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The Modern Butlers’ Journal, September 2016, International Institute of Modern Butlers

BlueLogo2011web The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

The Modern Butlers’ Journal volume 12, issue 9

International Institute of Modern Butlers

Teaching Right Mindset, People Skills, & Superior-service Expertise

IIMB Chairman Steven Ferry The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

Message from the Chairman

If you have ever been confronted by a service provider who lacked, or had lost their focus on, providing superior service, then there are three things you can do about it, other than letting them go.

You may not, for instance, be in a position to replace them, because they could have been working with the family so long they are considered part of the family—nannies or chefs who were working for the grandparents of the current employer, and who helped raise them from the time they were knee-high to a grasshopper!

Assuming you’d rather smooth out the situation than have to live with the constant friction, what would you do? Please email us your thoughts.

On a different note, please also make sure you read the very special offer at the end of this Journal, from our resident Silver Expert, Mr. Jeff Herman.

And check out the Chairman’s latest published article in the trade press: Emotional Engagement—A Mantra in Search of a Technology.

Butlers in the Media

Another nicely done interview with the Head Butler of the The Savoy.

Another “Apartment Butler” service has been launched, providing concierge and housekeeping services. Also, more products graced with the butler moniker: heritage end-tables.

And on the butler robotic front, various predictions and updates on the current state and future of robotics taking over household chores—relayed by The Sun, a low-grade English newspaper; as well as another on LinkedIn entitled What Happens When Millions of Jobs Are Lost Because of Automation? And finally, a personalized family robot is on the horizon—thank goodness, this one is not called a “Butler Robot.”

What would life be like without an insouciant Australian travel writer taking a light-hearted look at service in the butler world: this time River Cruise-boat Butlers—and she quite correctly calls her butler for crossing the line. He obviously needs proper training, but it appears he did correct nicely.

KobiGutmanSmallCreative Corner

How to Carve Fruits other than Apples

by Kobi Gutman

 

When delivering any service, it is normally that little extra step, the special touch, the unexpected, that creates the ‘wow’ effect. Fruit carving is a good way to achieve this effect. A simple piece added to a plate makes it that much more special and goes a long way with the guests.

I have found that a wonderful source of ideas for carvings are characters from picture books for kids. These can be made into simple fruit sculptures that are very likely to extract a smile—even from the bigger “kids.”

Here are some examples:

Strawberries
The eyes and nose are made of marzipan, and the irises of chocolate

 

 

 

Kermit the frog is made very simply using a Granny Smith apple. His eyes are Kermitmade with marshmallow and a dot of chocolate. To make his mouth, peel the skin of the green apple, place it on a red apple and cut and peel that one using the same shape. Then take the red skin and place it in the green apple.

 

2 cows

 

These two cows decorated a vegetable plate for young girls—they are made from tomatoes, a cherry tomato, and pieces of black olives. The eyes are marzipan and chocolate, and the grass consists of cut stems of parsley.

 

 

wolf howlingYou may have guessed that this cantaloupe carving of a wolf howling at the moon was not based on a theme taken from a children’s picture book.

The way I made it is very similar to the apple carving technique. Put a stencil on the cantaloupe, cut the design through and then take out the cantaloupe all around it, piece by piece. It’s not as easy as an apple but its not too difficult, either.

To obtain the green shade of the wolf and the shrub, peel a very thin layer off the cantaloupe’s skin. The tree in the background is simply a stem of parsley.

Kobi Gutman is the Head Butler at the Fort Harrison Retreat in Florida. He can be contacted via the Institute: enquiries @ modernbutlers.com

 

From Anantara Tangalle in Sri Lanka
Photographed at Anantara Tangalle in Sri Lanka

A note from the Chairman on Towel Art

I have mixed feelings about “towelagami,” as I call it: the rather ubiquitous shaping of towels at turndown, whether done on cruise ships, in hotels or resorts. Not the kind of thing that traditional butlers aspire to, but which does appeal to enough guests for the practice to continue. So I felt compelled to photograph this almost life-size crocodile lying in wait for me upon my return from dinner. He certainly caught my attention, and was surprisingly realistic—not to mention, a unique way of presenting the TV remote. I hope this does not escalate the size of these offerings, as housekeeping departments vie with each other to create ever bigger statues!

