Employee Retention is Paramount at Gaylord Palms
Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center knows what it takes to keep guests happy and earn repeat business. The Orlando resort has proven that it also knows what it takes to keep its 1,500 employees happy and turnover low. Its employee turnover rate last year was 15%, far below the industry average of nearly 40%. More than 31% of employees have been with the resort for eight years — almost 23% since it opened in 2002.
The resort offers a slew of perks, including a convenience store that sells items at cost and a discounted on-site auto repair shop. It offers management training to employees at almost every level and surprises them with massages, ice cream sundae stations and more. But that's not why so many of Gaylord's employees stay on for so long.
"It's the culture, that feeling of comfort, of knowing that they genuinely care about me," says Kenny Stockdill, a sales receptionist who has been with Gaylord since just before it opened. Evidence of that, he says, is the input employees have into business decisions: Workers at all levels meet with general manager Johann Krieger, plus they share their opinions twice a year in an employee satisfaction survey.
 Sales receptionist Kenny Stockdill (left), general manager Johann Krieger and lead restaurant hostess Margaret Sweeting ham it up. "They always look to us for our opinion, and they work from there," says Margaret Sweeting, who has been with the resort for almost 10 years. "When we meet our mark and make our goals, we are able to — everybody — share in a bonus." [Photo: Brook Pifer] |
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