The Paper Tiger Syndrome: Standards that Only Work on Paper
Abhi Mukherjii Executive Director of Operations at NovusLuxus LtdTop Contributor
The Paper Tiger Syndrome: Standards that Only Work on Paper Admit it. We’ve all been there and seen in practice.
The message that’s handed down from upper management, through the ranks, to the employees who work directly with the actual customers who pay the bills and drive the revenue.
Or the ideals that management expects you to uphold that they fail to do themselves.
They could be instructions about how to work with customers, how to get jobs done, and the manner in which responsibilities are handled.
There are so many processes and procedures in place that many of them actually never make it down to the lower level employees; there are simply too many of them.
Yet when you spend your time in the trenches, down in the mud, you know full well that these systems, these ideals, rarely ever works out the way it should on paper.
There are a million things that can go wrong (or right, if the stars align in such a perfect way for your day) that can transform what might be a typical situation into something far beyond the scope or ordinary.
Ultimately, though, we all know and fully understand the value of teamwork, customers, and service, but at the same time, those standards can sometimes seem as though they’re written from outer space.
There’s always going to be those individuals (customers as well as employees) who are ornery, who are never happy, and who will try and take advantage of the system. Managing hospitality or a company requires care, patience, and a thick skin.
For some, it might be easier to be thrown into a tiger cage and hash it out with one of those four-legged creatures.
There are some people who simply will not be satisfied, who have no interest in obtaining service from your company again, and who make it a habit to be as ornery and difficult as possible.
Some employees take on a managerial role and dictate what everyone else needs to do while doing little themselves. This creates nothing but tension among the ranks.
Then you have the customers who are never happy. That’s where the rules and expectations on paper can fall apart.
Standards on paper are fine to get everyone on the same page.
You still need to apply them to the real world, though. For that, you need some common sense, a little faith from the boss, and a system by which everyone can be heard. Find out what a talented team can do for your hospitality business, contact NovusLuxus today
Taken from the Caterer and Hotelkeeper.