I don’t believe I am touching a new
subject here but what I am talking
about today is the contoversy of
Social Media language used online
by the majority of people. I wish to
be allowed to rant about this topic
as this is someting we have to deal
probably everyday as hoteliers both
when handling guests as well as
applicants using Social Media when
applying for jobs. For the sake of
this article, I would like to focus on
using Social Media when looking for
jobs.
I am sure many of us have seen the
most annoying “check my profile”
or similar comments on some of the
most popular professional networking
sites. These comments are posted
by junior and (surprisingly) some
senior professionals looking for a new
challenge in this amazing industry or
interacting in social media.
So, my question is, do we really
have to force the new and different
generations who are used to sms,
tweets, chats and other methods
that makes communication shorter
and faster, or do we need to adapt to
it?
Although I belong to what is called
Gen X (the one after the Baby
Boomers, falling between 1960 and
1980, for those who might ask this
question), we all know how the newer
generations are communicating
and talking to each other. Besides, I
believe the Generati on X has caused
what is now called the “mobile
culture”. In other words, a culture
where everything is faster, available
on the go and 24/7. So maybe this is
the price we need to pay.
I have been working, particularly
in the past 8-10 years, with such
generations (Y/Millennials/Z) and
frankly I am no longer surprised
neither can I challenge this new
way to communicate to these new
generations we are now working with.
So, for example, when posting a job
for my own hotel, I look at each and
every comment and see which one
could suit my need should the profile
be right.
At times, I also receive emails
with attached a CV (often poorly
done) and just a few generic words
of introduction. Well, if I had to
take each application the way my
applications were taken some 20
years back, today the struggle
to finding good people would be
multiplied 100 times to say the least.
So, I feel obliged to read each and
every application as I could possibly
miss an amazing applicant.
I believe the fault is somehow
ours. Just ask yourself these
questions “who to blame for the
poor communication skills the new
generations have?” and “how much
are hotel schools and/or hotels
teaching today’s junior hoteliers in
terms of email etiquette and social
media behavior?”.
And now let’s move on to the
next and most important point,
EDUCATION.
Yes, I would like to take this
opportunity to speak as loud and
clear as possible to educate our
young hoteliers in what is today’s
real hospitality and how to interact
in the world of service, customer
experience, business management,
communication and relationship
building with people at all levels.
This message or better, this appeal,
is to every Hotel School and
Hospitality leader around the world,
to ensure the right amount of time
is spent in the real education of the
individual and not just what is in the
company’s books.
Providing real life examples and
sharing personal stories, can
enrich so much and “shortcut”
the education of an individual and
prepare them for their future.
My take on this is that we didn’t and
we don’t do enough. We spend hours
in training on company’s SOPs,
procedures and policies and little
in educating our future leaders in
managing their own career.
I have been talking about
generational change for some
years now to my past and present
employees, however (and take the
full responsibility for this) did not
spend as much time as I wanted to
educate and literate them on this
important and relevant subject.
On the other hand, what I do
consistently is to reply to each and
every message or email I receive and
comment on their “language” used
when appropriate and counselling
the individual by advising to be more
professional the next time if he
wishes to really get the attention of
the reader.
About the author
This article is written by Rocco Bova, an
internationally experienced hotelier and
influential leader. Rocco is a passionate and
energetic entrepreneur with a remarkable
career of nearly 20 years. He has worked in
some of the finest, world class properties
in amazing destinations spanning 5
continents.
His educational journey began in London
at the Westminster College, followed
in Singapore at Cornell University and
continues through workshops, readings
and the internet on topics such as Human
Behavior, Neuro Marketing, NLP and
Business Modeling.
Rocco loves the hotel industry. He coaches
and inspires teams to what the world of
hospitality offers. He enjoys interacting
and socializing with people at all levels, has
a natural ability to influence and engage
others making everyone feel welcome
around him.
ILHA 85