Amer1x1inch The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

 

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 15

by Amer Vargas 

Planter’s Punch

Today, we travel back in time once again: this time to the nineteenth century, more specifically to the period of the spoiled Miss Scarlett O’Hara and the adventurous dandy, Rhett Butler. A lot of rain has fallen since the film was first broadcast, but Gone with the Wind is still a classic movie, a must-see for anyone who considers themselves a cinema aficionado.

Photo by Achim Schleuning
Photo by Achim Schleuning

As so often happens in movies, cocktails are depicted in this beautiful drama, and in the case of the beautiful Scarlett, her favorite drink was the Planter’s Punch.

Planter’s Punch is based on Dark rum with additional ingredients that provide both a tangy as well as a sweet taste.

According to the International Bartenders Association, the mix is served in a highball glass, but it is also quite often seen in a hurricane glass, which makes for a better presentation.

The ingredients are 4.5 cl (1.5 oz.) of Jamaican Dark rum, 3.5 cl (1.2 oz.) of fresh orange juice, 3.5 cl (1.2 oz.) of fresh pineapple juice, 2 cl (0.7 oz.) of fresh lemon juice, 1 cl (0.35 oz.) of grenadine, 1 cl (0.35 oz.) of sugar syrup, and 3-4 dashes of Angostura bitters.

All ingredients are poured into a shaker that has been filled with ice and then served (the ice strained) into the chosen glass, which is also filled with ice. Then Angostura bitters are added on top, followed by a maraschino cherry and pineapple or a slice of orange as a garnish.

Cheers!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President and can be contacted via AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

Of Butlers, Roses, & Floral Arrangements, 

Part 29 of 30

by GJ dePillis, Master Gardener

 Miniature Floral Arrangements, Part 3 of 3

Mechanical Tips

Have you ever walked in the garden, your imagination taking in each plant and visualizing how it could be used in an arrangement? Does that leaf look too big? Is that blossom too small? Well, as long as the plants are healthy, you can use any of these mechanical tips below to sculpt your floral creations.

  1. If you construct your arrangement underwater, only use distilled water, or the color of the leaves and flowers will leech away over time.
  1. Reportedly, daffodils are “bullies” amongst flowers, tending to emit an unfriendly “aura” to non-similar flowers. Therefore, only arrange daffodils with other bulbed flowers.
  1. When using floral foam, make sure to use foam made for fresh flowers, that is designed to retain moisture. No matter how long one may soak foam designed for dry flowers, it simply will not retain the moisture.
  1. Warm bear grass with your hands to encourage a curl, pin it, and then let it cool in cool air.
  1. When using foam, plan where to stick each stem. Use a toothpick to begin the hole. Know that soft stems will not stay in place easily, so you may need to trim them at an angle for two reasons:
  • To allow the plant to soak up as much water as possible (maximum surface area).
  • To create a pointed end that allows one to stab the stem into the foam.
  1. Kenzan When using tweezers, gently grasp the flower near the bloom and slowly insert the stem into the hole created by the toothpick. Squeezing too hard will separate the bloom from the stem.
  1. Note that some flowers, such as African Violets, do not do well in foam and require a “Kenzan” instead—this is a small set of pins secured in the bottom of a flat vase with floral clay. The Kenzan is then submerged in water and the needles used to stab the stem, so allowing the flower to remain upright.
  1. Foam etcIf there are no floral foams or Kenzans available, place several straws into the tiny holder or vase, cut them to the same height as the container, fill the container with water, and place a stem inside each straw and so shape the arrangement.

 

 

The above basics “open the garden gate” to the collecting of flowers, twigs and leaves and, combined with your imagination, the creating of beautiful arrangements for any occasion: bridal bouquets and boutonnieres, birthdays, luncheons, English Afternoon Teas, year-end holidays such as Christmas using striking reds and greens or Hanukkah using crisp blues and whites.

