Change in crew ratings from end-of-cruise survey. Important. If you're not careful, the crew get dinged. Of course they do.

[patty1955]

Before I'd click on a YouTube link, I'd want to see if it was monetized. And I probably still wouldn't click it. I get enough fear-mongering in our political ads.

[mom says]

2 hours ago, CruiseMrB said:

Gary explains it better in the video. He does his homework.

You are basing your allegations and assumptions(because that's all they are) solely on Gary's vlog? Then you need to consider the vlogger's own opinions on crew gratuities, which he has clearly expressed in previous videos.   I tend to agree on a lot of the opinions he expresses about cruising, and most of the time his facts are correct. But I've never agreed with his position on crew incentives. Remember, just because you saw something on YouTube doesn't make it true.

 

As for surveys, I call 'em as I see 'em. I mention both the unsatisfactory as well as the excellent.

[RichYak]

I don’t know any more facts after reading this thread then prior to reading it. 

[ScubesDad]

If this is accurate, and I contend it is not, then Celebrity will be losing many excellent employees as their contract expires. Having been both a managed employee and an employee manager I am well versed in the problems associated with 100% reliance on surveys to determine employee performances and compensation. The major problem is many clients refuse to select a "10" or top box because they perceive no-one to be perfect. Many of the issues are management related or lack of management as the case may be.

We just returned from a three week road trip which included seven hotels and a few B&B's. Every hotel send out a "thank you first staying with us" email and an invitation to complete a survey. I completed ever request...honestly and factually.  There were some small issues which were dealt with on site; however there were a few that were obviously management related.

If Celebrity is not informed about the good and the bad they cannot reward the good or correct the bad.

I will continue to provide honest feedback when required.

 

[bEwAbG]

A bit silly to base this opinion on the basis of what was supposedly said by a single waiter in Luminae (not even the manager) with heaps of speculation thrown in by a YouTube presenter. 

 

That said, let's pretend what is being said was what was really said and that it was true.  I agree that Celebrity should focus on the total experience in a venue versus individual service.  Note that he clearly says "in a venue" and not for the entire ship.  If true, that should make for a more consistent experience in that venue.  How often have you gone to the Martini Bar and gotten the same drink made different ways, depending on who is making it?  Many of them wildly different.  If the total experience is not up to par because employees are not being consistent or working as a team to make it consistent, then that is a bad look for the company.  This will put pressure on the poor performers to either get better or get out.  That's the theory, anyway.  Of course, the truth is probably somewhere between the two versions.

[mayleeman]

36 minutes ago, RichYak said:

I don’t know any more facts after reading this thread then prior to reading it. 

I have learned a lot...about how to waste 10 minutes while learning nothing.

[wrk2cruise]

I have also stopped doing post cruise surveys since 10 seems to be the only acceptable response.   I do fill out the attention to detail forms to highlight crew who have enhanced my experience and quietly address any rare situation with service with the person in charge.

 

Why doesn't Celebrity just modify the scale on their survey to    Awful()  Excellent()  N/A()  as that seems to be the only correct answers.

 

I have to admit it starts to annoy me when a waiter who knows I'm a frequent Celebrity cruiser starts in with the 10 is important on the survey speech midway through the cruise.

 

In my very successful 40 year career in IT I can say I never had a perfect sore on my performance appraisal.

[hcat]

We no longer do the surveys.  They  only cover limited  areas..and seem to be for PR purposes rather than actual improvements. Little  or no space is given to explain or comment. Just another corporate waste of our time.

 

Best to send a note to the proper supervisor to compliment staff as the cruise unfolds..The staff member gets instant recognition shared with peers, extra telephone minutes and time off.  Same for addressing neg issues.  Do it on board in the nicest way possible if staff does not correct or improve.

 

We very much  dislike it when staff members constantly BEG for a high rating..ugh! Ruins the ambiance and is plain annoying

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

Are we all supposed to know who "Gary" is??

[mom says]

13 minutes ago, WrittenOnYourHeart said:

Are we all supposed to know who "Gary" is??

Only if you watch YouTube cruising vlogs. His name is Gary Benbridge and has the Tips for Travellers channel.

[Buckeye94]

As a market researcher, this thread gives me both hope and sadness. Some ignoring surveys, some still providing feedback (even if applied unfairly),  some feeling pressured to give 10s, and all skeptical and discouraged by the process. Shame on corporate and ship leadership for creating this situation. Immediate, isolated service issues? Sure. Ask and address on board.  But how can they understand the full  passenger experience without honest feedback? I'm tempted to look at their corporate website to see if they have any Consumer Insights roles open. This is not how it's supposed to work. 

[Tigerfnan23]

If true, its typical modern corporate mentality to hold the front line employees pay hostage in response to any negative customer comments as a result of poor corporate decision making. 

 

"Oh you commented that you prefer typical balconies to IV's?  Well we will dock our employees pay due to that negative feedback.  Thanks for your participation, come cruise with us again"!

Edited October 9, 2022 by Tigerfnan23

[C-Dragons]

2 hours ago, RichYak said:

I don’t know any more facts after reading this thread then prior to reading it. 

Well I learned who Gary is.

[CruiseMrB]

1 hour ago, wrk2cruise said:

In my very successful 40 year career in IT I can say I never had a perfect sore on my performance appraisal.

In that career, I bet that "perfect" wasn't the benchmark; it is here. Anything less than all 10's is considered failing.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

34 minutes ago, mom says said:

Only if you watch YouTube cruising vlogs. His name is Gary Benbridge and has the Tips for Travellers channel.

