host man ship

7/28/2019 Host Man Ship

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LR Consultancy LimitedPO Box 178, Hoylake, Wirral CH29 9AR

T. 08451 24 74 64 E. [email protected]

www.lrconsultancy.co.uk VAT Registration No. 837 2791 00. Registered in England No. 5119705

Lesley RobertsDirector

A summary of HostmanshipThis following is provided as a summary of theprinciples and behaviours of Hostmanship by JanGunnarsson and Olle Blohm. It is a personalinterpretation intended to provide a reminder of theprinciples and applications of Hostmanship.

I ho e its useful!

Hostmanship- An ethic of personal responsibility and the art of making people feel welcomeWhat is distinctive about Hostmanship, as compared to most books on customer service, customerexperience, word-of-mouth marketing or leadership, is that this is not primarily about strategies and tactics. Itis about the attitude that we bring.

Hostmanship is about the relationship that is established between a business and the people who benefit fromthat business. Hostmanship is about the kind of care that is exhibited.

Hostmanship is about making people feel welcome. Gunnarsson and Blohm recommend stopping using the

term customer and instead call them guests. Customers buy things, guests come and should be made to feelwelcome.

The 6 fundamentals of HostmanshipInteraction and Serving others.The happiness of being part of another persons success, creating asense of magic in the encounters that we should have with guests. Each interaction is different becauseguests are all people, not abstract objects that we just deal with. Guests are people who have real lives andreal needs, and they've come to us to have at least one of those needs met.

See The Big Picture, Perceive The Whole. See yourself from the guests point of view and understandthat you are a part of everything the guest experiences. Everything fits together all disciplines, all guestencounters - which means that everyone needs to be the company you represent. YOU are part of theexperience. When a guest encounters any part of The Wave, everything is a part of the whole. There is alevel of integration that exists that guests sense and if integrity is lacking, then the guests sense that too.

Practicing dialogue.To speak is to listen and to strive for understanding rather than being understood andto answer questions that have not been asked. Hostmanship highlights that to a great extent, dialogue isdependent, not on our ability to articulate our thoughts, but rather to listen. To listen objectively, perceptivelyand non-prejudicially. Dialogue requires the courage to see beyond prejudices and a willingness to treatguests internally and externally - in a friendly and personable manner.

Taking responsibility.To acknowledge and respond to the problems a guest might have regardless ofwho, what or why a problem occurs. Stand behind your guest and the promises the company makes - A

promise is a promise no matter who makes it. Problems are the challenges of Hostmanship and responsibilityis the initiative we must all take to meet our guests needs. It is not simply doing what is required by the jobdescription, but being responsible for the organization's care of the guest. Assuming responsibility meansseeing your business with guest's eyes. Who are your guests? What's expected of you? What does yourguest need? How can you help to ensure that the guest benefits from what you do? In short, are you takingresponsibility for your guest's success? The ethic of responsibility looks for ways to build relationships.


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Considerationis the key to the whole Hostmanship system because it is the key to how we see the guestbefore us. Consideration means seeing another persons humanity without prejudice, and doing so withaffection. Consideration requires the host, not to treat every person alike, but every person with dignity andvalue. This doesn't mean that guests are always right, or nice, good, pleasant people. It just means that wedon't prejudge who they are because of some identifiable characteristic. Hostmanship is giving -

Considerately giving of yourself, your time, your energy and your personality, a willingness to share the bestof yourself.

Searching knowledge.Start where the guest is and learn other cultures and customs. This is not simplymastering a collection of facts. Instead it is knowing how to interpret the situation that your guest is in andapplying your knowledge to their situation. This means that a host is always learning, not just more about hisfield, but also how to integrate that knowledge into the life experience of the guest. This sort of knowledgealso means that you are aware of the differences in cultures so that your own behaviour as host does notunintentionally offend or confuse your guest.

Hostmanship is a warm word, a word that embodies both welcome and let me take care of you .

The 5 Principles of HostmanshipHostmanship has five stages of application.

Personal Hostmanship. One of the big differences between Hostmanship and a "service attitude" is thefeeling that stays with you after the guest is gone. Good Hostmanship is something you take home, thatbecomes part of you. It's something that helps you to develop your personality.

To have the courage to step forward requires confidence, and that can only be attained if you know yourself.It's also one of the biggest challenges as a host. You have to understand yourself, who you are, where you

come from, your references, values, prejudices and limitations. To achieve this level of life is to become aperson of wisdom; a person of integrity; a person who is whole, complete and "together."

Professional success demands personal success. The private you must be in sync with the professional you.Personal Hostmanship creates an environment where the guest's needs can be met. But it doesn't stand-alone. It requires the other stages to work.