Ms. dePillis is a master gardener and freelance contributor to the Journal who is based on the West Coast of the United States. She can be reached via depillis @ gmail.com

Jeff Herman Consulting the Silver Expert

 by Jeffrey Herman

Before we consult Mr. Herman this month, we would like to let our membership and readers know that his company has just introduced a new, environmentally and silver-friendly cleaning product. In Mr. Herman’s own, unabashed words:

“You’ve spent hundreds of dollars trying every silver polish and chemical dip on store shelves. They stripped or scratched your silver, smelled terrible, and exposed you and your family to dangerous chemicals. You’ve listened to the advice of friends based on what they had heard from their friends, and so on.

I’ve been a professional silver restorer and conservator for over three decades. I’ve witnessed and corrected an enormous amount of silver abuse. That’s exactly why I developed Herman’s Simply Clean, which cleans gently and completely as it removes tarnish while leaving the object’s surface the way it was prior to tarnishing. I’m using it in my own practice when removing tarnish on anything from baby spoons to important museum objects.”

hermans-450You’ll probably appreciate the following about Herman’s Simply Clean:

  • Developed by an internationally respected silver conservator;
  • Mild enough for your most cherished sterling and silver-plated flatware, holloware, and jewelry;
  • Contains no harsh abrasives;
  • No ammonia;
  • Non-toxic;
  • Earth-friendly;
  • pH: 7.5;
  • Fragrance-free;
  • Creamy consistency;
  • Leaves no residue;
  • Complimentary silver cleaning assistance;
  • Made in the USA.

Herman’s Simply Clean contains no tarnish inhibitor and is perfect for silver enthusiasts who are:

  • Looking for earth-friendly “green” products;
  • Sensitive to fragrances;
  • Owners of silver flatware, chalices, Kiddush cups, and other objects from which to eat or drink;
  • Concerned about eating from silver with tarnish preventer.

So put down that dried-out cake of polish and give Herman’s Simply Clean a try. It will make your silver smile as much as you!

Mr. Herman is offering a free Simply Clean kit, shipped free anywhere in the world to the person who offers the best reason, in 25 or less words, for why you’d want to try Herman’s Simply Clean. The kit consists of:

  • Herman’s Simply Clean
  • 14” x 14” Selvyt cloth
  • 100 premium cotton makeup pads
  • 200 jumbo cotton balls
  • 1 cellulose sponge
  • Plastic-covered container

To participate, email Mr. Herman directly (jeff AT hermansilver.com) with your very own, clearly stated reason, in 25 words or less, for trying this brand new product. Your entry must be received by October 1, 2016 to qualify. Mr. Herman will acknowledge receipt and pick the best entry from those he receives, informing the winner by October 5 at the latest and to arrange shipment to the address you provide.

Mr. Herman continues to offer his services to our readers for any questions you may have about the care of silver. Either call him at (800) 339-0417 (USA) or email jeff AT hermansilver.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.

Categories
Published Articles

Emotional Engagement—A Mantra in Search of a Technology

Emotional Engagement—A Mantra in Search of a Technology

Credit

Emotional engagement is one of those hot subjects that most have heard of but very few can actually define. What is it exactly? As with any subject, a keen observation of life in action followed by a logical analysis can shine light on the dark corners of our knowledge to bring clarity to our understanding, and, in order to be useful, a workable procedure for action that brings about desirable results. In the case of emotional engagement, it would be guests who are thrilled at the renewal or reinforcement of life and energy they experience when interacting with hotel staff. Of course, that would presuppose and require that the staff be passionate and full-of-life themselves, rather than uninspired and going through the motions.

And this is the challenge.

We seek and cherish the few “good hospitality people” who are full of life and place them on the front lines. And then judge the staff with high-sounding emotional engagement (EQ) audits, without actually defining what is emotional engagement or how to do so. An earlier article,  Love and the New Age of Service discussing the book The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, makes exactly this point. The Secret is a brilliant analysis of the abilities and characteristics held in common by some successful people and exhorts people to emulate these actions by the expedient of mantras: a slogan repeated often in order to change one’s mind and thus behavior. It works up to a point, but because it fails to ask one key question—how come people fall away from these mantras in the first place—it hits a brick wall. There is a reason people are not successful, and it is not just because they do not believe they can be. They do run into failures and these do accumulate and push people down to the point where they lose their steam—no matter what The Little Engine that Could might say (the beloved 1930’s children’s story of the Little Blue (Steam) Engine who wasn’t afraid to try, saying, “I think I can! I think I can!”).

