Keeping Your "Finger on the Pulse" as a Busy Hotel Manager

Hotel workers are likely to be based in the same building as their General Manager or Departmental Managers, but how often do you see him or her? And how often do you get the chance to really talk? Once a week? Once a month? Less, maybe?

A Hotel Manager like this can seem distant and even intimidating. Is this the ideal Management approach? After all if you build a wall around yourself as a Manager, your team members won't gain from your knowledge and you won't gain from their experience.

Connecting with your team is a major factor in success - one powerful way to connect with your team members is to get up from your desk and go talk to them, to work with them, to ask questions, and to help when needed. This famous practice is called Management by Wandering Around, or MBWA (famously written about by Tom Peters in the 1980's).

MBWA is not an aimless meander around the Hotel, but it takes managers into their teams' workplaces to engage with the people and processes that keep Departments running, to listen to ideas, to collect information, and to resolve problems.

What MBWA Can Achieve? It can help Managers seem to be more approachable. When your team members see you like this they'll trust you more and be more willing to share ideas with you.

Frequent, natural and trusting communication can be infectious, and it encourages people to work together. You'll improve your understanding of the Hotel's functions, people and processes. Morale will get a lift from MBWA, too. Furthermore, you'll boost productivity around the Hotel.

Dangers to Avoid Simply being physically present with your people isn't enough. You must truly want to get to know your staff and operations, and you have to commit to following up on people's concerns and to seeking continuous improvement. If your MBWA is not carried out professionally your staff could think that you're interfering or even get angry about it.

How to Manage by Wandering Around The biggest challenge when implementing MBWA is to overcome the habit of always seeming "too busy," or to just hold stiff discussions in formal spaces when walking around. These tips can help you to get going.

Relax People will sense your casualness and they'll respond accordingly. Hold relaxed and unstructured conversations where people will likely feel relaxed, in a neutral place, rather than in your office. Watch your body language too. Turning up at a production line wearing a crisp pinstriped suit will probably put your staff off talking to you.

Listen and observe more than you talk Take care to sound inquisitive rather than intrusive. You can ask your people what they're working on, how comfortable they feel doing their jobs, what they find difficult, ask them for ideas about how to make things better. Consider trying out your team members' work

Hold back from saying what you think, and listen actively to your team members' replies. Give them your undivided attention. When you talk, be open and truthful. If you don't know the answer to someone's question, find it out afterward and follow up. If you can't share something, say so. Trust is crucial for successful MBWA.

Be inclusive Don't favor one department or team more than another, or people may feel left out. Instead, spread your attention evenly across the Hotel. Anyone can have great ideas or need support, so talk to everybody, regardless of their job title or position. If they work the night shift, stay late to talk to them.

Recognize good work Always look for successes rather than failures and, if you see something good, compliment the person. This is an effective and simple way to show your gratitude and to boost morale.

Spread the word Share good news and tell people how your aims for the team fit with the big picture. Your "wanderings" are opportunities to share information that helps everyone to understand and do their jobs better.

Embrace "chat" You don't need to befriend your team on Facebook or shoot pool together after work. But effective organizations aren't all about work. MBWA allows you to enjoying a lighter conversation, to chat with team members about their hobbies and to help build relationships.

Don't overdo it. Don't leave people feeling that you're always looking over their shoulder! Wander around often enough to get a good feel for what's going on – but not so often that your presence feels like a distraction. Try not to do it at the same time each day: be unplanned.

Management by Wandering Around (MBWA) can be an effective and practical way to step out from behind the desk if you want to connect with what is going on in your Hotel.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Stephen Sawyers brings 20-years of Hotels and Hospitality Management to his writing.

These blogs and vlogs are intended for hotel workers, supervisors and managers who are (or want to become) actively engaged in learning and development around the world.

Through his writing, Stephen attempts to help those without the time or often the money to attend College by providing them with Learning.

Watching these vlogs and reading these blogs will assist hospitality students and workers in the Global Hospitality Industry to train and develop using Social Media.