Executive Potential Enhancement - Part 2
Hospitality goes far beyond bonhomie, it fuels business
Hospitality Quotient is an important determinant of business progress. Actually, it fuels business. It is the art and science of keeping customers, it is termed as entertainment. That is why it has been included in 'Relationship Management’ signifying that it is not based on a deal to deal basis but is ongoing care. To be meaningful it should be a part of company's culture and the not any specific team or department’s sole responsibility.]It is a delicate task and even a minor slip-up can cause significant damage. The policy should be uniform and not one for VIPs and another for non-VIPs. However, in actual practice, in many companies, it is done as a matter of routine lacking spirit and warmth.
We are adopting a storytelling approach in this section to be in sync with the book "Stories at Work" reviewed alongside. Readers will find a lesson in each of the stories.
The CEO of a large Indian company and its young Export Manager happened to be in Chicago on the same day. The CEO asked the manager to meet him at a hotel in the Water Towers area... After discussing business matters for an hour, the CEO said, "Let's go for dinner.” It was a wintry day and the manager thought it might be better to go to the hotel’s coffee house, where he had entertained a client at lunch. He proposed this to the CEO saying, "We will go to the hotel’s coffee house. I was there earlier and liked their specialities very much." The CEO replied, "You should try out different restaurants so that you can take guests to places they would like to go." The CEO asked him to check the City Guide and find a Greek restaurant. Besides the excellent food, there was a 'plate smashing' show and a fun vibe among the diners. The export manager liked the moussaka very much and enjoyed the overall atmosphere. He learnt the lesson that you should go by your guests' preferences and not your own. And you should suggest places where the guests can get an exceptional experience and have a story to tell family and friends.
An eminent businessman in India was expecting a delegation of proposed collaborators from the USA. The delegates would be accompanied by their wives. He was advised to host a dinner at his residence. He was reluctant because his wife spoke English, but was not very fluent in it. She, very cleverly, got Indian and American chefs, set up an attractive kitchen in the garden that was tastefully illuminated for the dinner. When the guests arrived and had engaged in some conversation, she asked the ladies if they would like to see how Indian food was cooked. In the kitchen, the chefs were preparing different kinds of rotis, but it was the counter where 'rumali roti' was being made that attracted the foreigners. They were awed by the way in which the roti was tossed in the air. The hostess asked the guests if they wanted to try their hand at it. They were excited and put on the artful aprons, fumbled while tossing the dough and laughed as some couldn’t catch it and the roti fell to the ground. Later, they also watched other chefs at work. During the dinner, the ladies were excitedly narrating their experiences to their husbands.
Story 1
The CEO of a large Indian company and its young Export Manager happened to be in Chicago on the same day. The CEO asked the manager to meet him at a hotel in the Water Towers area... After discussing business matters for an hour, the CEO said, "Let's go for dinner.” It was a wintry day and the manager thought it might be better to go to the hotel’s coffee house, where he had entertained a client at lunch. He proposed this to the CEO saying, "We will go to the hotel’s coffee house. I was there earlier and liked their specialities very much." The CEO replied, "You should try out different restaurants so that you can take guests to places they would like to go." The CEO asked him to check the City Guide and find a Greek restaurant. Besides the excellent food, there was a 'plate smashing' show and a fun vibe among the diners. The export manager liked the moussaka very much and enjoyed the overall atmosphere. He learnt the lesson that you should go by your guests' preferences and not your own. And you should suggest places where the guests can get an exceptional experience and have a story to tell family and friends.
Story 2
An eminent businessman in India was expecting a delegation of proposed collaborators from the USA. The delegates would be accompanied by their wives. He was advised to host a dinner at his residence. He was reluctant because his wife spoke English, but was not very fluent in it. She, very cleverly, got Indian and American chefs, set up an attractive kitchen in the garden that was tastefully illuminated for the dinner. When the guests arrived and had engaged in some conversation, she asked the ladies if they would like to see how Indian food was cooked. In the kitchen, the chefs were preparing different kinds of rotis, but it was the counter where 'rumali roti' was being made that attracted the foreigners. They were awed by the way in which the roti was tossed in the air. The hostess asked the guests if they wanted to try their hand at it. They were excited and put on the artful aprons, fumbled while tossing the dough and laughed as some couldn’t catch it and the roti fell to the ground. Later, they also watched other chefs at work. During the dinner, the ladies were excitedly narrating their experiences to their husbands.
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