Insider: Renovation is a State of Mind

By Rob Rush, CEO, LRA Worldwide

Mr. Rob Rush

One of the requirements of being a regular contributor and editorial board member for Hotel Business Review is that I brainstorm a year’s worth of topics in advance so that the editors can map out an editorial calendar.  Each year I outline four or five topics that seem as if they will be top of mind in the coming year.  Each year I craft each article synopsis with care, ensuring that the topics are eye-catching, thought-provoking and different from one another. 

And then, every three months, I sit down and write.  Regardless of the topic as written or how seemingly disparate that topic was from the previous assignment, inevitably the article begins to meander back to the same theme.   

People.  Personal interactions.  “High Touch” experiences.  Those moments of truth are the currency of the hospitality industry and really any industry, company or brand that considers itself a participant in the “experience economy” in general, and invariably becomes a theme as I actually put pen to paper.   

As you might have guessed, my most recent contribution to this week’s Hotel Business Review, "Renovation is a State of Mind", is no different.  With expenditures on hotel renovations totaling in the multi-billions for 2006 (and growing upwards of 25-percent from the previous year), why is there much less of a focus, let alone investment, on an accompanying “renovation” of the people at a given property?    

We see it time and again – an owner or brand invests millions in a physical property facelift and wonders why the boost is only short lived.  As the article discusses in more depth, the answer is fairly obvious -  there is usually little or no thought to “renovating” the guest experience by dedicating the same resources to those most responsible for providing the memorable, engaging, loyalty-inspiring elements of that guest experience.  The staff. 

At LRA, we send our consultants out on upwards of 13,000 property visits in a calendar year, and we are constantly amazed at the feedback that comes back from the field.  The refrain is familiar. “It was a beautifully redone property, they must have invested millions. I don’t think the staff got the memo that the property is ‘new and improved’ however – they seemed to be going through the same old motions.”  

This assessment is as sad as it is avoidable.  It is typical, however, of the “penny-wise, pound-foolish” dynamic of investing heavily primarily in things you can touch tangibly... but not so much in those that you can feel emotionally. 

As always, give the article a read and forward me your feedback.  Feel free to reach out with questions or for discussion – my e-mail box is always open! 

Cheers, 

Rob Rush

CEO

LRA Worldwide, Inc.

215-449-0301

rob.rush@lraworldwide.com

www.lraworldwide.com