Staff "demanding" good ratings?

[lulutoo]

On our recent RCI cruise I was taken aback when what I thought would be a short thank you and farewell from our waiter on the last night became a rant that was basically- I know I do a good job so I expect the ratings you give to all be 10- I don't want any rating lower- or I will not get my money. But I have done a good job so I know I can expect 10's.There is no excuse for any lower number... so that is what I will expect.

 

My tablemates and I were aghast at this tone.. then I went to our cabin where the steward we had really loved knocked on our door and said when he came in.. it has been pleasure serving you and I know you liked what I did because you told me ( we had and given him an extra tip mid cruise). So, I know I can ask you to please give me a 10 for my rating. It is very , very important for me to have that... " and as he said it tears filled his eyes.

 

I have been on more than a dozen cruises and never had staff beg for or demand high ratings... is some reign of terror going on.. is there some contest being held with cash incentives ? I saw our tablemates the next am and asked them if they heard similar from their steward and they had and were equally uncomfortable. I realize that English is not thefirst language of most staff, but it all sounds either abrasive or pathetic to me...

 

Whatever is prompting this behavior needs to be done away with ...

[cruiserhal]

It has been this way for awhile. Wait until you encounter someone who gives you really bad service (thinking of a cabin attendant) all trip then tells you to give them the highest rating or you will be taking food from their children's mouth! Yep, had that a few years ago. I just smile, say OK, and then give them what they earned. Most of the time it is a top rating but not always.

 

You will get many reasons from different people as to why this occurs.

[MommaBear55]

The speeches about needing a "10" rating is a recurring theme on our Royal Caribbean cruises. Staff retention and promotion is based on their reviews and ratings, so there is a lot of pressure on them to get good marks. I would generally think a 7 or 8 would be a great score, but it seems like nothing under a 10 counts, that a 9 or lower might as well be zero.

 

I have not always given a 10, but am more inclined to do so on board than I am when rating staff at work. In fact, if we want to give a staff member a 5 out of 5, we need to get sign off from the VP of our department.

 

If this issue is going to change on board, the change needs to start with management.

[R_i_c_h]

It's the cruiseline's grading scale that makes anything besides a 10 something negative. And I believe that much of the staff's raises, promotions, and even continued employment are tied to these ratings.

 

I'm sure you're right in that language has a huge part in how it comes across. If they could express to you that any score below a 10 is a blemish on their evaluation in a more professional manner, I'm sure they would.

 

I agree that they should make a policy to prevent the staff from asking for good reviews. It does create an awkward situation.

[Big_G]

In all our cruises including 19 with Royal, we've never heard that version of the 'speech' at the end of the cruise so I don't think it's rampant or a trend. It's always been 'If you enjoyed the service I provided I would appreciate your highest rating' or something similar. I've never received a demand.

[PattyW]

We've experienced this as well. And the comment cards aren't even perfect options. They ask you to rate the dining room staff - one time we had horrendous service in the MDR at lunch. The head waiter asked us about our dining room service and we mentioned the lunch service and he looked horrified, telling us if we mentioned it on the comment cards, it would count against the dinner staff and it wasn't fair to say we had less than good dining room service when our issue was with lunch. I was so irritated; I understood what he was saying, but there was no "lunch dining room category" to talk about.

[Artemis908]

I was kind of uncomfortable on our last cruise when our waiter mentioned giving him a "10" on the survey. I remember I kind of chuckled at one point (I can't even remember why) and he said, "I'm being serious, I really need you to give us all 10s." and I was just surprised by how forceful he was being.

[Alohaaloha]

We've had that final night speech in the MDR every cruise so far. It is very awkward to listen to, especially as we have always had great service and would have marked 10 anyway. One waiter told our table that RCI reduce the number of the next cruise's tables they get to wait on if they receive low scores which of course reduces their gratuities.

 

 

 

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[voyager70]

I too feel uncomfortable with this. I mean, do they really get reprimanded for scores less than 10, even an 8 or 9? I must admit that guilt usually gets the best of me and I give them a 10 even if they don't deserve it.

[north29]

I was leasing a new Lexus, and the sales/lease people almost begged for a 10 rating on the review I would be ask to do. There job rating and long time employment was based upon it.

