Understanding hospitality service and leadership from the inside; this month’s review looks into ‘The New Gold Standard’ book on leadership principles for creating legendary customer experience by Joseph A. Michelli.
The New Gold Standard by Joseph A. Michelli | Review by Jupiter Humphrey-Bishop AIH
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company has been an inspiration, providing a style and detail that many admire; one step ahead of the game, it has long been creating experiences and lifelong memories. Now, through the company’s ‘The New Gold Standard’ book, we can uncover the story of The Ritz-Carlton’s great success.
Discover the leadership principles it practises and it becomes clear why its guest experiences are some of the best in the world; they are fundamental to maintaining world-class service. The five principles are: Define and refine, Empower through trust, It’s not about you, Deliver wow and Leave a lasting footprint.
The first, ‘Define and refine’, leads to finding focus within this busy and fast moving industry. Developing a passion and desire for constant self-improvement through each stage of the refining and fine tuning, allows you to evolve, not only for the benefit of the business but to ensure you remain abreast of ever-evolving consumer desires and trends. It is essential to continually improve your business to stay ahead of external challenges.
The second principle investigates ‘Empowering trust’ and how this positively affects the business. It starts with the hiring process, defining the difference between employing just anyone to ‘selecting’ someone to fit each role. The principle also explains how trusting employees helps them feel empowered and engaged in their decision making and career development.
‘It’s not about you’, is about building your business focused on others; The Ritz-Carlton looked outwards worldwide to drive its internal innovation process. It understood early on the benefits and impact of gaining feedback on the business, listening closely to consumers, and having a culture of creativity.
‘Delivering wow’ delves into the ultimate guest experience. There is only one first impression, so it is crucial that it is a positively memorable one. When talking about the ability to turn wow into action, the Ritz-Carlton closely follows its own advice; having a real understanding of communication and how to ‘be there’ for your guests inspires loyalty.
The last of the five principles, ‘Leave a lasting footprint’, leads to longevity. If done correctly, you can turn a one-off guest experience into a recurrence, as customers become regulars at your business; you can steer the strengths of your business into avenues that add value to the lives of your guests. This principle also explains that when we achieve, we should give back, to inspire and teach others.
Throughout the book, the author highlights top ‘striking for gold’ points, summing up each chapter in concise, easy to digest elements.
Overall, the book is a fantastic read; it is an inspiration to those looking to delve into the world of luxury guest experiences from a leadership point of view.
This review and rating is the opinion of the reviewer.
5 stars = Exceptional not to be missed | 4.5 stars = Essential read | 4 stars =Very good | 3 stars = Good | 2 stars = Poor | 1 star = Very poor
Suitability: This is book is suitable for managers at all levels in a customer-facing or non-customer-facing role. Ideal for anyone interested in the principles of exceptional customer service and how to achieve it.
This book fits into the Business / Customer & Guest / Leadership & Team Pillars under the IoH’s Five Pillars off Learning, a new approach to CPD professional learning and development based on the five core areas of hospitality management.
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