HOTEL INDUSTRY Local Holiday Inn collects another excellence award

The owner is constantly reinvesting in the property and renovating the full-service hotel.
BOARDMAN -- The Holiday Inn here has earned a distinction that no other hotel in the worldwide chain ever has: an 11th Torchbearer Award.
The award was presented to the Boardman hotel last month in Chicago at the 2004 InterContinental Hotel Group America's Investors and Leadership Conference. It is presented to the hotels in the InterContinental Hotel Group system that maintain the highest standards of excellence.
In addition, the local hotel was the recipient of the first Kemmons Wilson Spirit of the Family award, given to only one of the 10 Torchbearer winners that best exemplifies Holiday Inn's core brand values. Kemmons Wilson was the founder of the Holiday Inn.
Credit
Brent Reynolds, general manager, notes that it was an honor to have received the prestigious Torchbearer Award from more than 1,100 Holiday Inn properties. "It's such an accomplishment, not only to have received this award, but to have received it unmatched 11 times," he said.
He credits the award to his staff of 130 employees for its dedication and commitment: "First and foremost, we have an outstanding group of people who have a true passion for what they do."
Reynolds said communication is another key to the facility's success. "We have an employee council, composed of a representative from each department, that meets every month. We discuss topics such as customer service," he explained. "I encourage the staff to tell me a problem I don't know about so we can fix it together."
He noted that there is a strong sense of family among employees.
Reynolds said that Holiday Inn is a strong brand with 52 years behind it, but like any other business it must constantly reinvent itself.
He said the Boardman hotel is in its 16th year of operation, but it conveys a new-hotel image because its owner, Edward J. DeBartolo Jr. of DeBartolo Holdings LLC., has been extraordinarily supportive of the hotel.
Rooms for improvement
He noted DeBartolo is constantly reinvesting in the property and renovating the full-service hotel, which has 158 guest rooms and suites and 10 meeting rooms and houses TJ's Restaurant and Lounge.
Reynolds, who started his career as a front-desk clerk 15 years ago at the Boardman facility, said attention to customers and detail put the hotel in the national limelight when it was the featured property in People Notice, a service training initiative that will be implemented by the Holiday Inn brand in 2005 as a property case study. The facility was selected from all Holiday Inn worldwide locations.
Reynolds noted that the case study evolved over the past three years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, which took a toll on the travel and hospitality industry. He said some important goals were set as a result and were included in the case study, which is showcased in a DVD.
Reynolds said that the three philosophies of the case study are hire constant, changing friends; lead and inspire; and be a constant, caring friend.
"We believe you have to go the extra mile and be ready to serve. Seek opportunities to develop an emotional tie with a customer and make their experience a positive event. Loyalty drives profitability," he stressed.
If that's the case, then the customer-sensitive plan at the Holiday Inn in Boardman must be working. Reynolds said the hotel is very busy these days not only with out-of-town guests, but planning class reunions and holiday parties and dinners through the end of the year.