I saw its 21st Century sequel, The Secret, in the possession of a colleague while training together at a private residence at The Hamptons on Long Island this summer. She was exactly this kind of person, full of life, energy, and enthusiasm, but with no time for, no understanding of, nor ability to interact with and handle, those less driven, less emotionally engaged. In a way, she was suffering from the same issue as they—lack of emotional fluidity—stuck in the fast lane in fourth gear, whizzing past lesser mortals who are similarly stuck, but in lower gears and expectations. I experienced the same frustrating problem for years, until the subject of emotional engagement (and a few other relevant aspects of life) finally came into focus.

Hence my contention that we have a mantra (emotional engagement) in search of a definition and true understanding, and with no technology for achieving it.

Without realizing it, a recent article by another struggles with this issue, reaffirming the spiritual element of service as a counterbalance to the relentless drive to harness electronics, robotics, and technology to reach the Holy Grail of the superior guest experience: for as the author says, “providing genuine hospitality is by nature energetic and based in love and compassion for fellow human beings.” For what is emotional engagement but a reflection of the spiritual side of mankind, a fact most readily seen when we contrast humans with any of the so-called robot butlers being churned out by science and manufacturing to provide superior service—no matter how hard they might try, how sincere they may make their robots sound, their emotions will always be programmed by someone else to sound sincere, but never ever actually be “heartfelt,” never actually be convincing. See the article, Would you like your service Today Live or Programmed, Madam?  In other words, if you were a film director and saw a couple of robots acting in the year 2042, you would yell, “Cut, reshoot,” and wonder where all the really good human actors of old had gone, who could really draw in the audience with their powerful (heartfelt) acting.

Unfortunately, the premise of the article that explored the spiritual side of service leads readers straight off a cliff from the outset, targeting SOPs [Standard Operating Procedures] as the bête noir/bad hat/problem: “It is obvious from the proliferation of new brands and the desperation to find new technology to improve the guest experience that there is a growing feeling that the SOP approach to custom satisfaction has become unsatisfactory, and that now the big hotel groups are searching for a solution.”

I understand the principal that SOPs might result in rote learning, and the desire to be free of restrictions, but every road needs edges if it is to be useful and functional. Without SOPs, anything goes, starting with any idea of standards. Just as drugged, insane, and/or criminal people, not guns, kill people—while law-abiding citizens do not—so, too, do uninspired writers of SOPs churn out deathly and rote SOPs that bring about uninspired levels of service in the uninspired— whereas well-written SOPs emerge from the computers of inspired managers and provide the framework for intelligent and passionate service by staff who are alive and alert. The tool, in other words, is not the culprit, and we are back to the actual challenge of how to instill life and passion into people who lack it (and for guns, how to identify and actually help people on drugs, criminals, and the insane to get over their conditions so they do not go through life half-cocked).

“The hotel industry,” continues the same author, “creates a mechanical, largely emotionless experience.” This generalized statement may be truer in the more mechanistic and conservative Western world, but it does not reflect accurately the effort by many hotels and resorts in many regions to connect emotionally with guests.

The author seeks to resolve this mechanistic level of service by recommending high-energy, emotional experiences for guests: “Our thoughts, feelings, and emotions affect our DNA either positively or negatively depending on the nature (vibration or energy) of our thoughts, feelings, and emotions.” He looks forward to the day “when the first hotel group emerges from the Rut of Tradition and creates a high-energy frequency guest experience.”

So far, so good, but even this laudable goal is misconceived when considering a “low-frequency” guest’s comfort level at receiving high-frequency waves—how able and willing “slow-laners” might be to keep up with those in the fast lane.

The majority of his article refers to the religious and spiritual as bodies of relevant knowledge, yet looks inexplicably to the field of science to verify the existence of spiritual phenomenon. The operating sphere of science is and always has been the material; its path has given us the means to regrow tissue, swap organs, pollute the planet with tens of thousands of chemicals, spy on each other, and fry every man, woman and child on the planet many times over, not to mention replace the entire workforce (and one might say ultimately, the human race) with robots—but zero understanding of the spirit, who, what, where and why it is, how it functions, and how to increase its abilities; nor of the mind (what it is made of, where it is located, how it works: For instance, the idea extent for the last 137 years that the mind is the brain, is like saying hardware is the same as software).

