Happy Team = Happy Guests!
Becca Hewison, Assistant Reception Manager, Grantley Hall
January 2025
My career in hospitality began at Raithwaite Hotel in Whitby (now refurbished and reopened as Saltmoore) in 2017, where I joined as an Events Server while studying Travel & Tourism in Sixth Form. Fast forward to joining full-time as a F&B Waitress, and then moving to Reception, where I finally found my strength!
After working at Raithwaite for four years, I decided it was time for a change and to leave the small town of Whitby. While COVID cancelled all my travel plans, I created a LinkedIn account to express my interest in a change and development within the hotel world. That’s when I discovered Grantley Hall and the opportunities it provided. I have now been at Grantley for 3.5 years, starting as a Receptionist, developing into Reception Supervisor, Senior Reception Supervisor, and now Assistant Front Office Manager!
Your first impression is developed within 3 seconds of meeting a person, and that 3 seconds needs to be incredible.Key Learnings Along the Way:
- Your first impression is developed within 3 seconds of meeting a person, and that 3 seconds needs to be incredible.
- It is crucial to find a hobby outside of work to shut off. I found that playing netball every week was a great distraction, and I’ve met some wonderful friends from that!
- Use the people around you to learn. I am 24 and recently joined management; I do not know everything about hospitality and my role, but the managers above me are always more than willing to guide me along the way. I hope to be that guiding manager to my team too!
The Best Advice I Have Received:
- You do not need to know everything to prove that you are a good manager; you can surround yourself with people that strengthen your weaknesses and learn from them.
- There is no time wasted, spending it on the team.
- Happy Team = Happy Guests – the time put into both aspects should be balanced to provide the best experience for all.
The team behind us is the key part of the journey for their colleagues and guests. If the team isn’t happy, they will not provide effective service.
My main goal within my role is to improve service by improving team engagement. McGregor’s X and Y management theory focuses on motivation within the team. Some people may be motivated by recognition, while others are motivated by incentives. Personally, I am probably straight down the middle; I love being appreciated for the work I do, but also the little rewards along the way are lovely too! I want to provide the same for my team to motivate them to give their best performance.
There is no time wasted, spending it on the team.....I like to think outside the box and do different things to engage and motivate our team:
- Activities outside of work – we have done different activities such as Ninja Warrior, walks around the area, Laser Tag, and bowling. Everyone votes whether they want to go or not, and the people who don’t get priority for the next one.
- Motivation at work – We do an Employee of the Month within our department, where each team member votes for another member, and the winner gets a personalized gift. In the past, we have also given a reward for the team member with the best reviews in a month or just to team members who have really stood out and excelled.
- At the end of the year, we get together as a department and have a meal with the team while organizing little gifts to show our appreciation for the hard work they have put in. We are very lucky that the company cares so much about team engagement and motivation, so many of these activities were subsidized by the business. I believe this is a huge positive factor in improving our motivation.
I’d love to know what others do to motivate and engage their team.