CSQ Forms/Bonus

On our first cruise our cabin steward never mentioned the forms to us. On our second one the cs introduced himself and said he would be wanting a mark of excellent. I wasn't impressed with the remark.

At the end of the cruises I debated about filling the form in, not knowing how important these are to the cs. I just thought I am on holiday why do I have to spend my time on questionnaires. I wonder how many people think the same.

It is only from reading on here that I now know how it affects the cs. Some people though might not know that.

I am actually surprised that there isn't a protest about the forms given how many people say they give top marks even if they think they aren't deserved.

I always give excellent...I don't really care if it is or not because being waited on hand and foot...having my bed, made all my meals cooked and not having any work to do is always excellent for me :)

I give excellent because I know the steward’s income depends on it.

I hate being asked though. On one cruise the captain even encouraged everyone to mark excellent and spent time explaining that excellent does not mean perfect

I also think it is not good that P&O have a system that does not seem to welcome genuine feedback

Bonus or no bonus, I refuse to lie on any feedback form. It renders them pointless if you do. If the cabin steward is excellent (and on all but a couple of our cruises they have been) then I will happily score excellent. If they are not then they get the score appropriate to their performance. I have always tipped cabin stewards generously (even if I have paid the service charge) but the couple that haven’t been ‘excellent’ have received smaller amounts. I’ve never had cause to score a steward negatively, but wouldn’t hesitate to do so if they were really poor.

I too refuse to lie on these forms. It is counter productive to do so. In my opinion this is one reason why standards are dropping, because people are marking average or normal service as excellent.

On my last cruise, whilst my cabin was immaculate, I did have one or two niggles with the steward. The most trivial was that three or four time my nightwear was left draped over the chair, not folded under my pillow. There was also his refusal to fetch me lemon slices to put in my drinking water, something which has always been done by cabin stewards on previous cruises.

Potentially the most serious, in my view, was the non delivery of my peninsular cocktail party invite. I only knew about it because a table mate told me about it. I went to the loyalty desk and they told me to ask my steward. The steward said he knew I should have had one, but hadn't been given one. I would have expected an 'excellent' steward to have queried it with whoever gave him the invites to distribute, or, at the very least, to have advised me that mine was missing, giving me a few days to badger Loyalty to print me another. I did gain entry by flashing my cruise card which showed I had the relevant tier, but could not be entered into the prize draw. But, if my friend hadn't told me about it I could have missed it as it was held on an unusual day.

For those reasons I did not score excellent, neither did I leave an 'extra' cash tip, over and above Auto grats, which I have done in the past.

I cannot believe that the non-folding of nightwear and absence of lemons would warrant deducting points from the cabin steward's score. ( I always fold my own nightwear and put it in the drawer!)

I cannot believe that the non-folding of nightwear and absence of lemons would warrant deducting points from the cabin steward's score. ( I always fold my own nightwear and put it in the drawer!)

I did say the nightwear issue was trivial. (The folding and putting of previously worn clothing into a drawer is a disturbing thought.)

The provision of lemons (and ice if wanted) has always been part of a stewards duties. Therefore I downgraded his score.

I did say the nightwear issue was trivial. (The folding and putting of previously worn clothing into a drawer is a disturbing thought.)

 

The provision of lemons (and ice if wanted) has always been part of a stewards duties. Therefore I downgraded his score.

I’d rather put my nightwear in the empty bedside drawer than have it handled by the cabin steward. Each to his own.

I’d rather put my nightwear in the empty bedside drawer than have it handled by the cabin steward. Each to his own.

Do you think the drawer is thoroughly cleaned before the next occupant puts their make up, medication or whatever in the same drawer?

Also it would never cross my mind that of the hundreds items of clothing the steward handles over the cruise s/he would take any interest in mine. But as you say 'each to their own'.