Traditionally in religions and spirituality, mankind is conceived to have three parts: spirit, mind, and body.

In looking to scientists for the answers, the author of the article has inadvertently bought into their worldview that all is material, explaining the spiritual or mental in terms of the physical body. Psychiatrists have fallen into the same mindset. Despite their subject meaning the “healing of the soul,” they claim there is no such thing, and indeed, there is no mind either, because “the mind is the brain” (which nobody can argue, is part of the physical body). As a result, their technology focuses on cutting out or shocking the brain; and more commonly, introducing chemicals into the brain to resolve perceived mental deficiencies. The results are as one might expect of a “science” at odds with itself, but propelled onward by the twin prospects of profit and power.

And so the article author, following the conclusions of his scientist sources, wants us to believe that DNA and the heart are the sources of our energy and influence over others. Yet, again, DNA and the heart are unequivocally part of the physical body. Talking of left and right brain—again, the physical—is a commonly accepted understanding that is actually highly illogical: why does it have to be one or the other? Surely a logical solution or approach can also be creative? Surely any situation requires both applied in order to bring about an optimal solution?

When one considers the body to be the source of the mind and spirit, one tends to come up with strange ideas and unworkable theories. If one were to develop a workable theory or technology on this question of higher wavelengths, of making people passionate and alive in their service, one would have to ask why people emit low-frequency wavelengths; how they might, en masse, be persuaded to emit higher wavelengths; why people have fallen from their natural affinity for their fellows into the current materialism; why they lack passion and energy in the first place. In a way, the author of the article is blindsided by the same issue as the author of The Secret.

If these questions remain unanswered, then all exhortations for hoteliers to study complex subjects (the energy sciences, quantum science, and heart-energy research); to change hotel training methods and paradigms so as to train staff on esoteric and difficult actions (such as generating a high-frequency vibration at a distance to fill guest rooms and facilities; to teach staff “heart-coherence” exercises, “how to send love energy,” and Tonglen meditation in order to “create an ever-growing, inner desire to show compassion and loving kindness”) will result only in bemusement and a disappointing lack of change.

Such complex theories and solutions arise only because the basic truths on the subject have yet to be isolated. Truth be told, anything that is complex is so only because it has not been viewed fully and so not really understood—all truths are basically simple and obvious, once seen. Predictably, complex solutions implemented do not resolve the problem they were designed to address and instead, become the next problem to solve.

The author of the article that at least addressed the issue of life and emotional engagement is entirely correct to tilt his spiritual lance at the windmill of rote service and formulaic SOPs and I wish there were more voices like his in the wilderness; so the intent of this article is not to criticize his brave start but to move beyond a quixotic (impractical) call-to-arms into an effective crusade that can actually realize the author’s goals.

Workable Technology based on Simple Truths

To bring emotional skills and engagement for hoteliers (or indeed any profession) into the realm of the practical and executable, I would like to offer the following simplicities concerning emotional engagement, because we have found they generate the most interest in our students around the world and greatly improve employee emotional engagement and the guest experience.

Identifying EQ skills as important has been a vital first step for the hospitality industry over the last decade or so. But the current state of understanding of EQ skills is adrift: LQA standards, for instance, ask about the guest’s emotional experience, but offers no definition for emotional engagement, nor path for employee’s to engage emotionally. The assumption seems to be that humans have a de facto ability to emote effectively and so should be able to do so once told to do so. It is similar to education, where the assumption is made that if someone can read, then they can study effectively; whereas collapsing academic standards in the US, at least, show that there is a wide gap that needs to be bridged between reading a text and comprehending it—and further, being able to put it into practice.

EQ or Emotional Quotient is a fledgling subject that explores “emotional intelligence:” Like its cousin IQ, Intelligence Quotient, it is sometimes represented as a score on a standardized test (which is why the word quotient is included in both subject titles). Intelligence refers to a person’s reasoning ability, as in the following example: “When we arrived at an automobile dealership to pick up our new car, we found a mechanic working feverishly to unlock the driver’s side door so they could retrieve the keys that had been locked in the car. As I watched from the passenger side, I instinctively tried the door handle and discovered that it was unlocked. ‘Hey,’ I announced to the technician, ‘It’s open!’ To which he replied, ‘I know—I already got that side.’”

