Five Minutes of Hospitality Wisdom - 'What are you really in business for...?'

This is the initial post of a new series that we will be sharing with you - Five Minutes of Hospitality Wisdom, focusing on various topics throughout the hospitality industry in a quick read format.  Knowing that time is truly of the essence in our daily lives and that everything is moving faster and faster in business, how do we best choose to balance that with the needs of ourselves, our families, our co-workers, our guests and our businesses?  We will be exploring that throughout the upcoming posts - looking at striking a balance in our actions, decisions, learning and experiences.  

In the business world, there are successes and failures all of the time - just like in life.  Many times in business these are usually related to financial means and matters for companies, clients, operations and such.  And, sometimes, even when businesses are making money and seeming like a success, they are failing at delivering on the promise of hospitality to their staff and guests.

Profit hides a lot of 'sins' for operations, and only when you delve deeper into the business do you discover that all isn't just as rosy a picture as it seems.  Are most businesses designed to make money for their stakeholders and owners?  You bet.  Do most businesses truly care about their staff along the way while trying to make money?  Hmm, that's the question.

As an owner, operator or someone tasked with running a business, are you taking into account your 'internal' customer as much as your 'external' customers?  Are you taking the time to truly value what is important to the members of your team?

Next time you are working together with your staff, think about what they need to do their jobs better and thus more productive, be more engaged with each other and your guests, and genuinely enjoy the work that they are doing at your organization.