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Put on a Happy Face
Experts share insights on interviewing and hiring guest relations and communications staff
by Ronnie Moore
Although guest relations and communication have always been important, they’re now more challenging than ever. Tough times mean tensions are high, money is tight, staff is stretched. Providing guests with a memorable, fun-filled experience while ensuring rules are followed and all guests’ rights are preserved requires skills, savvy, and sensitivity. This two-part article explores these issues and offers the insights of customer service experts and human relations/guest services managers from parks and attractions worldwide.
“Be smart from the start,” advises Barbara Zaha, consultant at Ideas Ink, Chicago, Illinois. “It’s critical to recruit, interview, and train skillfully so you ultimately hire people who will provide great guest relations when your doors open. It’s easier to train employees to flip burgers, make change, or direct cars in the parking lot than it is to teach them to engage well with others, stay emotionally composed, or think creatively once they’re on the job.”
Targeted Recruiting and Interviewing
Industry experts agree it’s important to identify the kind of person needed for the role he or she will serve in your facility. If you’re running an ad for people who will communicate directly with your guests, make sure the wording stresses the inner qualities critical to great guest relations, and be sure to engage potential employees in a candid discussion of these qualities during the interview. Steve Miklosi, general manager of Breakers Water Park in Marana, Arizona, says, “Our ads are not just about tasks. We’re looking for a certain type of person, and we use phrases such as ‘looking for energy and a smile’ and ‘must enjoy the outdoors’ in our recruiting efforts.”
Miklosi also recruits using old-fashioned common sense. “We have a 60-70 percent employee return rate, year to year,” he says. “We ask those employees to bring friends to us; great kids often know other great kids. I also talk to families I meet in the park. When I see parents who communicate well, I assume their kids have learned that skill from them. If they have a teenager, I ask, ‘What is your son or daughter doing this summer’?”
Everything a potential employee experiences in the recruiting and interviewing process must model a “Guest Matters Most” culture. “The word ‘guest’ is defined as the person to whom hospitality is expected,” says Alex Desiderio, director of training and volunteer operations at the Georgia Aquarium. “I ask my staff to think about when they have guests at home. I remind them that they show their guests around, make them feel at home, and try to make them comfortable. They don’t sit on the couch passively. Even when guests come at a bad time, stay too long, or need too much, a gracious host still tries to accommodate them.”
The bottom line, according to Lisa Ford, author of “Exceptional Customer Service–Going Beyond Good Service to Exceed the Customer's Expectations,” is “although there’s plenty to do after hiring—from orientation to ongoing training— we need to first hire employees we can emotionally equip to handle the rigors of guest service. It’s much easier to do that with targeted recruiting and interviewing so the right people are hired in the first place.”
As the Roman philosopher Seneca said, “Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.” Positive guest relations happen when preparation (recruiting, interviewing, and training) meets the opportunity to, according to Ford, “create an incredible experience that wows your guests and gets them buzzing about how great it is—so they return and others will come.”
Part 2, Creating Great Guest Relations and Communication, February 2010 issue, will cover:
- Employees are ready to work with your guests—what happens now?
- Managers and employees on site—working side by side
- Communicating with parents and kids
- Communication and edutainment: dealing with an overabundance of information
- Five phrases that make matters worse—effective alternatives
- Empathy and emotional composure
- Options, Options, Options: ensuring rule compliance while thinking creatively
Ronnie Moore is a speaker, trainer, and writer specializing in communication issues. She works with associations, corporations, and government agencies and is the author of “Why Did I Say That? Communicating to keep your credibility, your cool, and your cash!” and “Tricks that Stick,” a writing companion.
www.whydidisaythat.net
Interview to Find Guest Relations Superstars
The job is more than task experience and proficiency—that’s on the resume. It’s also the ability to effectively communicate, empathize, and think creatively.
As Lisa Ford recommends, have the candidate tell you:
- An example of great customer service he/she received and how that felt
- What the candidate did at a previous job (even in another industry) to provide great service
Have the candidate show you:
- How she/he interacts with others via a group interview. Sweden’s Astrid Lindgrens Värld conducts group interviews (e.g., six candidates, four staff). This allows insight about how interviewees interact with others.
- How the candidate will communicate in your environment. Fredrik Jonsson, human resources director, Astrid Lindgrens Värld, recommends on-site role plays, which can be invaluable in determining guest relations potential.
“Go beyond the office when you interview,” says Barbara Zaha. “Bring candidates into your park or attraction. Create scenarios that will test their communication and creative thinking skills using current staff to play guests.”
“Employees must have a sense of fun and daring, a desire to think outside the box,” says Jan Reuvers, area director for Compagnie des Alps Leisure Division. “When interviewing, ask,‘ On a 1-10 scale, how far out of the box are you?’ A candidate who answers,‘13’may be harder to control, but that may be better than another candidate who can only go by the book, who can’t think creatively and come up with good options when necessary. However, animals, rides, and strict safety rules don’t always mesh with out-of-the-box thinkers. Always keep the kind of person you need in mind for each position for which you interview.” |
Adding Water to the Mix
‘Beautiful one day, perfect the next!’ WhiteWater World, Queensland, Australia.
Located on Australia’s Gold Coast, WhiteWater World is the sister park to Dreamworld, which is home to Australia’s largest interactive tiger facility, Dreamworld Studios, and some of the tallest and fastest thrill rides worldwide. The “beautiful one day, perfect the next” climate means entertaining guests year round, providing an unforgettable theme park or waterpark experience, or both, which is easily provided via an internal gate and a two-park ticket.
 Dreamworld/WhiteWater World is committed to excellence in guest relations. “We have the same need to recruit, interview, hire, and train our employees in both parks to ensure our guests’ happiness and safety,” says Natalee McArthur, guest services manager at Dreamworld/ WhiteWater World. “When we added WhiteWater World in 2006, however, we also added more things to think about in our quest to create a happy yet safe experience. Although guests come to both parks to have fun, waterparks attract guests who are more relaxed, ready for a daylong beach party. That means we need employees who can help set expectations and ensure guests follow the rules, even when the guests are thinking beach party and not about securing their eyeglasses or headgear or other steps critical to ensuring water safety.”
McArthur says staff training sessions focus on the skills necessary to handle a variety of guest issues, from safety to dress code. Trainees read and analyze real guest feedback, positive and negative. This is followed by discussion about how to communicate more effectively, especially in challenging scenarios, such as dealing with guests from countries where topless sunbathing or G-strings are the norm. Empathy training is also employed. Trainers help new employees see a situation from the guest’s perspective by facilitating the role playing of real scenarios in which trainees play guests. Trainees then receive on-thespot guidance on how to approach different guest relations challenges.
“This feedback includes important guidelines, such as always communicating with guests privately on sensitive issues so that no one is ever embarrassed in front of family, friends, or other guests,” says McArthur. “Another critical skill our training provides is the ability to offer options, such as having a guest turn a T-shirt sporting inappropriate words inside out or providing a loaner shirt. We train our employees to solve problems while still making guests feel valued—we’re here to create smiles.” |
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