NEWS/RESEARCH Derek Sylvester, president of Sylvester Consulting Group has served the hotel industry as a consultant and operator for fifteen years. He has conducted over 200 hotel market studies for the acquisition and development of hotels throughout the eastern United States. General Manager Performance Evaluation - Simply Defined By Derek Sylvester Based on interviews with over 2,000 full- and limited-service general managers while conducting hotel development/acquisition studies in the last ten years, we have discovered that highly competent general managers operate highly performing hotels. We define a highly performing hotel as the occupancy and/or RevPAR leader in the market. The hotel has clean, updated and fresh smelling guestrooms. The hotel's entrance is free of debris, the grass is mowed and shrubbery trimmed. Finally, the hotel's management staff and line employees are responsive and well informed. In the process of making this "discovery", we realized that this select group of general managers consistently exhibited common traits including a well-informed grasp of the supply/demand characteristics in their competitive market. The conclusion: a GM's performance can be effectively measured through routine observation and questioning during an hour-long interview and hotel tour by focusing on a short list of telltale indicators. The following is our short list of telltale GM performance indicators. 1.    The GM bends down to pick up debris in the guest room corridor. 2.    He or she knows the names of the GMs in the hotel's competitive set. 3.    During a guestroom inspection, the housekeeper refers to the GM by name. The GM also refers to the housekeeper by name. 4.    Lastly, a bonus indicator. Eighty percent of the GM's desktop is visible. These indicators are representative of important qualities and skill sets which we believe to be inherent in a strong general manager, as summarized below. 1.    Debris - The GM "pitches in" to maintain and improve the appearance of the property. The GM is focused on cleanliness. 2.    Competitors' Names - The GM has visited his/her competitors and is aware of their strengths and weaknesses. The GM employs a cooperative and competitive strategy in the marketplace. 3.    Reciprocal Name Recognition - The GM is active and visible within the property and takes the time to meet all employees. The GM is approachable and responsive to employee concerns. 4.    Clean Desk - The GM is an organized and effective administrator. The GM has balanced a big picture vision for the property with a focus on operational details. We have concluded based on our "unofficial" evaluation that a GM who meets or exceeds expectations as defined by the above indicators is typically a highly competent general manager of a highly performing hotel. The results of this "unofficial" performance review are usually consistent with the findings generated by a more thorough guest room inspection, employee survey or profit/loss statement critique. Try it next time you walk into your property. Management Development Initiatives By Derek Sylvester President, Sylvester Consulting Group To combat high management turnover and a difficult recruiting market, our most successful restaurant and hotel clients focus on developing managers from within. One client with five different profit centers currently has five “home grown” managers. However, similar to most independent operators, he leaves management development and training primarily to chance.In his operation, managers are expected to take the initiative to develop their skills on their own time. When a new manager hasn’t learned to read a financial statement, develop an adequate budget or implement an effective marketing campaign, the respective manager is typically at fault, not the owner. In the process, the guest, staff, manager, owner and operation suffer. Developing and implementing a formalized management training program requires initiative, creativity and most importantly, discipline. Listed below are some recommendations. Develop an annual training budget or allowance for each manager. Monitor training expenditures through an actual v. budget comparison. Initiate a week-long management cross training program with comparable properties owned by friends or associates.This can be especially beneficial for seasonal properties. Ensure that new managers work at least one shift in each hourly position that reports to the new manager, shadowing an experienced employee. Enroll each new manager in SBANE’s management training class, an all day seminar sponsored by the SBA. Sponsor internal management training and education courses.  Have an experienced manager develop and teach a class or series of classes on a relevant subject to their peers. Subsidize a manager’s night or weekend at a primary competitor or comparable property. Require the manager to write a critique of his/her visit for discussion and training purposes. Require that each new manager complete a personality profile, detailing strengths and weaknesses.Center annual performance reviews on initiatives to strengthen the weaknesses. Require managers to complete designated “outside” continuing education and training courses to maintain certification as a qualified manager, similar to accountants and lawyers. Adherence to this requirement should be discussed during the manager’s annual performance review. Utilize performance reviews as a measure for training effectiveness. Has a manager’s budgeting or marketing skills, etc. improved? Similar to an annual performance review, marketing plan or financial budget, a management training program should be updated annually with input from the entire management team. Initiating an effective management training and development program will improve management retention, efficiency and effectiveness and lead to greater operational consistency and profitability. As one of my former managers stated in her resume, “I take worries out of an owner’s hands”.  With more consistent, formalized training, that can be true.   Sylvester Consulting Group 1000 Stony Hill Road Yardley, PA  19067 PA 215-504-8466 fax: 215-860-3934 e-mail: info@sylvestergroup.com