When was the last Time you gave someone Credit?
In this mini series I will share some of my leadership savvy which I have learned and successfully applied during the past 27 years in international kitchens around the world. If you want to know more then click here: Leadership skills can be learned, that’s the good news!
My mentor Chef Garry always used to say:
“Marcel, as effective leaders we need to be able to give credit to others, admit our mistakes and even take the blame. If you cannot develop these qualities, then you better stay away from the chef’s office.”
These are great words of wisdom. Being able to give credit to someone is a virtue.
When I worked in Jordan, we frequently had hygiene inspections from auditors or the FDA, the Food and Drug Administration. On average every 4 weeks or so we suddenly received a call that the inspectors are around. Surprise visits are always a kind of a hassle because you get caught in the middle of a busy operation and you want to make sure that you pass the inspection.
The good thing was that my team was used to these visits from external authorities. We knew exactly what they were looking for and we prepared ourselves accordingly. We were surrounded by other 5-star hotels. Mostly the hygiene inspectors would visit the other hotels first for whatsoever reason. That was good for us because it gave us time to prepare and get ready. As soon the inspectors would walk into one of the neighbouring hotels, we would receive a call from the chief steward informing us about what was going on in their hotel. That was a great thing that they gave us a ring.
We had a hygiene manager working in our hotel. Her name was Aseel and she was well experienced. Aseel had helped me a lot in maintaining our kitchen in excellent condition. She also supported me with staff training.
In addition, I had Rami on my team. Rami was our chief steward. He was a hell of a guy, tough, tall, strong and a voice you could hear until Dubai. He was one of the strongest and most organized chief stewards I ever worked with. When he knew that a new hygiene inspection was on its way then Rami went out of his way to make sure that the kitchen will be in tip-top condition once the inspectors would arrive.
It was always the same scenario: The inspectors would arrive, Aseel and Rami would welcome them and eventually show them around our kitchens. The inspectors usually never spend more than 15 minutes with us which was a phenomenal thing considering the huge size of our property and the amount of food and beverage outlets we had. Everything was always to their entire satisfaction. We passed all audits and check-ups easily. We excelled. Thanks to the entire kitchen and stewarding team.
Yet, I always gave special credit to Rami and Aseel. I did this publicly.
When you are the leader of a team than success will shine on you first. Same goes for failure. It is very tempting to take all the credit for yourself. Our ego loves it.
“Nice job chef, thank you very much. Well done!” would my General Manager say to me.
I would acknowledge his praise but immediately point out the fact who really deserved the credit, namely my chief steward and hygiene manager and of course the rest of the team. That was never an issue for me. The opposite is true. Giving credit in public to people who deserve it is one of my leadership techniques I love to apply. When you do this consistently then your staff will respect and trust you more and work harder for you.
Giving credit to others lifts their mood up.
Thanks for reading my post!
Marcel
This post was originally published on: https://www.marcelr.com/post/when-was-the-last-time-you-gave-someone-credit
