With Regards: Archives ~
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With Regards: Archives ~ |
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-Dag Hammarskjold - Much has been in the news of recent time that spells commitment, duty, obligation, charge. The one that comes readily to mind is the news about our 24 U.S. Navy personnel who were detained on Hainan Island by the Chinese and finally found their way home. Do you think that any one of these young men and women envisioned themselves in such a situation when they responded to the recruitment effort of the Navy? I imagine they had visions of walking the deck of a gigantic aircraft carrier, of actually sailing into exotic ports of call they had only heard about. Maybe of being the pilot of a jet fighter streaking across the sky, or silent running in a nuclear sub miles beneath the Arctic ice. I am sure that not once did any of them had the vision of flying in a vintage EP-3E prop plane, on auto pilot while two Chinese Jet Interceptors darted within 3 feet, over and over again, or the panic when that EP-3 aircraft began spiraling down toward the China Sea, after having its prop struck by an enemy jet. Upon having made the commitment to serve on our armed forces, these 24, and thousands of others just like them, agreed to put themselves "In Harms Way", when called upon to do so. One of those 24 was a young man from a small town in Arizona and he received a hero's welcome home this week. Members of the media covering that story asked him this question: "Was he a hero?" His response "No", he responded "We were just doing our job!" Over three decades ago, a young lady just out of high school and a friend ventured into downtown Chicago with aspirations of finding jobs. As fate would have it, they found their way to the stretch along Michigan Avenue which contained several major hotels including the Pick Congress Hotel at the corner of Michigan Ave. & Congress, where I just happened to be the Front Office Manager. Back then I was not familiar with the processes of interviewing we now know as the "Screening Practice" or the more modern technique of "Mirror Imaging", so these young ladies and I just sat down and talked about the kind of jobs (the entire summer and then enroll into college in the fall) they were looking for and attempted to match their ambitions with our opportunities. Oh yes, we talked about benefits and wages, but back then those things were not much to talk about. Mostly we talked about the Hospitality Business and the commitment it took to excel in the profession. I don't remember the name of the one we didn't match up with an opportunity, but the one who found her first full-time/summer only job, was the only daughter of David and "Gert" Kelley. Sure enough, when fall rolled around that year, the young lady fulfilled her stated ambition and departed for the college of her choice. Just prior to Thanksgiving that year I received a call from Miss Kelley stating that she was coming back to Chicago for the Holiday and asking if she could work for a few days at the hotel while she was home. As many of you are aware, staffing a major hotel over the holidays is always difficult, so I advised her that we would be glad (laughing out of the side of my mouth) to give her some hours. The nearer it got to the time when Miss Kelley was to return to college, the longer her face got and every once in a while you could catch a glint of something in her eye. If I remember correctly it was about 4:00 p.m. the Thursday of her last week, when I first had the opportunity to meet Mr. & Mrs. Kelley because they came to express their concerns about their daughter and her future. It seemed that the Hospitality Business, the Pick and myself had blinded her to the extent that she had informed the Kelley's that she was not going to return to college and that if I would not let her stay employed at the Pick Congress, she would just find another hotel that would give her a job, and that was that! At a relatively young age she knew what she wanted and had the guts to go for it. Last I heard from her she indicated that she was working a minimum of 65 hours per week because she had to terminate the Regional VP and had to train a new one. I doubt that Shell Hospitality understands that kind of commitment. Susan Carol Kelley reached her point of no return as a teenager. It was just about seven years ago that another young lady responded to a Scottsdale Camelback Resort classified ad for a Purchasing Agent. She was among twelve who were interviewed and, while several others had more actual experience in purchasing, non were as vivacious and enthusiastic as Miss Davis. She had received her degree in Hotel Management from UNLV, spent some time at the Hyatt on Hilton Head Island and, was then employed at the Hyatt at Gainey Ranch in the purchasing department. It did not take long for Miss. Davis to meet and exceed the challenges of the purchasing department and to seek other task which she could perform at the resort. When SCR went through its restructuring into Horizontal Management, four separate Divisions were established and the opportunity for four resort associates to assume leadership positions as Directors of those Divisions (Guest - Property - Administrative - Marketing), Miss Davis (shortly to become Mrs. Entwistle) readily assumed the position of Director Administrative Services. The Director of Administration at SCR is responsible