultivating a strong internal team, starting from the very beginning. 

Get Them Started Off Right

Ensure from the initial phase of the interviewing process that planning, time, and energy are invested upfront to find a good match for the position that you are trying to fill.  Obviously skills are important to qualify, but making sure the applicant is an appropriate match for the industry and property culture can be equally as vital.  Settling for a warm body to fill an open position comes with the expense of correcting the situation down the road. 

In addition, make certain  that from the start, even potential employees feel like they are valued. At Del Lago, we involve several staff members in the interviewing process with potential employees.  We feel that it is critical to introduce potential employees to people in all departments. Potential employees get to talk with our staff at all levels, in order to get a better idea of the overall picture of the company functions and structure.  This benefits people in two ways:  giving existing employees input and say in important company decisions, and showing the interviewees that they are valued. 

It�s important to us at Del Lago that we all agree on a new hire. If someone has a concern, we welcome open dialogue about that potential employee so that issues get out in the open before a decision is made.  Says Kim Lowe, Regional Sales Manager at Del Lago who has been there for nearly eight years, �Office camaraderie is a big part of why I stay at Del Lago.  I work with my friends and Del Lago makes a big effort to hire team players.�

Once hired, make sure employees are given thorough job-specific training, property-wide tours and descriptions of other departments and roles at the company.  At Del Lago, new employees attend a day-long orientation session that includes standards and goal setting.  This gives the new hire an overall view of the company and insight into what is critical to our growth.  It�s important to get employees involved with company initiatives early on. 

Get Your Staff Involved

Company planning and decision-making is not just for the executives.  Part of what makes a great staff is the different perspectives and input that each person can offer.  A critical part of retaining employees is involving them in important company decisions and giving them the opportunity to make their voices heard on a consistent basis.  Each idea brought up is valid, and meetings are seen as an open playing field for each team member to express their ideas, questions and concerns.  �Involving employees in company planning and decisions makes them feel valued,� says Jo Smith, Director of Sales, and a 16-year Del Lago veteran. 

Industry meetings for the staff outside of the company are beneficial, too.  We encourage our staff to regularly attend local industry meetings.  They can use the meetings to network and gather feedback from other companies within the industry.  If you extract the best practices of those organizations and share them with your team, then you can find ways to incorporate those best practices into the existing organizational structure. 

Implement Team Building 

Some of the most positive staff experiences can result from internal team building exercises.  Del Lago is a firm believer in gathering employees together for purposes of relationship building, and these types of activities have proven to help increase our tenure.  Scavenger hunts, sailing events, ropes challenge initiatives, and Frisbee golf tournaments are examples of leadership and team building activities.  These endeavors build continuity within employees, create cohesive work environments, strengthen communication skills and teach colleagues to trust one another.  Having a strong internal team is paramount to keeping a tenured staff.  An added bonus, studies have shown that team building activities not only produce motivated employees, they shape bottom line results. 

Besides organized team building activities, it�s important to get employees together for social activities. This is a chance for others to get to really �know� each other�what is going on in their personal lives, what they like to do, etc.  This helps employees feel important and it helps people understand each other from different perspectives.  �Whether it�s on or off property, Del Lago frequently organizes happy hours, lunches or dinners together,� says Smith. �These don�t have to cost the company a lot of money, either.  Many times each employee brings a dish for lunch and we all informally sit and eat together as a chance to socialize and get to know each other.�

Achieving a common goal in a positive, fun and social setting will make the team stronger. The stronger the solidarity of the team, the higher likelihood of developing a shared vision and commitment.  It�s important to note that team building is a constant.  Without focusing on team building, work levels will dip.  In contrast, work levels will flourish if this area remains a focus. 

Recharge the Batteries

It may sound trite, but it is essential to keep both management and staff energized. Implement brainstorming sessions with the team to solicit new approaches and ideas.  Help them hone their critical thinking skills. Promote interaction and encourage laughter. People who have fun at work are more productive and �burnout� becomes less of a threat. Create a tip or obstacle-of-the-week session. Ask each person to share a dilemma currently faced, then encourage the rest of the team to find a solution. 

Even more important � don�t make the mistake of asking for feedback, then shelving it. Follow through and implement the best ideas from brainstorming sessions. Show the team their ideas make a difference and that management is actively listening to them. 