I cannot believe that the non-folding of nightwear and absence of lemons would warrant deducting points from the cabin steward's score. ( I always fold my own nightwear and put it in the drawer!)

was just going to say the same thing....very petty reasons to mark someone down. Was he rude about not getting the lemons ? that would be entirely different but it is not too difficult to pop to the bar for some lemon slices. they do have a lot of people to look after and I would not want their job for love nor money ! Bet they have some right pillocks to look after.

If my cabin was immaculate I wouldn't mark a steward down

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was just going to say the same thing....very petty reasons to mark someone down. Was he rude about not getting the lemons ? that would be entirely different but it is not too difficult to pop to the bar for some lemon slices. they do have a lot of people to look after and I would not want their job for love nor money ! Bet they have some right pillocks to look after.

I repeat again that it was a trivial mattet, but after my nightie was left on the back of the chair for the fourth time in two weeks it became annoying, I had left it folded on my bed. Lemons and ice are a standard part of the cabin steward's duties which he wouldn't do.

Any one of the three faults would not by itself have resulted in a less than 'excellent' score, but all three did warrant it.

If my cabin was immaculate I wouldn't mark a steward down

 

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??? Would anyone?

I think I am going to fill in my next form ( in a couple of weeks from now yay ) excellent and I am going to put a separate letter in the box telling P and O that their system is stupid because no one wants to dob their staff in so they get penalised financially ! P and O should be truthful..it is not a form to gauge real customer satisfaction, it is in reality, a tool to keep tabs on their staff, keep them in line and it causes customer aggravation to be pestered to give excellent marks from anxious and fearful staff.

If you think the nighty moving is petty ... On a Princess cruise to the Baltic an American guest complained to the front desk and removed his gratuities because the Cabin Steward kept moving his bin from where he placed it to where it originally came from. He complained about it on several occasions at dinner.

I remember him because he was an American Airlines pilot called Captain Kirk.

If you think the nighty moving is petty ... On a Princess cruise to the Baltic an American guest complained to the front desk and removed his gratuities because the Cabin Steward kept moving his bin from where he placed it to where it originally came from. He complained about it on several occasions at dinner.

 

I remember him because he was an American Airlines pilot called Captain Kirk.

That is awful...I have found through life that the people with the most money and privilege are generally the most mean and complaining...not everyone of course but the vast majority I have come across are like that...usually the poorest among us are the most generous and kind hearted. I wonder why ?

Does it say anywhere that the room steward has to supply lemon slices. I know some may go out of their way to provide , if they and the cruiser have a good relationship, but is it actually laid down anywhere that they HAVE to.

I too refuse to lie on these forms. It is counter productive to do so. In my opinion this is one reason why standards are dropping, because people are marking average or normal service as excellent.

 

On my last cruise, whilst my cabin was immaculate, I did have one or two niggles with the steward. The most trivial was that three or four time my nightwear was left draped over the chair, not folded under my pillow. There was also his refusal to fetch me lemon slices to put in my drinking water, something which has always been done by cabin stewards on previous cruises.

Potentially the most serious, in my view, was the non delivery of my peninsular cocktail party invite. I only knew about it because a table mate told me about it. I went to the loyalty desk and they told me to ask my steward. The steward said he knew I should have had one, but hadn't been given one. I would have expected an 'excellent' steward to have queried it with whoever gave him the invites to distribute, or, at the very least, to have advised me that mine was missing, giving me a few days to badger Loyalty to print me another. I did gain entry by flashing my cruise card which showed I had the relevant tier, but could not be entered into the prize draw. But, if my friend hadn't told me about it I could have missed it as it was held on an unusual day.

 

For those reasons I did not score excellent, neither did I leave an 'extra' cash tip, over and above Auto grats, which I have done in the past.

I agree standards have slipped and when we give 10s maybe we are giving a false picture.

TBH 8-9 would be an honest appraisal but when we are consistently told only 10s will get crew their bonus,days off etc it is emotional blackmail.

The same happens on Royal Carribean that i know and probably other cruise lines too.

