Skift Take
We don't see it, but there is a complicated ecosystem to secretly assess and uphold standards at the world's best hotels. And some of the details reveal a lot about how important the human factor and emotional intelligence are to the future of luxury hospitality.
Unbeknownst to most luxury guests, there exists a class of high-end assessors who mark the best properties in the world on their service standards.
Far from people trying to make an extra buck like a secret shopper, the employees are former hoteliers that go through a vetting process and six months of training to ensure consistency. The goal? To try to make sure that when you stay at a top-tier brand, you are getting the desired experience for your money.
Hoteliers employ them to examine how they are doing according to quite a long list of criteria. These include having your call answered in three rings or less, food prepared and presented correctly, and guests that are addressed appropriately given cultural nuances, among many other factors.
One of the most prominent companies in the space, Leading Quality Assurance (LQA), seeks to provide owners, franchise managers and operators an honest look at how a hotel is performing against its standards, and perhaps most importantly, against a competitive set.
Surprise Visits
Andrew Lazzaro, CEO of LQA, walked me through how the process works, as we
