Are you the type of General Manager who avoids meeting and listening to new vendors? Have you trained your front desk staff to tell vendors “You are in a meeting, or off property when you aren’t?”
Do you do this because you are:
1. Too busy to be bothered;
2. Somewhat resistant to change because you feel change usually is more disruptive and costly than the value it delivers;
3. You believe you can always find what you need on your own.
You may be a Conserver… the type who prefers operating in the here and now because exploring the unknown seems too risky. Conservers might eventually embrace new technologies, but only when what is currently being used is no longer sufficient.
If you are the type of General Manager who will take a few moments to meet and listen to new vendors, you are most likely an Originator. Originators enjoy exploring new and more efficient options to enhance their business. They enjoy discovering new tools and methods because they know it is important to be open to change because it is paramount to managing the ever changing demands that continually emerge.
Which type of General Manager are you? With the supersonic pace of change today, can you afford not to be curious about new ideas and innovations?
Anyone familiar with the demands and challenges a hospitality general manager juggles every hour of every day knows that granting a few minutes of their time without a prior appointment is asking a lot.
Here is a suggestion for how to manage availability to new vendors in a productive way. Allocate a block of time on your calendar of one to two hours on the most open day of your week. Make that time block known and instruct your front desk staff to share that with any vendor who pops in unannounced. If that time becomes filled up before the vendor can meet with you, they will simply have to come back next week.
By doing this, you will stay current with what the market is offering to your business, and you are more likely to discover an option you will want to take advantage of as soon as possible.
The very next vendor you speak with may have something that will help you run your business in a way that just might transform your entire operation. And that could raise your business to the next level or beyond!