Ritz-Carlton Case Study

Creating Fine Ladies and Gentleman

The Ritz-Carlton is able to create "ladies and gentleman" because of their complete commitment to creating a company culture that everyone can buy into. From the very first moment a potential employee is introduced to the company they are treated with the utmost respect. In fact, perspective employees are treated exactly how the Ritz's business model calls for its clients to be treated. It is in this way that the Ritz's management "practice what they preach" in that they are directly involved in providing, and teaching others to provide for, the highest quality of service. The entire hiring procedure from recruitment to training was designed to provide a first hand example of "the service oriented culture that made Ritz-Carlton successful". The same aspects of service that hotel clients had come to expect from the Ritz are implemented in employee recruitment such as complementary food and beverages, harp players, and free gifts during the job fair. After the selections are made, the Ritz follows-up with their new employees to reduce attrition that occurs between the lag time between the job offer and the start dated. This follow up is just another example of the Ritz commitment to the highest quality of service and attention to detail.

When employees do come to work for the first da, they are introduced to "a very slow orientation process that aligns the worker with the mission of the company". Each day of the seven day training process is carefully designed to engross the employees in the greater mission of the company. The seven days of training involve far less time teaching actual job function, which is often simple tasks such as food preparation or check in procedures, and far more time engrossing the employees in culture and mission and the bigger picture. The big keys in training understand the Ritz's " Credo, The Three Steps of Service, The Motto, The Employee Promise, and The Twenty Basics, which were designed to focus employees on the core company values".

Another aspect of the Ritz that allows for the creation of ladies and gentleman is their unwavering commitment to human resources. To quote Leonardo Inghilleri, the corporate vice president of human resources "An employee is a human being who doesn't only fulfill a function but should also have a purpose". Unlike many hotels and other service industry segments, the Ritz empowers their employees to make important day-to-day decision and directly resolve client issues. Each employee is not just a cog in the wheel that must constantly consult management for answers, instead they are empowered decision makers. This theme of employee empowerment is also evident in the Ritz's putting each employee's career management in his/her own hands. The success of these programs as well as other programs