Lost in Translation!

There is an old saying that 'we judge others by their actions, and ourselves by our intentions.' I suspect that also applies to companies. I had the wonderful experience today of sitting through the launch of a new concept by a company in the hospitality industry. There was nothing wrong with the entertainment value of the event. In fact, the guest speaker kept us all entertained for well over an hour. But, I wasn't there to be entertained (although that was a bonus) - I was there to learn about their new concept. And as I left the venue at the end of 2 hours, I could not help but think that something got lost in translation because all I remembered was the guest speaker (who used every opportunity to plug himself) and very little of their new concept. In fact, if you were to ask me now what their concept was - I would not be able to tell you. So, where did their intentions and their corresponding actions get lost in translation?

First, the General Manager of the company opened the meeting by telling us how they derived their new slogan which consisted of 3 powerful words and which was now printed on all of their stationary, webpages, brochures etc) and which was adequately displayed throughout the room. What was apparent was that the slogan was derived for internal reasons to motivate their employees, to energise them, and was not externally driven with their guests in mind. As a result, it might have meant alot to their employees, but it did not resonate with their guests. 

Secondly, the General Manager spoke of their promise to their guests which included 'response time in under 2 hours', a 'personal team to look after all your needs', etc. Great intentions, but simply not backed up by corresponding action. I am still waiting for a response to an e-mail that I had sent the GM over 2 months ago, and I have no doubt that if I hadn't approached the GM at the event, I would still be waiting for a response. Not only that, they spelt my company's name wrong which (although not as bad as spelling my name wrong) is, I suspect, a 'no-no' in the industry. So on those 2 counts, I am not convinced that they will be able to uphold their promise. 

Finally, and this is to me something that I just can't get my head around and I ask that you explain it to me. In an industry that is built on relationships and personal service, not one of the employees had an e-mail address that had their name in the address. They all had numbers in place of their names. For example, if I was to send an e-mail to say, the sales manager - I would address the e-mail to H2922@xxxx. How impersonal can you get! And I wonder how their employees feel.  

Nevertheless, I know that their intentions are good but they will continue to let themselves down by their actions or lack of them. My concern is that they are so wrapped up in their new slogan and what it means to them, that they lose sight of the fact that it is all getting lost in translation by the time it reaches their guests.  

ian