Honoring Heritage Doesn't Mean Staying The Same

“What seems insignificant to you may carry tremendous meaning for your customer.”

Some things should never change. Others have to. When I think about companies like Hilton, Marriott, and Disney, their heritage is important. But the things that make those companies special are not necessarily the physical products or services that existed decades ago.

The foundation is how people feel when they interact with you. In the hotel business, guests want a clean, safe, comfortable place to stay. They want friendly employees who know what they are doing. They want to trust that if something goes wrong, somebody will take care of it.

Those expectations remain. How we deliver on them changes. When I started in hotels, having a television in the room was enough. Today, guests expect technology and connectivity that didn’t exist then. The same is true in nearly every business. Customer expectations change, technology changes, and new generations bring different preferences.
That doesn’t mean every change is a good one.

At the Grand Floridian, we once removed a small soap item from the rooms to save money. We thought it was insignificant. Guests did not. Many collected those items or took them home to family. Our housekeepers understood that connection and told us they could have warned us. We put the item back.

That experience reinforced an important lesson: what seems insignificant to you may carry tremendous meaning for your customer. People develop emotional connections to brands and experiences. Leaders need to understand those connections before making decisions. Do the research. Listen to employees and customers. Explain why changes are happening. Then pay attention to what happens next.

Sometimes people simply need time to become comfortable with something new. Other times, you made the wrong decision. Be willing to admit it and change course.

You cannot preserve a great organization by refusing to change. Protect the values and experiences that earned people’s trust while continuing to evolve how you deliver them.

Honor your heritage, but don’t let it prevent you from creating what comes next.