"This might be YOUR vacation, but it's MY life"

[tatt2ed]

Instead of pushing workers to beg for a 5, why not push them into actually earning the 5. Its my vacation (that i paid for) and its your job (that you chose). Nobodys begging their way from a 1,2,3,4 to a 5 on my watch. I cant stand when i hear "thats the best i can do" or "thats as good as its gunna get"

[Goodtime Cruizin]

Reading another thread, I was reminded by what the assistant waiter said on my last cruise.

 

We did not find the food in the MDR on our last cruise to be all that great, and frequently left over. The crew would ask if they could bring us something else, and I just said no, we would grab a slice of pizza or something from the cafe.

 

One night, the assistant waiter came by and confirmed with us that we would be giving all 5s on the Guest Satisfaction survey - for service, food, etc. I told him of course we would give 5s for service, but we did not find the food to be "5" caliber. He said it didn't matter, we should give 5 for everything, and then write what we did not like in the comments. I told him that would not be my honest opinion, and he stressed that I needed to give 5s for everything, even the food. He then said, "This might be YOUR vacation, but it's MY life". It was really chilling, and I felt quite uncomfortable.

 

What do you make of this, and what would you have done? I am embarrassed to say that I did not complete the survey because of his words. I could not give all 5s for food that I found to be sub-par, but I did not want to affect this guy's livelihood.

 

I would have reported him for using this type of language and somewhat intimidation. Bottomline, the message has been lost from top management to the server. The guest evaluation is a tool, nothing more and nothing less. If the server needs to 'insure' a specific rating, the tool has failed. But it failed in implementation and execution. I suggest reporting this to the highest level on the ship, perhaps even the Capt. The cruise line truly needs to know that their evaluation program is failing via communication. At the least, the Food Mgr. needs to know.

 

Not reporting it means other guests will be subjected to the same treatment. I have been asked a few times to make positive comments and evaluations from several different servers etc on RCL cruises. Each time I've asked them, "Are you concerned? If so, tell me why?", before I told them that they would be truthfully evaluated.

 

Good post. I hate that any employee at any business suggests that I should do so & so on an evaluation. No matter how good their service might have been, it taints them & makes me feel uncomfortable.

[The_Big_M]

Perhaps it also shows that they know that the service isn't upto scratch, or why need to beg.

 

Because, as mentioned earlier, there is an expectation that anything that is not 5 is a failure.

 

And given some people reasonably might give a 4 for example, because they think of it as the wide scale that it is, even though they think it was good service, the staff feel the need to draw attention that the company is actually use it falsely as a binary survey.

 

Really, they should change the survey to yes/no if they're going to use it in such a way.

[davekathy]

We always fill out the Post Cruise Survey but we're not convinced the Cruise lines really use them as a tool to pass or fail an employee.

[OCruisers]

The problem is that many people thing 3 = good, 4 = great 5 = once in a lifetime experience.

 

But corporate thinks 3 = fail, 4 = fail, 5 = pass

 

And fail = punishment, lost wages, or being fired.

 

Unfortunately, this is all too true! :(

[MrYellowDuck]

But corporate thinks 3 = fail, 4 = fail, 5 = pass

 

Exactly and it's essential that those completing the survey realise this. I manage a team in a organisation of around 15k staff and we always do very well in the staff survey and twice we've come top.

 

I do invest in helping my team understand how surveys are constructed, what the questions are really asking, and what will happen in response to different types of scores. I say "be 100% honest, but realise if you don't score highly then we will act to remediate what you're saying is wrong and so make sure you're voting for a change you want to go through yourself". This is important for me and my team which is why I do this. The same is happening with the wait staff - those completing the survey need to know what is really happening.

 

The food not meeting your liking will be viewed as the fault of the wait staff - they should have made better suggestions or detected you were not happy and fixed this. Of course good wait staff do exactly this which is why there is a question asking whether this has happened.

 

The survey is only about the wait staff - the questions may appear to go beyond this but they don't. To pretend the survey is as it appears is a disservice to those who need it filled in correctly. Sure some people will refuse to play by the rules of the game but the majority of people are smart enough and agreeable enough to do the right thing once it has been explained to them what is really happening.

 

If the waitstaff are not up to standard then show no mercy in your feedback. If they are entirely acceptable or better then a "5" is the score that reflects this. If you want to complain about the food do so through a different mechanism since doing so via the survey on the wait staff will not achieve what you want.

Edited November 23, 2016 by MrYellowDuck

[GUT2407]

Exactly and it's essential that those completing the survey realise this. I manage a team in a organisation of around 15k staff and we always do very well in the staff survey and twice we've come top.

 

I do invest in helping my team understand how surveys are constructed, what the questions are really asking, and what will happen in response to different types of scores. I say "be 100% honest, but realise if you don't score highly then we will act to remediate what you're saying is wrong and so make sure you're voting for a change you want to go through yourself". This is important for me and my team which is why I do this. The same is happening with the wait staff - those completing the survey need to know what is really happening.

