Employee Satisfaction Affects Top Resorts

Happy Staff, Happy Guest

The hospitality and vacation ownership industry is aware that the essential elements of a top timeshare resort are amenities and a high level of service from a welcoming, enthusiastic, and accommodating team of resort professionals. But how often do we think about the amenities and benefits offered to resort staff to ensure they remain enthusiastic? Research has proven that great customer service is bound to employee satisfaction. The key to elevating your resort may be hiding in the Back of the House, right under your nose!

Employee Satisfaction Budget

Too many times in the scope of a project, I have seen the break room and back-of-house facilities given the bare minimum of resources and budget – leading to uninspiring spaces for staff to recharge. I have also worked with brands looking at their employee spaces with the same eyes and finances as the rest of their resort. Wherever you land on that spectrum, there is something you can do to improve the downtime your staff has each day. Ashira Prossack for Forbes says, “If even a fraction of a customer experience budget was spent on employee experience, there would be a huge return on investment.” The benefit is creating a place everyone wants to be. Whatever your resources, get creative with the basics.

Related: Three Key Steps to Find the Right Employees Online

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry

There are few things that reenergize employees more than fueling up on their break. Providing employees with grab-and-go snacks and beverages is a simple way to boost morale. Believe it or not, studies have shown employees provided with free snacks are happier at their jobs than those without. Keeping team favorites on hand sends the message that your staff is cared for and known. Save your staff time during their short break by bringing the coffee shop to them. A beverage machine that makes more than drip coffee or a house cold brew on tap will head off the 3 pm slump and save your staff some hard-earned cash. Maximize staff mealtime by investing in multiple microwaves, refrigerators, and small appliances to ensure downtime isn’t spent in line.

If your budget allows for the renovation or addition of space, think about the project in zones of activity. In your meal zone, provide a variety of seating options such as table and chairs, booths, bar height seating, and bonus points if you can provide outdoor seating as well.

Related: Employee Policies for Hospitality: 7 Key Considerations

Kick Back and Relax

Variety in seating, along with a change in colors and materials can signal a shift in activity zones from eating to relaxing. Soft seating such as armchairs, loungers, and sofas on a carpeted area invite employees to unwind and rejuvenate when they need a break. Encourage low-key activities such as reading, with different lighting elements or pod seating with built-in lighting.

Related: Improve your Resort with Illumination

Privacy for employees during downtime can be essential, particularly for those interfacing with the public all day. Isolated booths for alone time or to catch up on phone calls will be exactly what some need to return to work with a smile. With so many premanufactured options on the market now, you can even provide your staff with a napping pod or meditation pod for complete rejuvenation. Don’t forget about a Mother’s Room for those staff members who are pregnant or nursing

Meet and Play

For those whose work is more solitary, socializing with employees in different departments during a break can make the difference between looking forward to and dreading, going to work. Opposite the resting zone, and with distance in-between, provide an area for staff to gather. A long table and a deck of cards may do the trick. If you have the space and budget, game tables like ping pong, billiards, foosball, and shuffleboard immediately create an atmosphere of fun. Other crowd-pleasers such as a putting green or cornhole set up give employees a unique opportunity to interact.

Before you invest in any upgrades or renovations to the employee spaces at your resort, start with asking staff for their input. Understanding how they prefer to spend their downtime with gives insight into how you can best support them. As you tailor your design solutions to their preferences, they will experience care and attention, that will surely be passed on to the guests of your resort.

Source: How Employee Satisfaction Affects Customer Satisfaction (forbes.com)

Margit Whitlock is Principal and Creative Director for Architecture and Interior Design at Architectural Concepts Inc., a San Diego, CA-based Architectural and Interior Design Firm specializing in hospitality design. Ms. Whitlock is an accomplished speaker with engagements at multiple ARDA conventions, and HD Boutique shows as well as being frequently published in magazines such as Developments, Resort Trades, Hotel Business, Hiatus, Vacation Industry Review, and Resort Management and Operations.