 

Gotcha. I do only very rarely - and certainly not enough to know and call any by their first name.

[phoenix_dream]

The best way to handle feedback is while onboard.  Praise where it is needed, and if there are real issues raise them to the appropriate person so things can be rectified.

[DaKahuna]

4 hours ago, Purplsmurf said:

How have I missed this? We have been on a few cruises since the end of 2021 and I never seen it 

 I do not have an answer for you. 

 

 I posted a copy of one in my live review on our December 2021 Reflection sailing. 

 

 

[dlh015]

25 minutes ago, CruiseMrB said:

In that career, I bet that "perfect" wasn't the benchmark; it is here. Anything less than all 10's is considered failing.

You make a lot of statements. But with no documentation for the most part. And you took Gary Bembridge completely out of context.

You said:

"Now the crew are getting rated on the ENTIRE cruise experience rating, rather than just the crew questions. That means if you had a bad experience AND YOU MENTION IT IN THE SURVEY and it that had nothing to do with the crew, such as noisy neighbors, the crew is still going to get dinged for it."

 

Gary said:

"When I was discussing this with my waiter in the restaurant, he was saying that the most important score for them on the survey is the overall experience in there,  not just the service."

 

Note "in there".

 

There is NO mention of "the entire crew" getting dinged...you have made up your own interpretation of the whole thing!  From two sentences...and hugely expanded! I have no idea how you managed that.

 

Later post:

"Gary explains it better in the video. He does his homework."

 

No, he doesn't. What 'homework' are you talking about? You should do yours.

(Oh and btw, I've watched many, many of Gary's videos.)

 

Then later:

"Given the history of these surveys across the hospitality industry,"

What's your source on this? What's the 'given'?

 

And:

"For instance, in restaurants that have surveys on the little kiosk device on the tabletop, it's pretty well documented that the server gets dinged for ANY response on that survey that is less than 5 stars or whatever the highest rating is."

 

Pretty well documented where? And ANY response less than 5?? How do you know? 

 

"And that's regardless of what the question is. Could be price, could be they ran out of the fish-of-the-day, could be cleanliness. Doesn't matter, server gets dinged."

 

Again, how do you know? 

 

"I'm assuming that cruise lines are similar in this regard."

 

That's exactly what you are doing...assuming...based on who knows what.

 

And lastly:

"Anything less than all 10's is considered failing."

 

That isn't said in the video or anywhere else except in your postings.

 

I think you've certainly blown things way out of proportion...from basically a few remarks you heard in a video.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Pinboy]

1 hour ago, hcat said:

Best to send a note to the proper supervisor to compliment staff as the cruise unfolds..The staff member gets instant recognition shared with peers, extra telephone minutes and time off.  Same for addressing neg issues.  Do it on board in the nicest way possible if staff does not correct or improve.

We do exactly the same-- I always show the complimentary note to the Staff member prior to sending it to GR who forwards it to their Dept Head/Supervisor. 

LOL--- I've mentioned many times--- we never had bad service from any Staff member --- except the time our Waiter that forgot to bring my 3 shrimp cocktails at the same time or the time our Cabin Attendant forgot to ask us if we had a good time in " wherever ".

And about the survey--- Ok, so the Staff asks us to fill it out and how much it means to their advancement or other rewards. It's no big deal. Takes a few minutes and could help someone.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RichYak]

27 minutes ago, dlh015 said:

I think you've certainly blown things way out of proportion...from basically a few remarks you heard in a video

You think? 😂

[Georgia_Peaches]

4 hours ago, Andrewgary said:

Just wanted to say thanks for not writing "for my DH and I". Like nails on a chalkboard when people do that. 

Most people struggle with when it's appropriate to use the "and me" phrase...as an editor, it's like nails on a chalkboard for me as well.

[Andrewgary]

4 hours ago, dlh015 said:

So if I say to our waiter "My wife and me would like to see the wine list" while wearing shorts and a baseball hat, your head will explode??

 

Note to self: run post thru Proper English checker...people are watching (well, reading...)

No, my head would not explode but I would correct you internally to my inner self. It's really more about me than you.

[dlh015]

Just now, Andrewgary said:

No, my head would not explode but I would correct you internally to my inner self. It's really more about me than you.

I know...honestly, I was just kidding. But it just didn't translate well in this venue. Sorry about that.

 

Like Georgia_peaches, I've done a fair amount of editing work. I get what you mean. For me, there, their, your, you're always makes me look twice...especially when I do it...lol...

[mayleeman]

I would like to see the result of a survey about how passengers think surveys are used compared to how they actually are used.

 

Another good survey would be about how customers feel about  getting surveys from ... EVERY ... blasted ... encounter .... they have with every ... blasted ... business all day long.  Then again, the replies would probably consist largely of NSFW words!

Edited October 9, 2022 by mayleeman

[Andrewgary]

1 minute ago, dlh015 said:

I know...honestly, I was just kidding. But it just didn't translate well in this venue. Sorry about that.

 

Like Georgia_peaches, I've done a fair amount of editing work. I get what you mean. For me, there, their, your, you're always makes me look twice...especially when I do it...lol...

Autocorrect makes me look like an idiot when they replace the word I typed with the wrong one and I don't notice till after I hit send. I have enough trouble not appearing to be an idiot without autocorrect giving me a push in that direction.