November 2009
Dale J. Venturini
President/CEO, Rhode Island Hospitality Association
Keeping hospitality businesses alive throughout New England in this tough economic climate is top of mind for all of us, and it needs to remain that way for the foreseeable future. Thriving local businesses are the food that keeps associations, chambers, beverage distributors, food purveyors, linen companies, etc. operational.
As more and more local businesses start to evaluate the value of each dollar spent, the RI Hospitality Association has recently unveiled a program that can affect and influence a wide array of businesses – it’s called First Impressions: Exceptional Customer Service™ and it can help anyone who has contact with the public, from customer service, to sales, to hostesses, hotel workers, and on.
The Rhode Island Hospitality Education Foundation developed this program in an effort to address some of the findings in our Skills Gap Study, released in 2008. There was overwhelming evidence that soft skills are an important barrier to advancement. Areas cited as those lacking were - communication skills, conflict resolution, leadership, problem solving and teamwork; all skills that are necessary in almost any given job that has interaction with the public.
This training program focuses on helping trainees to develop each of these areas in order to provide service at a level above and beyond what is expected by the customer. The heart of this three-hour training program is based on communication with add-on components including appearance, hygiene, posture, handshakes, and body language.
While many of us might not think that these subtle first impression components are as important as overt and verbal interaction, they are often more important. How you shake a hand or look someone in the eye and how neat your appearance is can often make all the difference in how the public views you – and by extension, the company you work for.
Participants are taught that these non-verbal exchanges are where the majority of communication occurs. Additionally, this program covers tone of voice, choosing the right words, serving dissatisfied customers and the use of different communication styles in order to more effectively work with customers and other team members.
The training is facilitated in a manner that appeals to all learning styles. A visual display of the presentation, hard copies of the training deck, lecture, skill practice exercises and group work are all incorporated into the session. This training can be customized to any employment level from entry level to managers to owners. The program is mobile and can be taught on-site at the employer’s location or off-site in a training classroom setting.
In addition to adding value to our RIHA membership, we are also offering it as a turnkey service to help other businesses in Rhode Island, including local chambers of commerce who can run this program for a fee to their membership. This helps increase the chambers’ value proposition and also helps us offset training costs.
It makes good sense for both an organization’s bottom line as well as filling a need for a new membership offering.
Embracing this type of training will not only better the public’s opinion of your company, but will also enrich your employees’ interactions with potential and existing customers.
Dale J. Venturini
President/CEO, Rhode Island Hospitality Association
Keeping hospitality businesses alive throughout New England in this tough economic climate is top of mind for all of us, and it needs to remain that way for the foreseeable future. Thriving local businesses are the food that keeps associations, chambers, beverage distributors, food purveyors, linen companies, etc. operational.
As more and more local businesses start to evaluate the value of each dollar spent, the RI Hospitality Association has recently unveiled a program that can affect and influence a wide array of businesses – it’s called First Impressions: Exceptional Customer Service™ and it can help anyone who has contact with the public, from customer service, to sales, to hostesses, hotel workers, and on.
The Rhode Island Hospitality Education Foundation developed this program in an effort to address some of the findings in our Skills Gap Study, released in 2008. There was overwhelming evidence that soft skills are an important barrier to advancement. Areas cited as those lacking were - communication skills, conflict resolution, leadership, problem solving and teamwork; all skills that are necessary in almost any given job that has interaction with the public.
This training program focuses on helping trainees to develop each of these areas in order to provide service at a level above and beyond what is expected by the customer. The heart of this three-hour training program is based on communication with add-on components including appearance, hygiene, posture, handshakes, and body language.
While many of us might not think that these subtle first impression components are as important as overt and verbal interaction, they are often more important. How you shake a hand or look someone in the eye and how neat your appearance is can often make all the difference in how the public views you – and by extension, the company you work for.
Participants are taught that these non-verbal exchanges are where the majority of communication occurs. Additionally, this program covers tone of voice, choosing the right words, serving dissatisfied customers and the use of different communication styles in order to more effectively work with customers and other team members.
The training is facilitated in a manner that appeals to all learning styles. A visual display of the presentation, hard copies of the training deck, lecture, skill practice exercises and group work are all incorporated into the session. This training can be customized to any employment level from entry level to managers to owners. The program is mobile and can be taught on-site at the employer’s location or off-site in a training classroom setting.
In addition to adding value to our RIHA membership, we are also offering it as a turnkey service to help other businesses in Rhode Island, including local chambers of commerce who can run this program for a fee to their membership. This helps increase the chambers’ value proposition and also helps us offset training costs.
It makes good sense for both an organization’s bottom line as well as filling a need for a new membership offering.
Embracing this type of training will not only better the public’s opinion of your company, but will also enrich your employees’ interactions with potential and existing customers.