Emotional skills, on the other hand, are not a form of intelligence, but reflect a person’s empathy. Empathy is a quality that people either have or do not. In hiring front lines personnel for hospitality, we seek people who are by nature empathetic; yet if they have no understanding of emotions, they too can fail frustratingly when engaging with others. And where we try to improve emotional engagement in staff, training on the subject turns out to be frustratingly nebulous and short on actual results.

So What ARE Emotions?

Technically, emotions show reaction to, tolerance of, & ability of an individual or group to handle motion. They are the mechanism or path by which our mindset toward a subject is translated into action with the body. Simply put, emotions show how much we like or dislike a subject, how we feel about a subject, and therefore react to it.

Some people think women are emotional while men are rational. No more irrational a statement could be made, for the opposite of rational is irrational, not emotional. This worldview comes from the observation that women tend to cry—but so do men, even if they do not tear up, thanks to the admonishment that “big boys are tough and do not cry.”

The truth is that everyone has different emotions all the time toward different subjects: enthusiasm, anger, boredom, as well as grief, to name a few common ones. Some people have “no emotion” because they have sunk below the ability to express an emotion towards a subject. They tend to be wooden and unresponsive—the most obvious examples being people who are drugged and showing no emotional engagement whatsoever; behaving like robots, one might say.

Emotions are an integral part of communication: every communication comes at a particular emotional tone, and these, in addition to the meaning of the words used in the communication, need to be managed skillfully in order to reach and “touch” the other person.

The big breakthrough on the subject of EQ actually occurred 65 years ago and is woefully unknown in hospitality today: that emotions are not random and dis-related, but can be plotted according to how much or little happiness, success, and survival a person is experiencing. The higher the emotional level, the happier, more logical, responsive to communications, pleasant etc. the person proves to be—and vice versa.

It is vital to know and use this scale in order to

a) communicate effectively with guests, principals, colleagues, vendors, and anyone else breathing;

and

b) always leave them feeling better;

and

c) pick partners and maintain one’s own happiness.

Emotional engagement requires recognizing the energy wavelength of the guest and raising it to a higher level. It is not about the staff always being at a high energy level, but at the right level for each guest at the moment of interaction, and then—and this is where the magic comes in—raising that guest’s level to an even higher wavelength. Or if the guest is already at a high energy level, the service provider at least matching it, and not raining on their parade by unwittingly emitting a lower-energy level/emotion.

One might wonder where these emotional wavelengths come from.

Not from a battery pack and transmitter in one’s pocket or handbag. Not from the heart, nor DNA strands, nor one’s brain. One has to go back to the traditional understanding man has had for millennia: that there are a physical/corporal, a mental, and a spiritual component to his identity. To make a lot of research short, these wavelengths of energy are generated by the spirit—you—in response to a specific subject. When you become angry, for instance, you automatically generate the wavelength of anger. This means that, once understood and mastered, any employee can engage emotionally with any guest, and in so doing, greatly improve the guest experience and, on the way, the bottom line. Mission accomplished!

For instance, with 6% of hospitality profits disappearing into the black hole of comp’ing, it might be edifying to know that most “service recovery” can be accomplished just by communicating effectively—using the usual verbiage to handle upset guests and flanking it with the correct emotion—but this is a subject for another article.

My view is that the next major evolution in hospitality is not finding more exotic and innovative locations, activities, and experiences to attract guests, but is less costly to develop, more fundamental to our persona and mission, and closer to home—breathing new life into the people/emotional skills of staff at a time when robots and pre-programmed service are threatening to deluge us with their mechanical perfections and complete absence of life or emotional wavelengths, high or low—and thus, absence of (human) guest satisfaction.

We will win this battle by being practical in providing definitions and effective techniques for engaging emotionally with guests (and each other).

