A lot of people have seen the Blue Angels perform, and what they do is incredible. But it’s the way that they do it over and over again that demonstrates something greater is at work.”

Geoff Richards – COO Wyndham Vacation Ownership

 

THE CHALLENGE

One Wyndham: Building A New Culture Of Excellence

When Wyndham's Vacation Ownership Division hired John Foley, their company was weeks away from unrolling an initiative called “One Wyndham,” which set out to increase cross-department teamwork and build a new culture of excellence. The new program presented challenges for the executive team: In a large organization, how do you get teams to BUY IN and accept new systems? John’s video presentation grabbed the attention of Wyndham’s executive team. He was able to connect on a deep level because his methods were tailored to support the forthcoming change in culture, and encourage the opportunities that were growing.

 

In a recent interview, Geoff Richards, Chief Operations Officer and Head of Hospitality, highlighted a few of the areas in which John was particularly effective.

 

ACCOUNTABILITY & CRITICISM

About the Blue Angel Debrief, Geoff Richards said, “As good as The Blue Angels were, in every debrief there were things that they could do better. Often times your top people don’t want to share what could be construed as a weakness, but this sort of approach reveals that there is a serious STRENGTH about being open with your colleagues and saying, you know, I’m not perfect, and here are the ways that I can improve.”

 

TRUST AND EXECUTIVE INTENT

In order for Wyndham's teams to buy into the coming changes, every employee needed to trust in the effectiveness of the project. And on the other side of the coin, executives needed to trust that the working body was equipped and able to handle those challenges.

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BLUE ANGEL TEAMWORK

The High Performance of The Blue Angels is greater than the individual. That rang especially true for Richards, who said “Before I ever knew John Foley I always felt strongly that there’s only so much that one person can do. Seeing how that message was expressed by the Blue Angels really gave that idea a new traction in our organization.”

 

THE RESULT

One Wyndham Spreads

Although still in it’s initial stages, WVO’s official metrics show that One Wyndham has been an affirmative success. And that success extends beyond the realm of customer satisfaction: One Wyndham has already created new opportunities for employee education and growth. An increase in customer/employee satisfaction and execution excellence is the ideal outcome from a change in culture. Reinforced by John’s events, Wyndham is writing a new history of that excellence as they push onward with the One Wyndham initiative, which is slated for worldwide release in 2013.