The check in process in any luxury hotel, more often than not begins from the tipping procedure, where the guests, as an informal rule, tip the bellboy, the valet guy and even the concierge. However, the owner of the all new luxury hotel in Chicago, David Pisor has now implemented an interesting ‘no tips necessary’ policy with his project, the Elysian Hotel. As per hotel policy, the guests that check in the hotel are proactively informed about the ‘no tipping necessary’ policy and also at the time when the guests book their rooms. It means that, the guests of the hotel aren’t obligated in any ways to tip the employees for their jobs.
Now, some would certainly argue that, such a policy although might prove to be feel-good factor for the guests, but could also have a negative impact on morale of the employees. This is because, in the hotel industry, the employees of a hotel are eligible for any incentives and the tips from the guests are only incentives that they can bank upon.
However, Mr. Pisor devised a way to circumvent this hurdle as instead of giving the responsibility of a job to a single employee, say the like of a front desk clerk, the Elysian Hotel has designated ‘Ambassadors’ that handle multiple tasks and thus are paid more. Furthermore, David Pison took the hiring protocols to a new limit by hiring non-hotel experienced staff, who had no experience if the tipping procedures, thus drastically reducing the element of embarrassment.
According to David Pison,
“I don’t want to hear, ‘Do you need a hand, sir?’ I don’t think it’s luxurious. I think it’s incredibly not luxurious. You’re thinking about it the whole time as opposed to just enjoying yourself.”
Via USA Today, Elysian Hotels & Sea Port Boston
