"Employee Relations"

Steve Hammel has learned a lot in his years in the industry, but the topic he is most passionate about is dealing with employees. Here are some of his thoughts:

Be authentic

"Early on when I was working for Marriott and was able to observe managers, I was struck by some of the things they said and how they said them. For example, it is so important to say ‘thank you’ and mean it.

Employees are everything in this business

"Later, when I worked for Disney, I would ask myself, ‘If I was looking through Walt Disney's eyes, how would I do this?’ I don't mean just when it comes to customers, but employees too. Employees are everything to us in this business.

Keep your ear to the ground

"Make sure you get out there and talk to people, not to critique but to find out what's going on. I always tell my managers, ‘You're not going to hurt my feelings if you tell me something is just not working right’.

Keep your door open

"Have a true open-door policy for employees. Understand that if one is at your door, your time is not as valuable as theirs. At such times, whatever I'm doing, I stop because not doing so is disrespectful. If they stop by my office I know it's something that is important to them. It might also be something that can affect the whole operation.

Respect your employees time

"Finally, when you schedule a meeting with people — whether it be superiors, peers or staff — be on time, because it shows respect."