Marriott finds a way to slice the bacon
Filed under: Travel, Recession
The hotel company Marriott is cutting some fat out of its business by switching the breakfast meat to irregular cuts of bacon, according to a report in Fortune magazine. The company says its executives pigged out on the odd-shaped pieces and were practically in hog heaven over this money-saving breakfast. It would be easy to roast Marriott for being piggish, but Fortune reports that times are tough at the company – as they are at most hotels now that legions of us are unemployed and don't travel any longer for business or pleasure.
For the first three months of 2009, Marriott's revenue per available room, an industry metric known as revPAR, fell by 17%. So it's understandable that they need to skinny down the costs and even a ham-handed approach to savings really isn't an oinky way to do business these days.
The Fortune story says Marriott is looking at other money-saving moves as well, including getting rid of the no-charge morning newspapers delivered outside of room doors. No more USA Today to trip over certainly won't hurt my feelings. But there are other revenue-conserving approaches that I think they ought to reconsider. A month ago, I visited my son in New Orleans and stayed at the J.W. Marriott in the French Quarter. There was no hot water for my overnight stay. It's true that the temperature in June in New Orleans is blistering, but even so, it's hard to argue that cold showers are a customer amenity.
I complained – mildly – and the pleasant man behind the desk took $50 off the bill, which reduced the total to well under $100. At that price, it's no wonder the company isn't having a great year.
In March, my husband and I stayed at the Marriott-brand Ritz-Carlton in Grand Cayman for two weeks. It's a little piece of paradise. My husband was there to work, and I was there to put my feet up. In previous years, dinner reservations were impossible to get and snagging a lounge chair around the pool meant rising at the crack of dawn. But this year, it was quiet. No need to make a reservation at all and chairs in the sun or the shade were readily available.
I felt sorry for the people who worked there. But they assured me that the management hadn't laid anybody off, although no overtime was coming their way and tips were stingier.
It's a tough year all around. I reported a story several years ago for Newsweek International about Marriott's commitment to providing economic opportunity for any employee who worked hard and did a good job. It made an impression on me and I've been a good customer ever since.
Treating employees well is hard in good times and particularly difficult in tough times. If Marriott can save its bacon by things like serving odd-shaped breakfast meat, as a customer I probably won't even notice. And if I do, I'll applaud.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-28-2009 @ 8:41PM
Brian said...
A truly great company is behind employees thru good and bad times. A company that loves a worker when profits are high then blames, fires or mistreats them when profits are low is short sited and will suffer in the long run. Companies need to think long term this seperates a great company from a BAD company..
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6-28-2009 @ 8:49PM
tim said...
NO LAYOFFS ??? Maybe someone should tell the 64 dedicated EX Marriott employees in Lake Tahoe that they really were not fired!!!
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6-29-2009 @ 1:23AM
sheree said...
Yes, I have also heard of Marriot layoffs. How does someone get away with writing a story like this when it is false? We had a TERRIBLE experience staying at a Marriot in Destin. Yes, they gave us the room free, but we cut a 3 day weekend short and went home after men tried to break in our room where me and my 10 year old daughter were sleeping. Thanks for the free room though.
6-28-2009 @ 9:29PM
Mr. Dumas said...
No Layoffs huh? As an ex-Marriott manager, I can assure you that layoffs have occurred in the past, PRESENT and will the future. This article could not be farther from the truth.
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6-28-2009 @ 9:41PM
A said...
Although I had an extremely pleasant stay at a Marriott in LA (meant for business travel more than for a luxury stay), and although the staff was amazing, the room extraordinary, the complimentary breakfast extremely fulfilling, I do find it hard to believe that such a major chain has not gone through one (if not several) rounds of layoffs. The thought makes me feel bad for the employees, but the suggestion of no layoffs sounds like bad business. I side with the comments above. I have read of multiple layoffs. Praise Marriott for what they do well, but not for being above the current economic climate, because they are not and no one is.
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6-28-2009 @ 10:06PM
Sales Expert said...
I have a BS degree in Marketing from FIorida State. I wanted to work for the Marriott but was told you have to start from the bottom. I was a Bell man for 6 month at the Ritz Carlton in Orlando. I was then hired as an Administrative assistant, I was able to complete all my work faster. I really liked working for Marriott and to work my way up the ladder. I had broken my foot, I was not allowed to work with a disability of a cast. I then recovered and was not rehired back. Yes they had good benefits,but since I broke my foot, The future with Marriott ended. Thank you to President Obama for unemployment. But I prefer to get a Sales Managers job to bring more busines to the hotel.
