Setting the service standard in Singapore
Last month, I lamented the service weaknesses in our industry. Online and via email, many of you empathised with this viewpoint and this month, I am pleased to report some entirely positive experiences.
However, I had to travel to Singapore to find them. I had the fortunate experience of staying at the world’s most expensive hotel complex, Marina Bay Sands (MBS). I was not being hosted by the hotel but was part of a group attending the Singapore International Furniture Fair and The Hospitality Show (more on that next month).
The hotel is an enormous US $5.7 billion development by Las Vegas Sands Corp: it has three 55-storey towers with 2561 keys, a 1.3 million ft² convention centre, 800,000ft² of retail and F&B space, 60 dining options, the Sands Skypark on the 57th floor featuring an infinity-edged pool, theatres, museums, nightclubs and a casino. It’s a whopper. Upon entering and seeing hoards of tourists exploring the destination, my immediate concern was ‘wow…but what will the service be like?’.
I needn’t have worried: from the receptionist to bellman and room service to housekeeping staff, the attention I received was second to none; the restaurant service I experienced was faultless and friendly, and at a gala dinner for close to 1000 people, the banqueting team moved like clockwork.
I left a note in my room asking for my favourite TWG tea to be replenished and was left ample sachets; the bellman noted that I was travelling alone and explained the types of taxis I should use; while the room service attendant took the time to explain the ingredients in my hokkien mee (and recommended the hotel’s 24-hour food court as a cheaper alternative!).
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Every single member of the Marina Bay Sands’ 10,000 strong team that I saw around the hotel had one very obvious thing in common; they were all busy but incredibly efficient.
Everyone had a role to perform; there was nobody skulking in a corner. Significantly though, when technology could be used to do a job as well as a person, it was. The wake up call system was automated, which I have not experienced in the Middle East.
What a relief not to have to be chipper at 6am after a networking event the night before!
After four nights at Marina Bay Sands, I checked into Ritz-Carlton Singapore, famed for its bathtubs with a view over the city. Here, the flawless service continued and the staff went out of their way to make my stay perfect. Somehow, they even found a grumble on my Facebook about the microfibre robe I didn’t like and the next day, I was offered a choice of toweling or waffle robes, just so I was comfortable!
As Ritz-Carlton’s longest serving member Hervé Humler tells me (p32), this level of service can only be achieved with clear guiding principles that are reiterated to staff daily. He admits that not all of his hotels are perfect and that some are sitting in the “red or yellow zone”, with defects to be addressed.
The important thing he says, is that problems have been noticed and will be fixed. If the legendary Humler can acknowledge that aspects of his hotels could be better, perhaps it is worth taking a closer look at your own challenges to find the solution. And if you need ideas, I’d recommend a trip to MBS.
Louise Oakley, group editor
louise.oakley@itp.com