[voyager70]

We've had that final night speech in the MDR every cruise so far. It is very awkward to listen to, especially as we have always had great service and would have marked 10 anyway. One waiter told our table that RCI reduce the number of the next cruise's tables they get to wait on if they receive low scores which of course reduces their gratuities.

 

 

 

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That's interesting & would explain why they are so adamant on receiving 10's.

[spookwife]

 

I have been on more than a dozen cruises and never had staff beg for or demand high ratings... is some reign of terror going on.. is there some contest being held with cash incentives ? I saw our tablemates the next am and asked them if they heard similar from their steward and they had and were equally uncomfortable. I realize that English is not thefirst language of most staff, but it all sounds either abrasive or pathetic to me...

 

Whatever is prompting this behavior needs to be done away with ...

 

 

the Dining staff have ALWAYS been this way on Traditional and for MTD any attempt by the hostess to seat us anywhere but where we were sat the first night was met with immediate response by the wait staff in that section demanding we be returned to their area. Kind of awkward when you had requested to be moved elsewhere....(Once because of the staff and once because they wanted to seat us next a large table with 3 toddlers that were NOT quiet/content)

 

quite honestly I no longer give out 10s unless someone goes way over and above. and I will not be guilted or bullied into it. in fact its much more likely that the 7 or 8 you would have gotten has now just become a 5

 

I have not given out an extra tip in the last 5 cruises because no one goes over and above any longer. total service has begun to slip but not yet enough for me to make an issue of it to GS.

[Clarea]

Whenever they start to give me that speech, I like to tell them how happy we were with their excellent service, that we will certainly fill out the survey, and that they are number one (holding up 1 finger) in my book. They usually get a bit excited at that point and forget the rest of the speech.

[champagne123]

I was leasing a new Lexus, and the sales/lease people almost begged for a 10 rating on the review I would be ask to do. There job rating and long time employment was based upon it.

 

My son is a car salesman....if they do not receive perfect 10's all the way across the board, they do not receive:

bonuses

raises

promotions

Etc... This is how the car company's save millions of dollars per year.

[beachnative]

I can't stand that speech.

 

If they start I stop them mid sentence and say "If you continue with this speech I will give you 7." They stop immediately. Then I say that I usually give 10s.

 

I recently had poor service by our waiter and informed him that we would not be returning to the dining room because of the service. The next day I was approached by two of the staff who tried to gloss it over by saying "We will talk to the waiter" and then added "We hope that this does not reflect on your opinion of the dining room" Consequently I rated the Dining Room service a "5".

 

We used to give everything on the survey 10s. We no longer do that and generally give a combination of 9s and 10s unless something like the above happens.

Edited March 22, 2016 by beachnative

[cruisenfever]

Whenever they start to give me that speech, I like to tell them how happy we were with their excellent service, that we will certainly fill out the survey, and that they are number one (holding up 1 finger) in my book. They usually get a bit excited at that point and forget the rest of the speech.

That's exactly what we do. Works every time.:D

[Some1]

I remember at the beginning of one cruise, we were eating at the buffet for LUNCH and had a very lovely conversation with one of the waiters in charge of our table. Very nice man! The rest of the cruise went by and we never saw him again... until the last day. He had been all over the ship trying to hunt us down (that's what he actually said! :o) and he gave us a piece of paper with his name, his assistant's name (we didn't even remember meeting her!) and then he told us to write a glowing review about how well he and his assistant treated us throughout the whole cruise! :confused:

 

We did end up giving the waiter a 10, just not his assistant. :cool:

[Retired LEO]

Whenever they start to give me that speech, I like to tell them how happy we were with their excellent service, that we will certainly fill out the survey, and that they are number one (holding up 1 finger) in my book. They usually get a bit excited at that point and forget the rest of the speech.

 

I do basically the same thing. Once the speech starts I hold up my hand and say "you don't have to go there there's nothing to worry about". The speech then turns into a smile and it's all good.

[jackson bernard]

On our recent RCI cruise I was taken aback when what I thought would be a short thank you and farewell from our waiter on the last night became a rant that was basically- I know I do a good job so I expect the ratings you give to all be 10- I don't want any rating lower- or I will not get my money. But I have done a good job so I know I can expect 10's.There is no excuse for any lower number... so that is what I will expect.

 

 

 

My tablemates and I were aghast at this tone.. then I went to our cabin where the steward we had really loved knocked on our door and said when he came in.. it has been pleasure serving you and I know you liked what I did because you told me ( we had and given him an extra tip mid cruise). So, I know I can ask you to please give me a 10 for my rating. It is very , very important for me to have that... " and as he said it tears filled his eyes.

