Six Sigma in Hotel Industry

Dear Friends

The three commandments of Six Sigma are

1. The Customer is the King
2. In God only we trust, rest all gather data
3. Variation is the enemy of all processes

 

Manufacturing, automobile, aviation, medical transcription, software, ITES, banks and even other financial institutions are following this methodology.

 

Why should the goel industry be left behind ?

 

If the first commandment of Six Sigma talks about the customer, how can we leave out an industry which is the epitome of customer service and thrives purely on achieving customer delight consistently.

 

The call of the hour is to welcome Six Sigma in this industry and utilise the skill to enhance employee efficiency and customer satisfaction. Increasing competition from other organisations and intensive work reaffirms the above hypothesis.

 

In an industry where customer interactions occur on an hourly basis, each customer touch point is critical for building personalised service credibility and developing customer affinity.

 

Some of the areas/ processes where this approach may add value: -

Hotel-wide
Enhance Customer Loyalty
Reduce Employee attrition
Productivity/Efficiency Improvement
Reduce Billing errors/losses
Reduce Cost
Capture 'Voice of Customer' data

Front Office Operations/ Sales & Marketing
Reduce wait time during peak check-in time
Reduce wait time during peak check-out time
Eliminate billing errors and improve accuracy
Increase Occupancy

Food and Beverage Service / Production
To maintain optimal inventory
Minimise wastage/pilferage
Standardised output of Food and Beverage
Reduce the time from order to service

Accommodation Operation (Housekeeping)
Reduce the turnaround time of making/turning down a room
Standardisation of cleanliness across areas

Human Resources/ Personnel
Accuracy of payroll
Reduce the turnaround time of recruitment
Reduce the turnaround time of relieving

 

Throughout the hotel industry, the gospel of excellence is the key ingredient to success.

In search of performance management excellence, Hilton Hotels corporation has implemented a Balanced Scorecard that incorporates revenue maximisation, operational effectiveness and brand management. The culture at Marriott International, Inc prides itself on its reputation for superior customer service - 'people serving people'. Starwood hotels and resorts worldwide Inc is the first hospitality company in the world to embrace Six Sigma since 2001 and extends this best practice to all properties worldwide, including the Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Tower.

 

Barry S. Sternlicht, chairman and CEO, Starwood Hotels and Resorts had stated, "The launch of Six Sigma is one of the most important strategic initiatives since the formation of our company," he continued. "It is our goal for every Westin, Sheraton, W, Four Points by Sheraton, Starwood Vacation Ownership and St. Regis /Luxury Collection guests to have a flawless experience during each and every visit. Six Sigma will help us reach that goal."

 

Starwood had also enlisted the expertise of the Six Sigma specialist and renowned author Peter Pande to assist with the launch. The Sheraton Miramar resort had the highest overall performance in 2004 in each of the five key metric measurements including the Guest Satisfaction index. They were recognised as the Hotel of the Year in EAME (East Africa and Middle East) region.

 

Leveraging the approach of the Starwood group, our leading hotel chains in India viz. Oberoi, Taj, Hyatt, Meridien, Intercontinental, ITC, Leela, Park etc can also benefit from this program. In order to enhance Customer Experience and Reduce Cost, all they need to do is welcome Six Sigma with open arms and make it a part of their culture.