A guest just took time out of their day to recognize a member of your team by name. Maybe it was an online review, a post-stay survey, or a handwritten comment card. Whatever the form, the message is clear — someone on your team made a difference. As a leader, what you do next matters more than you might think. You have a golden opportunity to foster a healthy culture, improve morale, and motivate an entire team. Handle it poorly, or not at all, and the moment is gone.
Here are your options when the opportunity presents itself:
Option 1: Share the Feedback with the Employee
This one sounds easy but often gets overlooked. You have many options for sharing the feedback with the team member (verbal, email etc…) but the one of the most impactful is to print out the feedback, write a handwritten thank you note and then present it to the employee. Be sure to look them in the eye, thank them for their hard work and let them know how much of a difference they made. For especially great acts of hospitality, a unique reward/gift may be appropriate as well. Many employees (myself included) will treasure these comment cards and keep them for years to come.
Option 2: Share the Feedback with Other Employees
The old adage of praise in public and criticize in private applies here. Taking time to celebrate moments of hospitality is always a good idea, and it can be especially valuable in a group setting like a pre-shift where the employee who performed the task is present. Do make sure they are comfortable with that, but most people are. Other great platforms for recognition can be a physical bulletin board in a back of house area, a section of an employee newsletter or a monthly/annual employee award campaign. This has an added benefit of motivating others to want to perform at their best because, naturally, they want to feel that praise too.
Option 3: Do Nothing at All
Say to yourself “oh that’s great Sally made an impact. Sally is the best” and then move on with your day. Maybe you run into Sally and say “oh Sally your name was mentioned the other day, great job.” That’s ok, but not great. Giving praise without the tangible evidence is a job half done. Note that when a guest doesn’t actually write the feedback and instead shares it verbally, the leader can still share that with the team member with specific details on who shared, what they said etc…
Bonus: Feedback doesn’t just flow one way. Taking a moment to thank the guest for recognizing your team member costs nothing and says everything. Let them know how much you value that employee and assure them the feedback will be shared and recognized accordingly.
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