Team Member & Guest Interactions: Some Key Changes to Expect

Family entertainment is just one of many businesses that make up the hospitality industry. In the hospitality industry, interactions play a key role. There are many types of interactions that guests observe, such as:

• Verbal communication
• Facial expressions
• Body language
• Eye contact?
• Overall appearance?

Our staff is often directly involved in the interactions with our guests.? In order to provide exceptional customer service and an excellent guest experience, it is essential that the interactions are the best that they can be.?

Interactions In The Technology Age

We are all moving with the flow of technology. A lot of our services have become focused on technology as we start using various virtual and digital interfaces in order to better interact with guests. However, there is a fine line and a delicate balance to consider.?

Our guests are on a journey from the time they enter our doors to the time they get into their vehicles and leave. I cannot stress enough how important it is that we still maintain a high level of direct human-to-human interaction regardless of how much technology we employ.

Physical Interactions After The Pandemic

The leadership teams in our parks and FECs should continue to keep the pandemic and its aftermath well within the scope of how we interact. For instance, our staff should always respect social distancing when engaging a guest.?

Before covid-19 many people in the hospitality industry would not hesitate to reach out an arm and touch the customer on the shoulder or laugh with them in close proximity. These things, unfortunately, should come to an end.

We should be training our staff to better communicate with our guests by respecting physical boundaries. The entire world is on a heightened sense of personal security. Covid came out of nowhere and struck a huge blow to the entire world. If it happened once, it can very well happen again.

Now that we are aware of just how serious unknown diseases are and how quickly they can spread, it is up to us and our leadership teams to make sure that our staff is properly trained on how to interact with our guests to make sure that their experience is the best it can be while limiting exposure.

Interactions In General?

There are many types of interactions that we're ultimately responsible for daily. While the staff and guest interactions are vital to the successful customer service experience, that is not the only interaction we need to be mindful of.?

• Leadership staff to team members
• Team members to leadership staff
• Team members to team members
• Team members to guests
• Guest to guest?

There has got to be mutual respect as well as an efficient chain of command for every team member to follow. There are appropriate ways that these groups of people should interact with others.

For example, have you ever been in a hotel or restaurant setting and overheard the staff gossiping or talking bad about the managers? Have you witnessed team members rolling their eyes when they don't like a task that has been given to them? Have you seen a manager belittle a team member in front of you as a guest? None of these things should happen. More importantly, the GUEST should never have to see these interactions. It leaves them with a bad perception of your facility and your brand.

All-team meetings are a great way to keep the topic relevant and to refresh all personnel on how to interact with others. Full training should happen when a new team member comes on board as well as when periodic observation/evaluations deem it necessary. This helps you provide that high standard of customer service that your guests come to expect from you.

Leadership Training Tips

We are now in a retraining period. We need to make sure that all of our staff is trained to handle the interactions going forward. This is the only way to effectively ensure the best guest experience that we can provide. It is up to our leadership teams to take initiative and observe, evaluate, and train as needed.?

This is a three-part training strategy:

1. Health and safety procedures, including physical boundaries.?
2. Training to de-escalate negative situations and apply team members that are trained in damage control.
3. Body language, eye contact, and calm acknowledgment to validate feelings and address all concerns in a helpful and respectful manner.

If we can use this time to train our teams, we can rise above our competition who may be still operating their business as they did prior to the pandemic. That will set us apart. Our guests are very observant and they take notice when they are treated with exceptional care, understanding, and respect.

All of these things go hand-in-hand to provide a sense of security to the guest. It becomes a part of the overall guest experience. What are your plans to ensure successful future interactions?

Tim Murphy is CEO of APX Operating Company, dba Boomers Parks, under the ownership of Cerberus private equity ($55B assets). Boomers Parks owns six family entertainment centers and two water parks with locations in California, Florida, and New Jersey.

As CEO of Boomers Parks since 2020, Tim took these eight parks from bankruptcy to profitability in just a year – in the middle of a global pandemic. When Boomers acquired these parks, they were operating at a $10 million loss. Tim transformed the customer experience and added new revenue streams to generate a 180% increase in revenue in 2021 (and on track to be a 250% increase in 2022).

Tim launched his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has since served more than 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands across more than 10,000 locations in C-suite and senior positions.

Additionally, Tim is a Board Director with Coney Park, Happy City and YuKids - Family Entertainment & Amusement Parks, part of The Carlyle Group ($275B assets), a private equity firm that operates 150+ family entertainment centers and amusement parks in Latin America.?

Tim has worked with top-tier entertainment and restaurant brands including Disney, Rebounderz Trampoline Parks, Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, etc.), Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, Applebee’s, Sonny’s Bar-B-Q, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco, Hardee’s, Golden Corral, and Firehouse Subs.

Tim has overseen more than 35 purchase transactions involving over 1,200 restaurants, stores, and park locations.? With extensive experience in buying and selling businesses, handling negotiations with buyers and sellers, and creating strategic partnerships to build strong brands, Tim has facilitated deals ranging from $11 million to $350 million+.

Tim is a member of IAAPA, CAPA, FAA, AAMA & WWA. He is a licensed commercial real estate broker in the State of Florida. Tim earned a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.