Hotel and resort owners—listen up.
If the back of the house isn’t inspiring your employees, they won’t aspire to serve your guests.
Taking your hotel to the next level doesn’t start in the lobby—it starts in employee spaces.
Before Mr. Clear, I spent years working in hotels from the ground up. I worked construction on a hotel conversion, joined the maintenance team, became a maintenance director, and eventually served as a hotel General Manager. I learned hospitality inside and out—how we serve guests, how we protect brand standards, and how to create a great stay.
But what I saw behind the scenes told a different story.
Employees were tired.
Overworked.
Underequipped.
Unheard.
From day one, I focused on clearing, cleaning, and organizing the construction site and employee areas. I converted unused rooms into break spaces that actually felt hospitable. I built an office for the head of housekeeping. I listened while I worked alongside the team.
Later, when I was promoted to General Manager at another property, I stepped into chaos. The hotel was already under a Property Improvement Plan (PIP) and ranked at the bottom of the region in nearly every category—cleanliness, maintenance, amenities, breakfast, and housekeeping.
Financially, the hotel had a record year.
Operationally, it was falling apart.
Guest reviews were brutal. Employee complaints were growing. The staff was exhausted.
Then a moment changed everything.
The maintenance director asked to buy new tools. When I asked what happened to the old ones, he laughed and said, “We can’t find them. I think one got sealed into the ceiling drywall.”
That was the wake-up call.
We spent hours—then weeks—working through every space in the hotel. We cleared, cleaned, and organized storage rooms, maintenance areas, housekeeping closets, and back-of-house workspaces. We removed toxic team members who refused to uphold standards. Most importantly, we rebuilt order and routine maintenance.
The results were undeniable.
Within a year, the hotel ranked in the top 15% regionally, and top 5% in one major category—not because we worked harder, but because we finally had time to be creative for our guests.
Morale improved.
Culture changed.
Leadership emerged from within.
Eventually, I promoted myself out of the General Manager role.
Here’s my encouragement to hotel and resort owners:
Don’t try to fix everything yourself.
Give your team ownership—but hold the standard.
If you want better guest experiences, start by refreshing employee spaces and equipping your team with order, clarity, and the tools they need to succeed.
That’s where real hospitality begins.
