CHEVY CHASE, Md.--In a personal effort to "jump-start" business at its Asian hotels, in the wake of the recent Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic, Ritz-Carlton President and Chief Operating Officer Simon Cooper will launch a late July series of hotel "Re-launch and Renewal Countdowns" in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Singapore - cities where travel was most affected by the virus.
These sessions are created to prepare the luxury hotels and their staff to be 100% ready for the anticipated return of business to pre-SARS levels in the months to come. "We understand the necessary reductions in hours of the past few months, when business dropped so sharply, has been difficult for all of The Ritz-Carlton staff in those cities," said Cooper. "We want to welcome them back to work, reinvigorated and excited about the prospect of getting back to the business of offering exceptional hospitality." Current plans call for five days of retraining sessions highlighting all aspects of Ritz-Carlton Gold Standards, from The Credo to the Employee Promise and The Basics (see attached fact sheet).
At other Ritz-Carlton locations around the world, the daily "Line-up" message shared with employees before the start of their work day, will reflect what is happening in Asia that week, to build solidarity amongst the 22,000+ staff at hotels from Barcelona to Bahrain, San Francisco to Sharm el Sheikh.
Employees at the three hotels will participate in a five-day "countdown" process. The "countdown" is an energizing and training exercise unique to Ritz-Carlton and typically used to open a new hotel. This will consist of daily training classes to focus on the company philosophy, an employee "re-orientation," leadership seminars, review and re-drafting of departmental mission statements and an overall enlivening of The Ritz-Carlton service commitment to guests.
"We want to create the same exciting atmosphere our employees have when opening a new hotel. Reviewing their departmental mission statement, re-kindling their sense of teamwork will ensure that all our ladies and gentlemen are focused on the needs of their customers and current business requirements with a fresh sense of purpose," explained Vice President, Human Resources, International Hotels Vincent Mercurio.
Simon Cooper, as well Executive Vice President Herve Humler; Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing Bruce Himelstein; and Regional Vice President, Sales and Marketing Steve Davino will all be on-hand to share their vision and participate in interactive sessions with employees to guide the hotels to success post-SARS.
At the end of each hotel's five-day countdown process, counting down to the official "re-opening" a decade after many of these hotels first opened their doors to guests, employees will celebrate with the traditional pep rally. Messages of good will from the 50+ other Ritz-Carlton hotels and resorts worldwide will add to the grand finale celebration with the hope for a return to better times.
The schedule for the hotels' "Re-launch and Renewal Countdown," which will include visits with corporate clients, media interviews and interactive employee meetings with President Cooper and his corporate leadership team, is as follows:
July 28: The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong
July 29: The Portman Ritz-Carlton, Shanghai
July 30: The Ritz-Carlton, Hong Kong
July 31: The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. manages 54 luxury hotels around the world, including seven hotels in Asia.
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