August 15, 2014
CEO Newsletter
Te3am,
As you know, we are committed to establishing Centerplate as the “Defender of Live Events,” and in getting the word out about the value of the guest experience. Together with our client, the Miami Dolphins, and data company, Teradata, Centerplate has proposed a panel for next year’s South By Southwest Interactive Conference, “Can Food Porn, Selfies and Smart Data Save Events?” as part of the sports-focused discussion panel of this popular annual tech conference and festival. Voting for the panel is now live — attached are directions to set up an account to vote for our topic so we can share the story with those in the technology and sports fields about the value of Being There at games and public spectacles.
More than ever, the future belongs to those that create value, not destroy it. Creating value means that we are best-in-class in all we do and we lead the industry in pursuit of new ways to elevate event hospitality. We must lead from the front. We must press forward to deliver better in all aspects of our business.
To me leading from the front means ensuring we have the most comprehensive standards, safety and quality control program in the industry. Therefore every venue must be fully engaged in the QUE3ST program. We have made significant progress over the course of the year and the scores continue to improve but we need to do much better. Commencing in September, the QUE3ST program will be incorporated as a component of the annual bonus program. Safety, quality control and standards are non-negotiable and essential to the protection of our brand. Make sure that every member of your team understands and commits. In my book, there is a big difference between getting something wrong, and committing a wrong. While we may get things wrong at times, we will never knowingly commit a wrong.
I’d like you to be over zealous in implementing QUE3ST and it is even okay to be a little paranoid. I read a great quote this week that sums up how I’d like you to go about ensuring we have the appropriate standards and training in place in every venue, “What I know concerns me. What I don’t know concerns me even more. What people aren’t telling me worries me the most.” Walk your venue and investigate for yourself what is working and what needs your attention. Focus on the top 10 opportunity areas from your recent QUE3ST reports that you should work to immediately eliminate. Continually commit to making your next QUE3ST report score better than your last one.
E3 moments of the week …
With only 5 weeks to reinvent a restaurant and menu, set up systems and train employees, our team opened The American Sector at the National World War II Museum to rave reviews. With very little time to transition they worked tirelessly to make sure that guests received the utmost hospitality beginning with the first morning we officially took over; an impressive feat considering we could not activate anything until after the restaurant closed the night before. Museum staff have been eating at the restaurant daily and social media reviews are echoing the sentiment of the local population of the change for the better, “we came to New Orleans with a list of must-do restaurants and The American Sector was not one of them, but after our visit the best dish of the whole trip came from The American Sector.” A big round of applause to our museum team – Chef Eric Cook, Chef Emily Croaty, Michelle Dee, Brad Feichter, Margaret Flannery, Brooke Foster, Chef Morgan Landry, Sean Landry, Elizabeth Peebles, Desmond Peterson, Jerry Reed, Executive Chef Ray St. Pierre, Arachana Shingwani, Justin Show, Lee Teijelo, Chef Aaron Thurber and special thanks to Todd Dunn, Dan Guest, Virginia Elkins, Jody Finzer, Richard Ginzel, Kernell Jupiter, Laurence Rua, Kay Towner, Steve Trotter and our team at the New Orleans Convention Center for making it happen!
A local camp counselor took the time to send a note of thanks for the wonderful service and hospitality shown to their group of campers, disabled children aged 10-17, at Ocean Beach Park. “It was a very busy day and the supervisor in the food court personally helped us get all of our food and drinks, and even made sure to stop and check in with us during the meal to make sure we had everything we needed. She was excellent when speaking with our campers, a difficult quality to find as most staff in public places struggle with individuals with disabilities, and later even helped us pick out gifts in the new souvenir shop. We were even able to stay for the movie showing, a first for our camp. Several of our campers have physical disabilities as well and the staff running the show was incredibly accommodating helping us to get on the sand and get situated where the kids could see the movie. We could not have picked a better location to bring our campers and will make sure to encourage similar organizations to visit. We will continue to bring our campers each year and hopefully twice next year!” Great job by Evan Giesing, Janelle Medeiros, Maureen Jordan and Dave Sugrue!
The Nashville Music City Center hosted the American Society of Association Executive’s annual exposition this week with nearly 5,000 meeting planners, supplier partners and guests attending. This is considered one of the premier events in the meetings industry as it generates into new business for the host city. While there were numerous event highlights, with even the pre-con meeting generating tweets with photos, we can all appreciate the need to move a signature event indoors. With the opening reception threatened by rain, our team flawlessly defied the odds by quickly relocating bars, displays and hors d’oeuvres inside to continue the festivities and guests were wowed by the staff’s nimble reaction and the beautiful array of offerings reflecting Central Tennessee. Congratulations on a job well done to Nash Amis, Wendy Briley, Kim Colvard, Robert Conway, Leo Cuasay, Marissa Cuenca, Renae Droege, Natalie Fant, Ysica Guerra, Caleb Hawkins, Chef Oliver Henry, Heather Kellogg, Executive Chef Max Knoepfel, Youssef Koutout, David Lipford, Bianca Morton, Chef Corey Pitts, Trey Roberts, Roumani Saleb, Kristopher Summa, Adam Young, Doug Zimmerman and visiting team members Shannon Chapman, Julie Jauregui, Jamie Miller and Walter Perez!
An attendee who suffered a medical emergency while attending Comic-Con at the San Diego Convention Center was so grateful for the assistance he received from David Lucas, our supervisor at Starbucks, that he not only sent us a note of appreciation but also sent a note to the headquarter office of Starbucks praising David for going above and beyond and possibly saving his life. “I was starting to have an epileptic seizure when a security guard got David’s attention and he turned his full attention towards me and made sure I had food and water and a place to sit down. There were many people standing in the line that he went through to make sure I was seated near the register for assistance. He was the person that helped me the most and other employees should learn from his example.” Kudos to David!
100% commitment to our QUE3ST program with consistent top scores across the board is the only acceptable goal. Make sure you and your team are already committed to delivering on it!
Onwards!
