When I get on my soapbox advocating this delight thing, the question I always get from managers is how do I build that culture? How do I get my staff to go above and beyond the call of duty. To see what others don’t see. To do without being told.

Every manager knows to hire for attitude not for aptitude, and then reinforce the aptitude. But that is often easier said than done. A lot of “how to” books and articles have been written about empowering employees, giving them a purpose, not rules, and tapping into their creativity. Most, if not all, say the same thing – and they are probably right. In my mind, however, I like to think about it in terms of finding and hiring the round peg for your hotel’s square hole. In other words, look for the person who sees the world from a different perspective for he or she will intuitively be more likely to see that unexpected delight opportunity. To read the full article, click here.