for such areas as Accounting, Human Resources, Security, Purchasing, Contract Administration, Insurance and almost all other "back office" areas. SCR changed its operational approach for many reasons however, primarily because the existing origination structures were dysfunctional, management had become complacent and the lack of creative management was obvious. Lori and the three counterparts were advised that during the transformation from old to new, they were expected to become the standard bearers through proactivity. This proactivity would come in the form of an obsession with responsiveness to customers, both internal and external. We would, in fact, demand constant innovation, the formation of partnerships with all of our people, and the development of a support system aimed at measuring the "right stuff". They were going to create excitement, zest, and enthusiasm among their colleagues for the changes which were going to occur and the vision which inspired those changes. They were going to become flexible, porous, adaptive, fleet-of-foot, and fully engaged in provoking swift action to effect the constant improvement of everything. The fact was that our people were boss watchers and to succeed in the Management Transformation our associates would have to "feel", "smell", or literally "see" the vigorous pursuit of worthwhile ideas at the center of our organization. A "glow" would have to come from those at the center, from the directors availability, informality, energy and hustle, from rule by example, role model, spirited behavior and fun. Lori's belief in the principles of Horizontal Management were enhanced through the solid foundation provided by her formal education and her pure enthusiasm. Lori literally grabbed the ball and ran with it thus, she quickly assumed a position on the leading edge of change and began the evolution (both internally and externally) which would lead to her becoming the Resort General Manager in 1999. Preparation, enthusiasm and commitment again led to startling achievement. When her point of no return came, Lori Davis Entwistle was prepared, to not only survive, but to prosper. It was just over a year ago that another young lady determined that she would go looking for change. Sarah Karlson was making good money as a food server but did not envision herself waiting tables all her life. Sarah found a second job as a front desk clerk on the morning shift at SCR so she could continue her evening position of waiting tables at the Olive Garden Italian Restaurant. Miss Karlson had several things going for her. She was young, very bright, enthusiastic, personable, attractive, and eager. What my Pop would have describe as "bright eyed and bushy tailed." Right off, everyone (associates & customers) liked Sarah because of her personality and great smile, however it was evident, early on, that there was more to young Miss Karlson than those pearly whites. Sarah came to SCR during a periods of turmoil at the Front Desk. Just about the entire crew was new and somewhat of a leadership vacuum existed. She quickly absorbed the systems and procedures and began to assist Robin Freese (Guest Service Manager) in the training the several newcomers. In rapid succession, Sarah went through the MOD (Manager on Duty) training program, attended the PRO Management Key Staff Summit in December of 2000, again in March of 2001 and, recently accepted a supervisory position in the Guest Services Department. I am not sure that Sarah has reached her point of no return as of yet, however, it is clear that she has many of the same qualities which were evident in both Sue Kelley and Lori Davis Entwistle. The Hospitality Industry is in desperate need for young people like Sarah Karlson and we can only hope that when it comes time for her to make a long term commitment, our challenges will inspire her like no others. Final thought THE STREET has recently featured a section which contains a list of women in positions of authority within the industry. Sue Kelley is already on that list and should be on the list of people in positions of authority within the industry. I know of no individual who is held in higher esteem by their peers than she is. It was indeed a sad statement about our industry that her chair was conspicuously empty when over three dozen of us gathered around a large table in the Management Committee meeting during the recent ARDA Conference in Orlando. It is my sincere hope those ladies just coming into their own (such as Lori Entwistle) and those on the verge of making a commitment to our industry (such as Sarah Karlson) will come to know that most in the leadership positions in the Timeshare or Vacation Ownership Industry are visionaries and that there are truly only a few who wear blinders. |
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Jerry Sikes, RRP / CHA, is President of Professional Resort Operators, Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona. He has 35 years in the Hospitality Industry / 25 years in Timesharing, and is the current Co-Chairman of ARDA Arizona as well as Chairman of the Arizona Timeshare Management Association. Jerry is a frequent guest speaker regionally and nationally on all aspects of Timeshare Management and a frequent contributor of articles for industry publications. Email: boyjerry@cox.net Phone 480-947-3300 Fax 480-947-6853 Web site: http://www.protimeshare.com |
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