Becoming an Inclusive Leader - Bernadette Thompson
Change yourself as leader
1. Step One | Look at how you treat yourself.
Do you like the way you are livinglife? Are you satisfiedwith your private life?If you are dissatisfied, you'll be unhappy, demotivated and
full (or at least half full) of negativeattitudes. How can you expect your hotel executiveteam and the other employeesto become
colleaguesor friends? How can you expect your boss to respect you? Is it reasonable to expect your staff to trust your compe tenciesall of
the time?
I recommendthat you lookat life positively.You'vegot one chance at life. "Lifeiswhat happensto you whileyou're busy making other
plans" – so wrote John Lennon. Don't waste any timewith daysfeeling down andnegative.
Step Two | Look at how you treat your colleagues.
Are you respected by your team and all employees? Are there gapsthat even you will admit to?
Well then, workon closing those gaps. Start by treating all your colleagues – more senior and lesssenior – as if they were guests that
you've invitedintoyour home. Practice. And practiceagainbecause practice makesperfect.
Step Three | Look at how you treat the team.
How are you developingthe team? How are you communicating withthe team?How isthe team communicating with you?Have you go t a
long-term service orientated team in placeor are you limiting yourselvesby focusing on short term targets? Are you training theteam or
just the team members? Are you delegating enough,too much, or too little? Are you supportive of the team whendifficulttime scome
round?
You'll succeedas a hotel team leader when the team aroundyou, led by you,and
of whichyou are a part, succeeds. Workhard at leadingand beingled; work hard
at developingthe team and beingdevelopedby the team.
Step Four | Look at how you treat the guest.yyyy
Do you go out of your way to understand the businessfrom the outside in? What isthe guest experience from the start of the jou rney
(browsing) to the end of the journey (invoicingor posting a commenton TripAdvisor)? And where on that journey are the pain pointsthat
you and your team can address? Are your SOP's current and relevant to the expectationsof tomorrow'sguests? Are tonight'sin -house
guests your best advertisement for tomorrow'scustomers?
Everything you do to add valueto the experience of each and every guest will repay itself; every guest that staysin your hotel and leaves
without sensing that brand ownership representsa huge opportunity lost.
Conclusion
The hotel businessis a people business. We work with people, we leadpeople, we are led by people and we serve people. Hotel
managersthat focuson themselves, on their roleasteam playersand team members, on serving and beingserved, will be the g eneral
managersthat excel.