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6-28-2009 @ 10:46PM
noacumen said...
I am from D.C. and remember when Marriott was making sandwiches for travelers and troops during world war II. I watched their phenomenal rise to what Marriott represents today. I personally know Marriott employees that have been with the company over 30 years, The Marriott family treats their employees with rewards and respect. The employees are like family to Mr. Bill Marriott. The company has for years set high standards for their operations. One more thing. I have absolutely no connection with Marriott or any of their operations.
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6-28-2009 @ 10:56PM
rich said...
I have been a Marriott stock holder for over 10 years. My family purchased their stock soon after it became public. It is the only stock I will not sell. Some day My children will also be Marriott stockholders. I hope they also will feel the same about this company. Buy and hold it is a good company.
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6-28-2009 @ 11:08PM
Vicki Dadin said...
As an ex Interior Designer, lay offs are still happening at Marriott.
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6-28-2009 @ 11:24PM
patty said...
The article couldn't be farther from the truth. I am a laid off manager because of job elimination. I worked 60 hrs a week for 4 years in that position. Marriott is no better than any other company and has no loyalty to their employees. Maybe in the begining they took care of their empoyees and their employees took care of their guests but that isn't how it is anymore.
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6-28-2009 @ 11:39PM
Brittney said...
Marriot has nice hotels and I feel bad for anyone that has been fired or layed-off but Marriot is not what it seems. I worked for them for a few months until I could take no more. They pay very little and expect a lot. Plus the manager and front desk manager at my particular hotel were horrible to work for.
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6-29-2009 @ 1:26AM
Alex said...
No layoffs ... that's a joke! They just call it re-structuring and make everyone re-apply for their jobs; the catch is that they will only keep 1/2 of them. And the ones that don't are the the people with the least tenure, therefore the cheapest to get rid of. This will just continue as Marriott is rolling out Sale Force One ... the brillant idea to take all Sales Managers out of the hotels and have the Regional Sales Managers sell multiple properties ... so you won't be able to talk with anyone at the hotel and that probably won't know the answers to any detailed question. Marriott has gotten away from its Foundation and people who have never worked at a hotel are making the decisions.
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6-29-2009 @ 12:14AM
brad said...
I've always had a good experience with staying at a Marriot, however if I was without hot water for a shower I would have really had a problem!!! But nonetheless if everything else is accurate about this article I applaud them for doing their best to keep employees.
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6-29-2009 @ 1:30AM
Lynn said...
What a lovely well written story.
As an 8 year employee of a major hotel where my position was eliminated because of the money I am here to tell you hotels NEVER treat their employees with anything more than a someone they barely tolerate.
I was a loyal employee who was with them from the begining, at at the first sign of an economic turn they cut my job.
Hotels get many ridiculous complaints from guests so they guest can get something free. And then they write bad commments, and you as the service worker get in trouble.
I know other employeees who were called obscene names at the front desk and some were enen flipped the bird by guests.
All off my fellow employees were trearted badly, and are being laid off becuse they can't pay them anymore at the rate they were once paid.
If you had a good experiance that's great, but I think that says something not only about the quality of the employee you were dealing with, but your ability to not find things wrong and enjoying your time there.
If this hotel is like the one I worked at it's just a public face they want you to see, not a reality about what goes on behind the scenes. And from what I read above, sounds just about the same indifferece as any hotel treats their employees.
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6-29-2009 @ 1:43AM
S. Miulli said...
As a former Marriott employee, I can personally attest to the fact that they are laying off employees and managers alike. They are not offering to place these hard working and loyal people in other jobs within the organization, but hire less qualified (but more personally connected) people from the outside. I used to think the sun rose and set on Marriott, but not anymore. They have proven themselves to be the opposite of what they portray. Shame on them.
Sorry Ms. Phipps, but you better research a little more next time.
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6-29-2009 @ 3:01AM
mike said...
Worked for the company for close to 30 years--over half my life--many times did the work of my managers and was not compensated--was never paid a wage commensurate with the cost of living in the area--was just replaced with by an individual half my age and with one third my education--no lay-offs?!
6-29-2009 @ 11:34AM
Eddie said...
People mentioning "Layoffs" in their comments - you need to re-read the article. The author is not saying Marriott has not had any layoffs, she is saying the employee at the Marriott run Ritz-Carlton in Grand Cayman said there were no layoffs at that property.
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