Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Back to Reality

In a moment of seeming clarity, the President announced a couple weeks ago that deportation efforts would no longer target hospitality and farm workers.

Then, last Wednesday, a spokesperson for Homeland Security said, essentially, "yeah....no."

So...we're back to where we started, with even legal citizens being terrified to go to work for fear they would get rounded up for nothing more than the color of their skin.

And, like every other story that comes out of the Administration, this issue will now be lost in the wind, given this weekend's military action over Iran. New story. Move on. Nothing to see here.

Sigh...

Please Stop

Signs like these hang in virtually every bathroom in every hotel room in which I stay...and I stay in a lot of hotels.

Sometimes they have pictures of snowy owls; sometimes just copy. But they all encourage us to hang our used towels to protect the environment.

By my count, I have spent 29 nights in hotels so far this year. I always hang my used towels, intent to reduce my impact on the local community.

Not once have I returned to my room at the end of the day and not found a new set of towels.

Hotels everywhere? Really, you can stop this environmental charade anytime.

If I Only Could

Received an e-mail from one of the hotel brands with which I maintain a level of loyalty status. It informed me that I could reach Diamond status if I stayed 48 more nights this year.

Given my travel schedule, that's not an unrealistic goal...except there are only 20 nights left this year.

Thanks for the chuckle this morning...but someone needs to readjust their e-mail algorithms.

 

Next Up on DMOU: Scott Dring

While DMOs are increasingly engaged in (and in Destination Cleveland’s case, leading) workforce development and talent acquisition initiatives, Visit Dublin OH is playing the long game by working to show High School students the breadth and excitement of hospitality as a career choice. Scott Dring joins the DMOU podcast to outline how the newly launched Travel & Tourism Academy in the Dublin School System came to fruition. The program merges traditional learning curriculum (designed by the region’s top academic institutions) with really life onsite exposure, becoming one of the most talked about Academies on campus. Scott also shares how the Dublin Link has both created a new local destination but enhanced its historic downtown. And, a Bonus Round question that involves 4 guys in a van in an attempt to visit every major league baseball park on America without GPS or mobile phones. Join us.

Where Design and Execution Collide

So...there are those hotel brands that provide free breakfast. And there are those that charge. Some of the ones that charge offer buffets; others offer servers to take your order and deliver your food. And then there are those trendy bars adjacent to the lobby that serve made to order breakfasts and, in some cases, lunch and dinner.

I can't imagine that the designers of this week's hotel ever imagined the scenario I witnessed yesterday...or if it never dawned on them what could go wrong, I can't believe a legacy brand would have ever hired them.

It's dinner. I've already exhausted the restaurants this week within a 10 minute drive that have at least 4-star Yelp reviews that look remotely aligned to my tastes. It's starting to rain. Screw it, I'll just order a hamburger here in the lobby and watch SportsCenter.

The person behind the bar takes my order, turns to retrieve a frozen patty from refrigeration, slides it into a fast broiler and waits for the timer. Hey? I'm standing here. I can see what you're doing.

When the timer chimes, she takes it out, lays a slice of processed cheese on one side of a bun and puts the halves in the broiler to get a slight char on the bun (a nice touch, to be sure). She assembles the pieces and then looks at me and says, I'll get your fries...and goes back into the kitchen. Five minutes later, she returns and delivers my now cold burger with my now steaming fries. 

As always, I'm gonna side with her...and challenge management with horrible training. Put the fries in first and unfreeze the burger second was clearly never communicated to her. But, therein lies a deeper issue. If you have a working kitchen behind the wall, why would you put on display that you are serving frozen meat by cooking it in front of a guest in the first place?

C'mon, Marriott. Shouldn't we be able to expect more from you?

The Frozen Dead Guy

Listeners to the DMOU Podcast heard the story of the festival in Estes Park called "Frozen Dead Guy Days." A whimsical event celebrating the cryogenically frozen Grandpa Bredo that began in Nederland, Kara Franker and her crew at Visit Estes Park secured the rights to the festival late in 2022 and pulled off an amazing event last spring.

Now, the owner of the Stanley Hotel (think "The Shining") has secured the rights to the Frozen Dead Guy himself. If you missed it, catch this segment of this week's CBS Sunday Morning.

And, while Visit Estes Park was sadly missing in the piece...we know the real story.

A story that was exceptionally well played.

Migrants as the Solution

I get that news outlets believe they need to require readers to pay for content...but I'd love to see the abandonment rate when we all say no to a six-month subscription just to read one story. I'm guessing it's significant, but media seems not sophisticated enough to realize that sponsors will pick up the bill to get in front of us. Like YouTube.

So, I only have a short glimpse of a story from the LA Times (y'all really should be smarter) that suggests that hotels experiencing striking workers have turned to homeless migrants, who are all too eager to work, to fill those jobs.

The story further suggests that the DA is investigating that these hotels are underpaying these workers and are in violation of child labor laws.

So much to unpack here without the full story...but striking workers should expect scabs to slide into their positions. It's the downside of a strike; you can be replaced (especially in hospitality).

If hotels are under-compensating these workers, there isn't enough shame to be heaped upon them.

That homeless individuals are given a shot at a job that could elevate them to renting an apartment; how cool is that?

At the end of the day...hospitality must begin to treat and compensate their employees better. Strikes happen when work conditions reach the breaking point. That the hospitality workforce hasn't come back to pre COVID levels should say a lot. 

This is a sector that needs and deserves more respect.

 

New on the DMOU Podcast: Cannabis Tourism

Almost half of American States have legalized the recreational use of cannabis...but many DMOs in those States struggle with ways to promote the advantage they possess against States that don't. On this episode of DMOU, we talk with Brian Applegarth, the foremost expert in the intersection of cannabis and tourism, about how to escape the stigma...and focus on the health, wellness and inclusionary aspects of this amazing community asset. A fascinating episode.

New on the DMOU Podcast: Kara Franker

For DMOs that produce destination events, it often consumes months of staff time. Yet, Visit Estes Park turned a festival that a neighboring community was preparing to sunset into an event that garnered national media attention in just 100 days. CEO Kara Franker guests to tell the unique story of the revitalized "Frozen Dead Guy Days," an event that not only bolstered a need time on the calendar but also raised money for workforce housing and daycare initiatives. It's a stirring story of community collaboration you're not going to want to miss. You can find the conversation HERE.

And, while you're at it...check out the sensational video behind the story Kara tells on the podcast about backing a Room Tax increase to support local workforce housing and childcare.

Simply brilliant.

Smiles All Around

Walking back to my hotel after an early morning presentation to the Rockford Area CVB Board, I came upon a corner that made me smile (click image to enlarge). 

It was the stone in front of the Rockford Park District that read "Webbs Norman Center." Along with former CVB CEO Wendy Perks Fisher, Webbs was one of the early national visionaries that saw the potential in Sports Tourism almost 40 years ago. It was their early partnership that set into motion the transformation of Rockford Tourism. This video offers a glimpse of that relationship.

My smile grew larger when I noticed that the street in front of the Webbs Norman Center has been renamed Tim Dimke Drive...as Tim and his crew took Webbs' and Wendy's vision and expanded it even further with current RACVB CEO John Groh.

As I ducked into the sensational riverfront Embassy Suites Hotel for a quick bite before heading out, I had to smile again because I heard joy and laughter coming out of the kitchen...and that's a sound we've all missed over the past few years. But, there it was...and, as I surveyed my fellow diners, I could see how infectious it was for all of us.

And, that's just damn good management...the kind that empowers employees to have fun, please the guest and take incredible pride in their work.

Thanks Rockford...let's see if my next stop continues the streak.