In the hospitality industry, employees make or break the guest experience. And while it may seem common sense, it needs to be said: Asking employees to treat guests better than they’re treated themselves isn’t a road to a quality customer experience.

Further, think about how social media and the web have changed the hospitality industry. Every customer can be a reviewer, and every potential customer with an internet connection can read past experiences from prior guests. Add to that the stress the everyday hospitality employee is under doing difficult, labor-intensive work with high turnover and you have a recipe for stressed-out employees working with stressed-out guests.

Engagement doesn’t happen by accident. It takes a culture of purpose and a connection to the organization’s reason for being for employees to connect all of the little extra mile-efforts they might make in a day for guests to the bigger picture that makes an exceptional customer experience.

In a recent article, Maritz Motivation Chief Operating Officer Chris Dornfeld highlights the unique engagement challenges facing the hospitality industry. Read the full article and feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.