The History Of Development Of "Four Seasons Motor Hotel" Worldwide
A young skilled architect working with his father designing a motel tasted the taste of success and had a spark of ideas flowing through the veins. Starting from a small deteriorated area in Toronto, The Four Seasons Motor Hotel was established in 1961 by Mr. Isadore Sharp, which later became a renown stopover for business travelers ("History Behind Four Seasons - Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts", 2018). This was the start of journey for the firm on the road to become what it is today. Building a $4 Million multiple-story resort destination in suburbs of Toronto to stepping in London, company saw success rising exponentially ("Once Upon A City: Glamour, disco transform suburban North York | The Star", 2018).
The important phase in the hotels fortune development was the shift in the business model from building and management to management only model. Danger of bankruptcy due to the failure of Vancouver branch triggered the firm to dive into the new pool of business leaving the past behind (Segal, 2018). With 111 properties worldwide, Four Seasons has perfectionated in the art of hospitality and service (Segal, 2018). “We look for employees who share the Golden Rule – people who, by nature, believe in treating others as we would have them treat us.”
When founding the first ‘Four Seasons Motor Hotel’ in 1961, this was the leading value for Isadore Sharp, founder of the now renowned luxurious hotel chain. Still being represented in the Four Seasons Hotel, the Golden Rule shaped the company and contributed to international achievements. The hospitality company is one of the “100 Best Companies to Work for” ranked by Fortune since many years, especially when it comes to customer service. A good relationship between the management and the staff had great effects to the treatment of the customers. Guests do not feel the atmosphere of being in a Northern American hotel but the way of living in the country they reside in.
One of the foremost strategies of being a leading global business is to sensitively perceive cultural changes and to wisely adapt to them. Four Seasons referred as “cultural chameleon” also applies this strategy to its approach to international growth and cultural changes by ceaselessly learning from different countries. Understanding culture, economy, market and marketing of targeting country enabled Four Seasons not only to make a huge prosperity in each local market but also to be completely blended into the local community.
However, Four Seasons firmly laid the foundations of hotel management, such as clean room, attentive service, and high-quality breakfast with its local flexibility as the President Corinthios said: “Our strength is our diversity and our singularity” (Bowen, Hallowell, & Knoop, 2003, p.2.). As Four Season’s global brand identity is immersed in both fundamental values of servicing and local cultural elements due to different properties in different countries, the brand does not strongly implicate a Canadian Ecole but reflects indigenous elements of the host culture of the property.
Thus, the Service Culture Standards are embedded in local context demands. For example, each culture has their own hospitality measures and according to the Service Culture Standards (Bowen, Hallowell, & Knoop, 2003) staff members should always show a friendly manner to the guests. Whereas, in some countries such as Turkey, hospitality that guests expect is beyond smiling or eye contact, such as chatting and joking friendly. However, small chats and jokes might be found inappropriate in Europe or U.S. since these countries have more individualistic cultures and some people might interpret those manners as a violation of personal space. Therefore, the managers should change the way values is enacted by the staff according to the cultural values of the host country.
There is no doubt that one of the reasons for Four seasons international success is its human resource management. Every recognizable international company must have a mission and so does Four Seasons, where they strive to offer truly notable and personalized service to each one of its customers. The manner and the way in which Four Seasons employees are treated is reflected upon customer satisfaction. This sort of relationship can be easily explained as the following: Satisfied & well-trained employees results in satisfied customers. Notably, Four Seasons has been mentioned the “100 Best Companies to work in America”, a list created by Fortune’s (Gaulin,2015). Aside from the company’s mission, there are rules that are followed by people in all positions.
Specifically, there is one rule that every employee working under Four Seasons comply with: “The Golden Rule”, which states that every employee should treat others the way they wish they would be treated (Bowen et al., 2003, p. 4). This reflects the relationship between employers and subordinates as well as the relationship between employees and the customers. The reputation the company has earned throughout the years is a proof of its constant efforts to be one of the best employers out there. When it comes to salaries, it is known in Paris that Four Seasons paychecks are within the top 3 highest among hotels in the capital of France.
The company also has a reward system for their employees, where the employees who show a greater performance than average are notably rewarded. This is not a method just to recognize outstanding staff member’s performance, but also is a way to show others what should be enhanced in their work (Bowen et al., 2003, p. 11). In fact, as a symbol to proof the company’s culture, a group called the “Task Force”, which is a group of 35 experienced Four Seasons managers and employees, has the responsibility to instruct new employees and make them live up to the standers of the company, showing the unique working environment in Four Seasons. (Bowen et al., 2003, p.9).
By 2002, Four Seasons was one of the well-established companies with the revenue of over 280 Million dollars. Entering a specific market place like France was still challenging for such an experienced company. Company had to choose proper location, which would have awakened French people’s sentiments. “We had looked at a new development but gaining planning permission for a new building in Paris is very hard. Since we look for the highest possible quality assets in the best locations, the George V was perfect. It established us very powerfully in the French capital” (Bowen et al., 2003, p. 5).
In addition to that, Four Seasons chose right approach towards human resources, by implementing “Golden Rule”. “Managers believed that the effect of Four Seasons’ human resource practices was reflected in customer satisfaction. Le Calvez noted, “We offer friendly, very personal service. We have a very young and dynamic brigade with an average age of 26, spanning 46 different nationalities.” (Bowen et al., 2003, p. 12).Unlike Kiehl's, the company which kept its authenticity, Four Seasons was called “Cultural chameleon” for adapting in every kind of environment. “Cultural chameleon” approach played a role of catalyst and helped company to have an outstanding performance in France.
According to SWOT analysis, (“SWOT analysis”, Quickmba.com) Four Seasons was able to identify its main weakness and ask right questions. Four Seasons was not prepared for labor-oriented government policies and all the restrictions they had to face from government. Unlike United States, labor was more protected in France, employer could only work 35 hours a week, after purchasing George V hotel Four Season was also obligated to keep all the employers that worked for George V. After hiring a La Calvez, a competent man who was familiar with French approach to business, company started to function properly. Four Seasons is one of the few companies that managed to adapt to completely different set of rules and culture.
Conclusion
Multiple year of planning and hardship made the company a worldwide trusted brand. Facing the challenges and overcoming the obstacles has made Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts inspiration for numerous companies around the globe. Maintaining the service values across multinational borders, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts has assured the high-quality service for the customers. Either be Bali or France, Four Season has satisfied millions of customers worldwide.
