Class Reflection

My first takeaway came from the informational interview.  I enjoyed it so much and learned so much about Mr. Canning’s position.  Between learning about his leadership strategies, like how he motivates his staff, and how he makes communication a top priority, I was able to gain so much insight into the internal factors of working in the hotel industry.  Our discussion about the cross-cultural differences between working at a hotel in DC and working at a hotel abroad taught me a lot and I realized that with my love for travel and interest in the hotel/hospitality industry, I really should start looking into programs abroad that would allow me to experience that.  Overall, I found this interview to only further push me and increase my desire to work in the hotel industry.  More specifically, it showed me what type of hotel culture I would fit best with in terms of a more transactional hotel vs. a more relationship/connection-oriented hotel.

My second takeaway was Customer Relationship Management.  It was a topic we discussed a lot in class partly due to its high importance in the Hospitality Industry.   My biggest take away from our discussion on CRM is how its not just one thing; instead, it is a philosophy that effects many independent departments of businesses- especially in the Hotel Industry.  CRM addresses the Sales, Marketing, and Service activities of the organization or specifically, the hotel (see photo below).  Even though we discussed this topic in my Basic Marketing class, I understood it way more in our class.  I learned that a hotel’s CRM should be the core to aspects to their procedures, etc.  It essentially is about selling their services to the guests and targeting specific segments. I learned how it really ties managing customer value and loyalty through a long-term relationship and how it’s not something simple but rather very comprehensive. 

My third takeaway came from our Kimpton guest lecturers and more specifically the topic on crisis management.  The lessons I took away are that telling the truth is crucial, you must responsibility, and that it involves a lot of creative thinking.  When the Kimpton guest lecturers discussed the murder at the Donovan Hotel and how they had to deal with that.  I got to learn first hand how they dealt with that issue and how the media played a huge role in trying to protect the reputation of the hotel.    Overall, I learned the best way to handle myself and do damage control if something like that happens so that I can minimize the problem and come out on top.