Talent Tectonics

CHAPTER 8Increasing Efficiency, Ensuring Compliance and Security,and Building Culture

A Great Place to Work Even When You Aren't Working

The 2020 COVID pandemic devastated the hospitality industry. At one point 75% of hotel rooms were empty and annual revenues dropped by almost 50%.¹ Hotel companies had to radically reduce operating costs to stay solvent, and an obvious way to save money was reducing hotel staff. Most hotel companies furloughed or laid off employees, but one hotel chain focused efforts on protecting the well-being of its employees. The company continued providing health care benefits to employees even though they were not working and created a program to help employees find jobs in the grocery and distribution industries that were growing due to the pandemic. At a time when the company had clear reasons to cut employee programs to save costs, it invested in creating programs to support employees. The company kept its reputation as a great place to work even when its employees were not working, which made it far easier for the hotel to ramp back up when people started traveling again.

Money is sometimes called the lifeblood of organizations. If a for-profit company does not make money, then at some point it will go under or be acquired. Government and nonprofit organizations have to control costs relative to the services they provide, or they may be defunded or restructured. Given the role money has on company survival, every company considers the financial ...