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If you think the nighty moving is petty ... On a Princess cruise to the Baltic an American guest complained to the front desk and removed his gratuities because the Cabin Steward kept moving his bin from where he placed it to where it originally came from. He complained about it on several occasions at dinner.

 

I remember him because he was an American Airlines pilot called Captain Kirk.

Beam Me Up Scotty.

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You have made some interesting points.

I agree standards have slipped and when we give 10s maybe we are giving a false picture.

TBH 8-9 would be an honest appraisal but when we are consistently told only 10s will get crew their bonus,days off etc it is emotional blackmail.

The same happens on Royal Carribean that i know and probably other cruise lines too.

 

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Way I approach this is to score honestly in areas which don't directly link to an individual's performance. If the service provided by an individual was satisfactory then I don't want to be the harsh judge who deprives them from their income or possibly even their job.

On the survey, there are many areas where you can score accurately. Even on MDR dinning, as we were on MTD and not served by the same people each time, my score reflected the below par service.

Also on general questions like how likely am I to recommend P&O I scored honestly. I also put comments to highlight poor standards.

Very rarely is it the case that the performance of an individual sets the standard. It is the overall experience and that is determined by senior management.

Finally, makes sense to make a formal complaint if things weren't right. Number of complaints is another indicator of standard and whether a cruise line is getting it right. Also, a means to trigger improvements (if enough people shout about it).

BTW my dinning experience was such a disappointment that even if I was on fixed dinning and served by same people each day, I would have rated them low. So performance less than satisfactory does sometimes deserve an honest rating.

It does make me smile how British it is to bemoan poor service but still give top marks on a service questionnaire.

You can see where the Fawlty Towers sketch of the two old ladies in the hotel restaurant comes from, complaining bitterly about everything to do with the meal and service and then, when Basil Fawlty says to them “Is everything alright ladies?” they reply, without hesitation, “Yes, everything’s fine thank you Mr Fawlty”.

It does make me smile how British it is to bemoan poor service but still give top marks on a service questionnaire.

 

You can see where the Fawlty Towers sketch of the two old ladies in the hotel restaurant comes from, complaining bitterly about everything to do with the meal and service and then, when Basil Fawlty says to them “Is everything alright ladies?” they reply, without hesitation, “Yes, everything’s fine thank you Mr Fawlty”.

.........and it will not improve if passengers are coerced into giving excellent marks on questionnaires just to ensure that staff receive their full gratuity.

.........and it will not improve if passengers are coerced into giving excellent marks on questionnaires just to ensure that staff receive their full gratuity.

Agreed. And that’s exactly why I provide an honest score. Thankfully, as far as cabin stewards go, it’s almost always been the top score and well deserved too, but we’ve had a couple that weren’t very good and we gave them the next score down. Not that it ever would stop me from scoring honestly, but I can’t remember from the thread that was removed whether the staff awards rely on every single passenger, bar none, having to score excellent, or whether it was based on an average score?

I believe it was based on an average score and paid in 2 parts, one based on their own scores and one based on an average across the ship, but if everyone gave the second rank of good rather than excellent then no bonus would be paid because at 75% they would be below the lowest target.

Excellent should represent a service level above standard.

P&O through their brochures, website and in cabin literature set a stsndard expectation. In practice, it must be possible to meet, exceed or under perform this level.

Relating this to a customer survey form must follow; therefore out of 10, 5 must be standard, 10 justify the most exception over perform and 0 represent under performance.

The fact that P&O on reward a bonus for the most exceptional over performance of duties is correct. This is a bonus by definition - it’s a reward, not a salary top-up.

Where a cabin steward identifies the box that must be ticked as excellent, it is noted on the form. In the rare (twice) occasions when it’s been pre-filled, complaints to reception have been made asking for a new form. Otherwise it’s fraud. To ignore it would be complying with that stewards fraud.

It’s also very interesting when you don’t get the form, or only get it days after other parts of the ship.