 

The food not meeting your liking will be viewed as the fault of the wait staff - they should have made better suggestions or detected you were not happy and fixed this. Of course good wait staff do exactly this which is why there is a question asking whether this has happened.

 

The survey is only about the wait staff - the questions may appear to go beyond this but they don't. To pretend the survey is as it appears is a disservice to those who need it filled in correctly. Sure some people will refuse to play by the rules of the game but the majority of people are smart enough and agreeable enough to do the right thing once it has been explained to them what is really happening.

 

If the waitstaff are not up to standard then show no mercy in your feedback. If they are entirely acceptable or better than a "5" is the score that reflects this. If you want to complain about the food do so through a different mechanism since doing so via the survey on the wait staff will not achieve what you want.

 

If the line takes that attitude they should spell it out in the survey.

 

And I can't see how a comment or rating on food quality can come back on the wait staff.

Edited November 23, 2016 by GUT2407

[MrYellowDuck]

Unfortunately, this is all too true! :(

 

My favourite decoy question is something like "teams in this organisation work well together". The question is really asking whether your team works well with other teams and the only good answer is "absolutely yes". This is a bit like "the food was great" question - the question has rather little to do with the dish and everything to do with the person who gave it to you.

[ronandcarla]

We listen to the spiel and then when the survey is presented we fill it out according to how we feel about each subject in question; the only persons who might not be invited back for a continuation of their contract could be one of the reasons they did not get a 5 star. Also under comments we specifically mention a person(s) name(s) when they have done an outstanding job.

[mollyeilis]

In your case, I'm not sure how he's affected by low scores on the quality of the food? Unless, maybe, they're expected to keep bringing you food until you find something you like?

 

 

Yes, that exactly. If their service was perfect then they would find something to make you happy. That's the expectation on them.

 

It's sad that there's no way to give feedback on the food, but there isn't. It goes through the servers.

 

 

You guys are scaring me in regards to how you deal with car dealerships. This is exactly the way dealerships deal with surveys. If you say anything but the highest mark then it's negative. If the answer should be "yes" and you say "yes the tech was amazing fans should have a bonus" that's not "yes" and they WILL be marked down. Not up. Down. That's why dealerships have big signs telling you how to fill it out.

 

Car dealerships and cruises aren't the places to philosophical. These surveys ARE life or death for the employees, and messing with them will cause problems.

 

Best to know it, accept it, and just go with the program unless you DO actually want to get someone fired.

 

 

 

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[wampuscat7]

This makes me glad we only ate twice in the main dining room on Oasis and did not receive any of this survey pressure.

 

We did hear an announcement about filling out surveys at the end of the cruise, which we did honestly and gave accolades to those who provided excellent service, like our room steward.

 

A hard sell at the end of every meal? That would be enough to make me question whether I would go on that cruise line again.

 

I'm glad the car dealership we purchased from recently did not have this. We walked away from a couple of "deals" because of high-pressure situations.

 

If companies are punishing employees for 4 out of 5, etc., that's a company problem. It sucks for the employees, but they can't expect every customer to "know" they have to give 5s or to blatantly rosy up their surveys. What good are fake results to the company anyway?

 

 

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Edited November 23, 2016 by wampuscat7

[TM38Rob]

When I purchased my truck, the dealer told me I would receive a survey and to put all 5s. He told me if I put a 4, it means they failed. The automaker's survey was designed to only get my input about the level of service I received from the dealership and NOT about the quality of the product I purchased. If there was something about the quality of the truck I didn't like, that would be something I'd have to contact the automaker about instead of the dealership.

 

Same thing applies to the cruise survey. They are only interested in the level of service and NOT the quality of the food. Think of the ship as the dealership and RCCL corporate as the automaker. The food vendors (and quality of food) are from RCCL corporate, and you should contact them directly about those issues. The surveys (provided by corporate) are used by the ships officers to determine the level of service their crew provided their guests.

 

Since these surveys are provided by RCCL corporate, you should contact someone at the top about these surveys and ask them to stop pressuring the guests to give good scores in addition to asking for better quality food.

[Thorben-Hendrik]

You tell them what they want to hear..then do what you want. This is NOT the end of their career or job...You don't have to like or dislike any part of your cruise...it's YOUR vacation...you don't even NEED to do the questionnaire !

Exactly and if you do not want them to ruin YOUR VACATION they better stop whining or the marks will get even lower....

 

 

I do not care who designs what for what purpose - if they send out a survey I will answer it the way I feel it should be filled out!

Edited November 23, 2016 by germanfflyer

[Enforcer]

Hi All,

 

I have read many times about the quality of food becoming of lower standard on RCI ships. If everyone filled in the survey honestly, because if you don't you are only blowing smoke up RCI's backside, then standards would improve. People have said that less than 5 is a fail and rightly so, if the "food" only gets 3's or 4's then the head chef would be inviting into a meeting.

 

I don't respond well to blackmail.

 

Pete

[suesnake2002]

Surveys can be twisted to whatever corporate wants to hear. Don't take them. If your happy with your service give extra tips. If a dish you get is excellent,praise the cook staff. I believe in positive reinforcement. There are really too many complainers in life. Relax and enjoy,its not the destination but the journey that counts

[mrs and mrs]

The problem is that many people thing 3 = good, 4 = great 5 = once in a lifetime experience.

