Running a small- to medium-sized hotel operation requires the boss to wear many hats, including day-to-day, hands-on work in the operation. Thus, working on development of the company and addressing how to serve customers better is often left to chance or people adopt strategies of the previous generations. Omissions can be exposed when the right questions are asked, such as how can we best serve our customers? Ask employees what they would suggest about how they can do their jobs better or be more productive. What exactly is your target market and how can you attract and serve them better?
The answers to questions such as these can have the power in an organization to shift patterns of customer service and employee productivity.
If you perform strategic business planning, you easily will recognize the value of questions about goals and how the answers take you to strategies, tactics, responsibilities and expectations. You understand the discipline and accompanying rewards that are created when crucial questions are asked and thoughtful answers are given.
For example, what is the driving force of your company? Is it service, technology or sales? Another example: What major actions should be taken to increase revenue and reduce costs? As you can see, the answers quickly become goals that will drive the operation and its profitability.
The answers to the future questions always seem to be the toughest to deal with. The reason is simple: We are asked to think in a time zone of five to 10 years from now. This is so speculative that many conservative, hard-working folks have been molded and shaped to think the future is 60 days from now.
Those who can dream and envision the future are the ones who tend to succeed consistently in their personal lives, family lives, social lives and business careers.
What are some of the critical questions addressing the future? What size will your company be in five years? 10 years? What will you be doing? What role will other relatives have? Will company locations remain the same, change and/or be added? How will the operation be organized and structured? What is missing in your vision and how can it be added?
The list of questions below are likely to shift your mental activity, possibly your entire thought process, and increase profits as well.
- Do you hold regular employee, management and board meetings?
- Do you run your hotel operation like a business?
- Do you listen to ideas from key non-family and family employees?
- Do you meet with outside advisors on a regular basis?
- Are you good at delegating?
- Do you have ground rules for family participation in the business?
- Do family members feel fairly treated?
- Is family compensation comparable to non-family employee compensation?
- Who should be allowed to own stock?
- How should the next generation prepare to inherit wealth?
- Do you have a written succession plan?
- Do you have a buy/sell agreement that is understood by all partners?
- What or who should govern the distribution of profits?
- What should be the guidelines for ownership succession?
- How much money should the next generation leaders invest in the company?
hwn@questex.com
