Should Employees Come First in Hospitality? Let's Discuss This Shift in Priorities

Hi folks,

I was just going through today's edition of Ascent (TOI) when I read this small article. Though just a small one, it left me thinking. It's so true that today in the service sector, preferably in hospitality, the scenario has changed quite a bit. As quoted by an air hostess in the article, now the customer should come second, and it's the employees who should be treated as a priority.

Any views?

Dips

Hello Deepali,

I also read it in TOI. My view is that when we say "organization," it includes from the CEO to the last man. The organization is not a one-man show. It makes the people assemble under one roof, plan its activities, make people work, and organize its entire activities in such a way that its outcome/delivery reaches the customers/clients effectively. So, the customer is FIRST, and there is no SECOND before the organization. Of course, the employees need to get whatever they require to fulfill their agenda to serve their FIRST.

Wishes,
Senthil Raj
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Hi All,

Perhaps another way to phrase this issue is that there are internal customers and external clients. The skills required to service both groups are the same and ultimately both impact the bottom line of customer service - loyalty and retention. In both cases, a service is provided in the customer-supplier chain.

Cheers, JEV

Hi all,

The article by the professor at IIM Lucknow offers another perspective to consider.

Internal customers - it is true that internal customers come first and everything possible is being done to retain them.

External customers - we are not able to control their behavior and attitude, so what do we do? In the hospitality sector, an external customer may be a frequent high flier, but if their behavior is atrocious, what should we do? Should we turn away a permanent client?

For instance, if an internal customer is a very good performer but behaves badly with other customers, what actions should we take in this context after reading this article? How can we achieve this balance?

Regards

Is the customer really the king???

Referring to yesterday's article and the comment made by an Indian Airlines air hostess, I believe we all know about the services of Indian Airlines, as well as the rest (Jet, Air Sahara, and others).

Regarding other hospitality services, we know how they fleece money out of people, especially in times of emergency (hospitals with big-sounding names). We have also heard about the FMCG sector (colas to be more precise).

In how many sectors can we say that the customer is really the king???

Telecom operators provide many attractive schemes, but there is always a catch. Somewhere down the line, the customer is the loser.

Finance companies - they will do anything on this earth to get their money back.

Banks - Attractive schemes - you end up paying more than the interest and the principal if you have taken a loan from them. Indian Banks - we all know about the strike (SBI) and the difficulties faced by the customers.

And especially if it is a monopolistic market, then God help the customers.

It is true that these days the customer really has choices, but is he really the king???

Regards