 

But corporate thinks 3 = fail, 4 = fail, 5 = pass

 

And fail = punishment, lost wages, or being fired.

 

So they fine or fire a waiter for food quality. Damn it.

 

Maybe the waiters should be cooking, and the chefs should be serving.

Edited November 23, 2016 by mrs and mrs

[tatt2ed]

Yes, that exactly. If their service was perfect then they would find something to make you happy. That's the expectation on them.

 

It's sad that there's no way to give feedback on the food, but there isn't. It goes through the servers.

 

 

You guys are scaring me in regards to how you deal with car dealerships. This is exactly the way dealerships deal with surveys. If you say anything but the highest mark then it's negative. If the answer should be "yes" and you say "yes the tech was amazing fans should have a bonus" that's not "yes" and they WILL be marked down. Not up. Down. That's why dealerships have big signs telling you how to fill it out.

 

Car dealerships and cruises aren't the places to philosophical. These surveys ARE life or death for the employees, and messing with them will cause problems.

 

Best to know it, accept it, and just go with the program unless you DO actually want to get someone fired.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Life or death. I never knew that, im personally responsible for countless deaths. Oh the atrocities, shear horror and utter dismay. Will i ever be brought to justice ?

[Fred the ferret lover]

We always give glowing reviews regardless of the level of service or quality of the food. The highest marks possible. You would think they walk on water! I always write we will return soon because of the wonderful service. I in no way would want to have a negative affect on these people's livelihoods. So what if they are having a bad day or bad week. If it's so bad we just don't return.

[LMaxwell]

They use these surveys to justify reducing services and food quality. As long as people are still giving 5's they can say "see, everyone is still happy after we made XYZ change/cut". That's because it is a sympathy 5, not an honest 5.

 

If enough people rated honestly they'd stop putting the poor workers on the chopping block for it and examine the real causes and correct them. If they were actually interested in that.

[mrs and mrs]

I'm rattling my head around trying to clear what I am reading.

 

So when someone coerces you to score something higher than what you think, you just do it.

 

Might as well let the steward do what ever he likes.(but we better grade him/her highly)

 

Might as well receive half-full drinks.(make sure this one gets top-marks also)

 

Heck why not half serves.( yep top marks here)

 

Captain runs aground.(No prob, he scored ok in the survey, wouldn't want him fired or told off)

 

Oppps the show only went for 10 mins Sorry. (No worries we will give you a 5 )

 

No water in pool. (Don't worry, I'm giving you a 5 for trying, wouldn't want you fired)

 

Oh dear you forgot to book me on the cruise, even though I have paid you.(No matter now where is that survey, top-marks)

[LMaxwell]

We always give glowing reviews regardless of the level of service or quality of the food. The highest marks possible. You would think they walk on water! I always write we will return soon because of the wonderful service. I in no way would want to have a negative affect on these people's livelihoods. So what if they are having a bad day or bad week. If it's so bad we just don't return.

 

A corporate analysts wet dream. Thank you for the diminishing food quality in the MDR.

[sea shepherd]

I tell them like it is. It's the only way stuff will change. If you don't it will get even worse. If RCCL thinks everything is grate they will keep the bad food and under staffing will continue. Tell them what you think. The crew will be fine. You should try eating what they have to eat. No wonder they can wait to port to go get food.

 

 

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[Thorben-Hendrik]

Hi All,

 

I have read many times about the quality of food becoming of lower standard on RCI ships. If everyone filled in the survey honestly, because if you don't you are only blowing smoke up RCI's backside, then standards would improve. People have said that less than 5 is a fail and rightly so, if the "food" only gets 3's or 4's then the head chef would be inviting into a meeting.

 

I don't respond well to blackmail.

 

Pete

They use these surveys to justify reducing services and food quality. As long as people are still giving 5's they can say "see, everyone is still happy after we made XYZ change/cut". That's because it is a sympathy 5, not an honest 5.

 

If enough people rated honestly they'd stop putting the poor workers on the chopping block for it and examine the real causes and correct them. If they were actually interested in that.

 

 

Exactly! The guilt trip spoils everybody vacation - because bad service or bad food is not noticed!

Time for a service charge raise....!:D:p

Edited November 23, 2016 by germanfflyer

[Saab4444]

The 5s are needed to get promoted but a 3 or 4 does not mean dismissal. I agree that feedback must be honest and fair to point out issues. If not quality will decrease further and costs will go up as all is proven to be excellent.

 

 

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[voyager70]

Hi All,

 

I have read many times about the quality of food becoming of lower standard on RCI ships. If everyone filled in the survey honestly, because if you don't you are only blowing smoke up RCI's backside, then standards would improve. People have said that less than 5 is a fail and rightly so, if the "food" only gets 3's or 4's then the head chef would be inviting into a meeting.

 

I don't respond well to blackmail.

 

Pete

 

Totally agree. Unfortunately seems that dining staff suffers if food quality is not up to par, even if it's not their fault.