Functional Hostmanship. Every organisation is divided up into functional units. Each function has its ownpurpose and method for operating and measuring their performance. The leadership challenge is to avoid thesilo effect and act on respect. Respect for other people, their backgrounds and the belief that everyone willmake their best choice based on the situation at hand. If you look at it that way, it is easy to like other people,cherish the moment, to treat interaction with your guests as uplifting and always focus on the guests needs.

Functional Hostmanship begins with the recognition that we each must be responsible for our own part of theorganisation. If we sit in judgment of others, we are in essence taking on ourselves the responsibility ofknowing what is best for them to do in their function area. When we respect someone, we accept his or herresponsibility for knowing what to do and doing it. Consequently, we accept our own responsibility for doingour part.

Hostmanship is a way to bring unity and cooperation to your company. J ust as personal Hostmanship isintegral to functional Hostmanship, functional Hostmanship is essential to organisational Hostmanship.


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Organisational Hostmanship. Hostmanship is about creating loyal customers or guests. It is an ethicalsystem of business relationships built upon the personal responsibility of employees to act as hosts to theguests of the business. Gunnarsson and Blohm trace good Hostmanship to a clear, well-stated mission. Fromtheir perspective a good mission incorporates clarity about Why we are here answering what need orproblem is met through your business. It addresses how the culture of the business achieves that mission and

what you do as a business. Because Hostmanship is fundamentally an ethical perspective, it finds itsexpression in the culture of the organisation.

There are really only two kinds of corporate cultures, and only one of them promotes Hostmanship. You eithercreate a culture where everything is steered in detail, where management lists every possible problem andstandard operating procedure is never to promise anything without consulting a supervisor. Or you can try tocreate a culture where values are the overriding concern, where the key is shared responsibility.

A culture where the satisfaction of every employee is a priority and where a level of Hostmanship has beenestablished. Thats when a philosophy of Hostmanship develops, and the Hostmanship you offer is firmlyaccepted by every member of that culture. Hostmanship isn't a quick turn around approach to organisationalimprovement. Rather it is a culture forming methodology that creates the foundation for a sustainablerelationship with guests. It is an attitude that the company projects that is open and welcoming to its guests. Destinational Hostmanship. If Hostmanship is about making people feel welcome, then when applied toa "destination" or place, it means that everyone works to create a physical environment of welcome. To be agood host means that you will be concerned and involved in all aspects of your community's life. You makethe investment of time and effort to build relationships that provide a basis for shared action to benefit thewhole community. It is Destinational Hostmanship where we see the real character of the ethic of personalresponsibility. For here is that place where there are no obligations, only free choice to contribute in ways thatmake a difference. If you lack pride in your local area, then your Hostmanship will suffer, if it exists at all.

Taking initiative to make a difference. The question before heads of team and managers at all levels iswhether they can see a larger enough picture to understand what their Destinational Host role is.

Destinational Hostmanship also acknowledges that a repeat encounter with a guest creates a differentexperience that the first one. To be a destinational host is to see the big picture that includes your community.It means understanding what outsiders think. It means taking initiative to lead in those areas that bridge thegap between my functional responsibility and the business community.

National Hostmanship. J an Gunnarsson and Olle Blohm wrote this book focused on Hostmanship as itapplies to people and companies in Sweden. One of the outcomes that they hoped to achieve is raising thepride that Swedes have in the country and expressing that pride to visitors from other countries. NationalHostmanship is a way to show your guests that it's not just any country they have travelled to; it's yourcountry. They are not saying, "Be a host when convenient." They are saying that live every day as a host.That every person whom you meet act as a host to them. They are saying make an effort to share yourcountry with the guest, the visitor, and the stranger.

Being a host in your country is very much a question of pride. You have to want to show off what's yours andnot be afraid to occasionally defend yourself. You live here and you've taken a stand.


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Real Hostmanship What personal changes will you make to develop your Hostmanship attitude?

What changes do you need to develop in your team and how will you achieve this?

How can you develop and support the people around you to demonstrate true Hostmanship?

What are 3 priorities that you can take responsibility for, with immediate effect that will make a difference

to the Hostmanship provided to guests of The Wave, Muscat?

What can you take responsibility for that will develop each of the 6 fundamentals of Hostmanship?

1. Interaction and Serving others2. See the Big Picture, perceive the whole3. Practicing dialogue4. Taking responsibility5. Consideration6. Searching knowledge

What can you take responsibility for that will develop each of the 5 principles of Hostmanship?

1. Personal Hostmanship2. Functional Hostmanship3. Organisational Hostmanship4. Destinational Hostmanship5. National Hostmanship

What is your genuine and true commitment to Hostmanship?

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