 

 

 

I have been on more than a dozen cruises and never had staff beg for or demand high ratings... is some reign of terror going on.. is there some contest being held with cash incentives ? I saw our tablemates the next am and asked them if they heard similar from their steward and they had and were equally uncomfortable. I realize that English is not thefirst language of most staff, but it all sounds either abrasive or pathetic to me...

 

 

 

Whatever is prompting this behavior needs to be done away with ...

 

 

I always give a 10 regardless of how the actual service is. I always write couldn't be better! Who cares. Give the employee the benefit of the doubt!

[starrcards]

I worked for a Fortune 500 retail company in the US and it was basically the same. It was a 1-5 survey and anything less than 5 was crap.

[debgreg]

Wow what a primitive and barbaric way to run a company :mad:

 

I guess it goes alongside not paying them an adequate wage and expecting guests, who have forked out a ton of money to top up those wages with enforced gratuities...not sure that would be tolerated here in the UK and yet we are supposed to be the ones who don't complain enough. I think companies should pay their staff the wages they deserve and tips (as here in the UK ) are a bonus, as well as , not instead of.

 

I think it is degrading for staff to have to do this in order to get what they are owed when the majority work so hard & non stop. The feedback forms should be used to shape customer service, not terrorise under paid workers.

[luvscruising2007]

The surveys for RC are no different than any other survey you are asked to take. We had to fill out surveys for work, mainly rating our management team. It was always frustrating that everyone got the same rating when there was at least one manager that was difficult to work and communicate with. We also found out that the highest and lowest ratings were all that corporate really looked at.

Having said that, I rate the crew honestly. They will not get a ten unless the service was as expected.. On our last cruise our MDR waiter was the worst we had had. He had certain things down pat, but other service was not good. He didn't get 10"s.

I actually thought that his supervisor knew, because the head waiter hovered over our table every night.

[cheezwiz]

I got the speech from our MDR waiter and cabin attendant. I smiled and said ok, sure. Then I skipped the survey entirely. It's not my job to evaluate their employees for them. If I've got something to say, I do it the old-fashioned way, with a letter and a stamp.

 

This annoys me almost as much as being handed the Wow envelope. If I want to show some additional appreciation, I know how to do it without any props - and I do it when I consider it appropriate.

[davekathy]

Has anyone ever got a response from RCCL concerning your comments annotated on your post cruise survey?

Edited March 22, 2016 by davekathy

[Cuizer2]

There are goals and objectives. A goal should be to get all tens. An objective should be to average at least a nine. Goal are things you wish for. An objective should be something that can be realistically achieved. To average ten is impossible. Someone could get 99 tens and one nine and thus "only" average 9.99. While this is a fantastic score, it is still less than ten.

 

This kind on nonsense of setting an objective of being perfect just hurts moral. The wording of the score can change a ten to a nine. If ten is described as "everything was perfect" and the last cup of coffee was not as hot as the first, then everything was not perfect and thus you end up with a nine. On the other hand, if ten is "I have no complaints" then you could still get a ten as long as the coffee was hot enough.

 

You should not have to give someone a ten unless they earned a ten. If the waiter/waitress brings the wrong food, gives the food to the wrong person, the food is cold, the only knife you have to cut the steak with is a butter knife and to the best of your knowledge, the waiter/waitress fell overboard because you have not seen him/her for the last thirty minutes also gets a ten because you are concerned his/her children will not get any food for a week because you gave the person an eight, then a ten means nothing. Which would you rather hire, someone with a 3.0 average from MIT or a person with a 4.0 average from UPH (University of Party Hardy)? To have any value, a ten should be rare and nine should still be considered a very good rating.

 

By the way, this kind of thing happens on land with non-travel related businesses also. I hate hearing the "ten" speech and I've heard it from the people being rated and from the management (trying to help out there employees) and from the CD (trying to help out everyone). I even read about a business that have a contract which forbids the person from giving a low yelp score - and is suing someone who did.

 

Also, take into account that the person might be mistating the consequences of a low score. It is not likely that any business would fire someone who gets 70% tens, 20% nines and 10% eights. Any manager understands that nobody is perfect.

Edited March 22, 2016 by Cuizer2