Hiring for Culture with Kristine Goodwin, General Manager at Hyatt Place
On this episode of the Hospitality Leaders podcast, I welcome Kristine Goodwin, General Manager at Hyatt Place.
Working in a hotel can involve a lot of hard work and long hours. It can be easy to let that amount of labor drag staff morale down.
Kristine knows that as well as anyone because she started out on the front desk of a hotel. That’s why she’s so intentional about creating an uplifting and encouraging company culture. The kind of lighthearted joking and silly games that Kristine has developed with her team is not just a product of her personality. She has worked hard to carefully craft a work environment that keeps her team’s spirits up, no matter the circumstances of their work.
This culture cultivation starts at the very beginning, when Kristine brings on new hires. For Kristine, the most important characteristics of any potential employee are their people skills and their workplace compatibility. Her guests and her coworkers can tell when someone is faking enthusiasm, so she goes out of her way to hire people who exude friendliness and passion for hospitality.
Because of her effort, Hyatt Place has maintained an optimistic and positive culture that develops naturally from the outstanding people that work there.
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