First published in Hotel Business Review, August 2016, and thereafter in 4Hoteliers, Hotel News Resource, Hotel Online, Hospitality Trends,

Categories
Newsletter

The Modern Butlers’ Journal, August 2016, International Institute of Modern Butlers

BlueLogo2011web The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

The Modern Butlers’ Journal volume 12, issue 8

International Institute of Modern Butlers

Teaching Right Mindset, People Skills, & Superior-service Expertise

IIMB Chairman Steven Ferry The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

Message from the Chairman

It has been a busy month with training and consulting in Mexico, the Maldives, New York/Long Island, and Sri Lanka—five days of which were spent in airplanes! We learned that two hotel butlers trained by our Institute had received rewards for being judged #1 service providers in their city or country —one in Las Vegas and the other in Sri Lanka (working for the recently launched Anantara Tangalle resort).

HHALVCVAJoe Yalda of Red Rock in Las Vegas has been featured before in our Journal, and we wanted to highlight one important fact about his operating basis. In a city where ‘what happens in Las Vegas stays there’ and so literally anything goes, Joe will have none of it—meaning not that he betrays confidences, but that he does not support guest requests for illicit or immoral favors in the first place. Yet, with the upbeat and smooth way in which he handles such requests, the guests keep coming back for more of his ethical approach to life. A breath of fresh air in a culture that increasingly mirrors the character of the waning  Roman Empire.

Butlers in the Media

For those PG Wodehouse fans of Reginald Jeeves and his employer, Mr. Wooster, it might be of interest to know where the name Jeeves came from. The BBC shares this delightful nugget of information.

Without in any way endorsing the political mentions/leanings in this blog piece from butler Mr. Jim Grise, he had some interesting points to make about the profession.

An informative article on the top-tier “butlers” in family offices who manage the estates and fortunes of their employers.

And what do we have in the wierdo department? Quite a bit this month: A Filter Butler (filters water); a Baggage Butler at an airport; a Butler position in a Chicago hotel that only has one minor duty of a butler required; a butler to deliver food and beverages to various locations in a Fifth Avenue store in New York city. Qualifications: “Must be customer-service oriented, organized and maintain high personal-presentation standards. Must be able to use an iPhone.” A phone app to substitute for the developer’s idea of what a butler does in a hotel; a dog-shaped robot butler from Google that loads the dishwasher (with guidance from a human). The company that manufactures it has been put up for sale following doubts that the line of products was able to produce revenue—but nobody is buying. This does not stop the Facebook founder from creating his own AI butler—one that is really an electronic interface for controlling the elements of his home, but which can also make his breakfast toast—although it won’t make it at the time he wants it. Minor details.

Letters to the Editor

SANYO DIGITAL CAMERA

We received a letter from a gentleman who was seriously hearing impaired (i.e. 95% loss), asking if he could make a good butler. After some discussion, he agreed that his speaking and hearing skills were not too noticeable, and that he had introverted on the condition and made it an issue, whereas the senior datum was his wish to serve at the highest level—and that would carry him through any slight and occasional inconveniences for those he served. Meaning intention, not the material, is the determining factor.

KobiGutmanSmallCreative Corner

How to Carve an Apple, Part 3: Detailing

by Kobi Gutman

 

Pumpkin appleHaving covered the basics of apple carving and the use of the stencil, I’d like to cover detailing. In a photo or a painting, it is easy to create individual details by using different colors, shadows, or drawing an outline. This is not the case with an apple.
By way of example, the design to the right has a ribbon with a buckle on top of the hat. This would not be clearly visible if we just made a groove with the knife as we were cutting through the stencil.

The way tMickey mouseo portray them is first to cut the outline of all the wanted details through the stencil and, once the stencil has been removed, cut a line close to these outlines and peel off the narrow strip of apple peel in between.

Looking closely at this pumpkin, you will notice that the hat is composed of five different sections and that none touches the other. You will also notice that the hat itself doesn’t touch the pumpkin.

DolphinThis technique brings out the details and brings your work up to a higher and more professional level.

When you just like to give a notion of the detail, or to create a texture, a single cut of the knife is enough. In this case, the two inner grooves on the pumpkin were done this way.

To the left are a couple more examples for both techniques.