Take the Challenge

It�s that simple � challenge your employees.  If someone is not given a chance to do something �out-of-the-box,� then how will they shine? Each person needs to have their skills and mindset challenged to some degree. People respect managers who give them tough jobs�it shows that you have faith in them and that you care enough to give them a big opportunity. 

�I work in a very supportive environment,� says Lowe.   �Professionally, I am encouraged to take chances and govern my own direction making my job more of a personal challenge to me, rather than an impersonal script.�

Recognize, Reward and Incentivize

Openly praise and give credit where credit is due. At group meetings, share result-oriented ideas and strategies and ask individuals to elaborate for the team. Most hospitality staffs, whether it�s sales teams out in the field or those dealing with customers at the facility, face similar challenges. Thus, when one person has an idea or strategy that works, it could be implemented to assist others in conquering business. Moreover, the recognition is a tremendous confidence boost for the person with the original idea. Positive recognition empowers each staff member to think strategically so he or she can be the one sharing a successful idea next time. 

At Del Lago, we value employee input immensely.  Part of a successful team means recognizing the differences and the strengths that each team player has.  One person on our staff is great at sales presentations, while another one is extremely knowledgeable and analytical with numbers.  One person is a great writer�another brings humor and spunk to all of our meetings.  Many of the players are very creative, out-of-the-box thinkers, while others think more realistically.  We have a good mix and balance of talent.   At Del Lago, we play off of each team member�s strengths in order to better complete the whole team. 

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Respect your employees.  Remember to always give them the benefit of the doubt.  If an employee makes a mistake � consult their record. Is this something that is consistent or did it happen just once? 

It is impossible to motivate your team until you know what it�s like in the trenches.  Understand their challenges and help them search out and create solutions.  As a manager, you can't effectively manage something you're not in touch with, and trying to do so will destroy your credibility. Savvy staff members know whether their managers really understand the problems they face daily.  Don�t be afraid to admit a lack of understanding of the challenges and stresses they face.  Admit a knowledge gap and ask how to most effectively help them.  Honesty encourages people to be drawn into the process.  This empowers your organization and keeps your hand on the pulse.

Live by example.  Nothing is more important than consistency and passion.  Walk the walk and talk the talk�and be passionate about it.  Love what you do.  To be a leader you have to inspire, not control.  True leaders find followers whether they are looking for them or not.  Leaders constantly "coach" and fuel the process.  Your passion for what you do will spread to your team and strengthen their commitment to their job. 

Respect the fact that each employee has a personal life in addition to his or her professional one.  It�s a good idea for managers to really know their employees so that they can more understand where they are coming from as far as their behavior in the workplace. 

�A huge plus at Del Lago is that personally, my supervisors and colleagues share my sense of balance concerning personal and professional time,� says Lowe.  � I am respected here and my opinion counts.�

In fact, Benchmark Hospitality addresses this philosophy as outlined in our guiding management principles:  �At Benchmark Hospitality, we operate under a simple premise:  people excel in an environment that fosters creativity and determination.  That�s why we�re passionate about everything we do, we encourage innovation and ideas and we recognize the value of balancing living, learning and leisure.�� 

Keep Communication Open

This may be the single most important strategy to improving employee tenure. Without communication, we can�t help others and they can�t help us.  Communication between teams, up or down, allows thoughts and concerns to surface, allows ideas to be exchanged, and strengthens relationships.  Stay responsive and move decisively when it comes to addressing concerns or requests.  It is up to management to develop a good system of company communications, employee relations, training and development that will lead to an environment of openness, cooperation, teamwork, and empowerment that will benefit all the parties involved. 

Understand what motivates each team member by spending individual time with each person and letting it be known that supervisors are available for advice and counsel. Ask open-ended questions and be in tune to their body language.  Obviously, executives can�t have an �open-door� policy eight hours of every day.  However, if you communicate to your staff that you are open and willing to hear comments, questions or suggestions, people may be warmer to the idea of talking with you.   Listen to your team.  If a staff member feels like he or she can talk openly with you and they make a difference in their job, the likelihood of them staying is greater. 

Benchmark Hospitality, an independent hospitality management company based in The Woodlands, Texas, operates resorts, conference centers and hotels both domestically and internationally.  For locations of Benchmark Hospitality properties and for additional information, visit Benchmark's Web site at www.benchmarkhospitality.com.