 

Kobi Gutman is the Head Butler at the Fort Harrison Retreat in Florida. He can be contacted via the Institute: enquiries @ modernbutlers.com

Amer1x1inch The Modern Butlers’ Journal for Service Professionals Worldwide, July, 2012

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 14

by Amer Vargas 

Singapore Sling

In this month’s article, we fly from Las Vegas to Singapore to taste a tangy and strong cocktail. There is no real need to mix it with mescal (made from 30 varieties of agave, whereas Tequila is only made from Blue Agave), beer, and drugs in the same way that Raoul Duke drinks them in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas before putting the “American dream into action.” Anyway, let’s focus on the taste of this perhaps effeminate-looking cocktail, but which is actually intended for those who like strong flavors.

Original Singapore Sling at the Raffles Singapore, photo by James Cridland
Original Singapore Sling, photographed at the Raffles Singapore, photo (c) by James Cridland

The name of the drink comes from the fact that it was invented in Singapore at the Raffles hotel around 1910. Whilst the original recipe has changed a little bit over time and has been recreated using the original notes of the bartender who created it, the reality is that even nowadays, every bartender does his own version and it is hard to find the same taste in different parts of the world.

If you want to give it a go, these are the ingredients you’ll need: 3 cl. of Gin, 1.5 cl. of cherry liquor or cherry brandy, 0.75 cl. of Cointreau, 0.5 cl. of Benedictine, 1 cl. grenadine, 12 cl. of pineapple juice, 1.5 cl. of fresh lime juice and a dash of angostura bitters.

The preparation is very simple: pour all the ingredients in the cocktail shaker filled with ice cubes and shake vigorously. Strain the mix into a hurricane glass and garnish with pineapple and maraschino cherry.

Remember… be moderate and enjoy!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President and can be contacted via AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

 

Of Butlers, Roses, & Floral Arrangements,

Part 28 of 30

by GJ dePillis, Master Gardener

 Miniature Floral Arrangements, Part 2 of 3

Last month, we reviewed reasons for creating miniatures and the needed tools. Now we will cover nine design tips.

  1. 3%22 miniaturePlace a perfect-square piece of cardboard behind the arrangement to check proportions;
  2. Leave a margin around the edge of the board, just as in formatting a document;
  3. Do not allow anything nearby to betray the scale of the piece;
  4. Lay out the flowers and leaves on the table and then place them in the foam so they are in balance. Think of yourself in the shape of your arrangement: Would you be able to stand and not wobble if you assumed the shape of your arrangement? If not, then add something to the space which is sparse;
  5. Traditional designs are ordered: they need to cover all the foam with flowers and also utilize different heights.  They group colors into blocks so the eye knows what to look at first and leisurely travels to the next pop of color;
  6. Modern designs can include cutting the shape of the leaf or drying the leaf and painting it; not  covering the foam; and employing three specific heights, sometimes referred to as heaven (the tallest vertical), man (the middle sized vertical), and earth (the smallest or lowest to the ground vertical)—imagine water flowing from the clouds to the ground.
  7. Avoid having two vertical sticks of the same height, which would resemble rabbit ears. Aim for a stepped-down flow where the eye travels on a diagonal down from one side  to the other;
  8. When viewing the final work, ensure the “front” has been established—except in the case of a round table centerpiece that is designed to be “all around;”
  9. Strive for depth, something that draws the eye to the back of the piece.

In the final part of this series, we will cover some of the mechanical requirements for bringing together the arrangement. Until then, remember to stop and smell the flowers!

Ms. dePillis is a master gardener and freelance contributor to the Journal who is based on the West Coast of the United States. She can be reached via depillis @ gmail.com

Jeff Herman Consulting the Silver Expert

 by Jeffrey Herman

Q: What is the best way to clean a silver item that has been gilded (covered with gold)?

A: Use a citrus- and phosphate-free dish soap or hand sanitizer. Neither will harm the gold. If those non-invasive products do not remove the discoloring, try using a moist cellulose sponge (not the white plastic sponge that sometimes comes with silver polishes) with Blitz Silver Shine Polish, which is among the most mild polishes on the market. It’s the only mild polish that can be applied and rinsed, or applied, allowed to dry, then buffed.

Mr. Herman continues to offer his services to our readers for any questions you may have about the care of silver. Either call him at (800) 339-0417 (USA) or email jeff AT hermansilver.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.