Focus on the details
To Stewart, paying attention to often-overlooked daily details is
the easiest path to successful growth. You can have the best business plan in the world, but he knows that if you don’t keep a close
eye on the day-to-day operations, then there is room for fatal error.
Sometimes that means admitting to mistakes and starting over,
rather than trying to make something work just to grow.
“Compromise, I think, is the thing that hurts the most,” Stewart
says. “I’ve broken down concrete many times that turned out differently than we thought or planned it would be. I’ve sold beds as
soon as I can get replacements because they weren’t as good as we
wanted them to be. We’ve closed restaurants that are not performing. That list goes on forever. If something comes out wrong
or isn’t working, stripping it down to the carpet isn’t the worst
thing.
“If something is wrong, it’s wrong. You can go a lot further by fixing it early than not paying attention to it.”
While Stewart believes that growing in an industry is simple if
you really focus on the little details, he says there has to be a constant mindset to that attention to detail.
“If you’re going to be successful at any industry, then there has to
be a thought process where literally every moment of your life you
have to be thinking of things that you can improve upon,” says
Stewart. “It is true that people are going to recommend your product. To be happy enough to do that, you need to impress.”
That attention to detail can’t just be in projects, according to
Stewart. It has to be a company culture that runs from top to bottom. That enthusiasm for hospitality drives Sandals and Beaches,
and Stewart says that pushing that core philosophy is the key to
bringing in new people. If you don’t understand that hospitality is
job No. 1, then you don’t get in the door.
“We don’t announce the vision on a daily basis,” he says. “But we
know where we are going, and people around you know because
they see you living it. If you’re very strong with your fundamentals
and show that every day, then people know what’s happening and
see if they can fit in.”
And, in the same matter-of-fact manner that Stewart will rip
down a building and start over, he says that you have to be clear-cut with employees who don’t match the culture, instead of trying
to force a fit.
“Again, if it’s a mistake, level with the employee,” Stewart says.
“Tell them, ‘You’re in the wrong business. Now, you might be a
good scientist, but you don’t do a good job of making people
happy.’”
Your people, after all, are a big part of your brand. And, to
Stewart, paying close attention to that brand internally is essential.
“In the same way that you would protect your brand if somebody
is doing something to try to injure it, the biggest injury is likely to
come from your own internal, weak operation,” says Stewart. “If
you look at the whole spectrum, on one hand, you might have
some people out there that would like to do damage to your
brand. So you’re going to protect it, but really and truly, you can do
more harm to yourself than anyone else at the end of the day, so
you have to make sure you and your people are performing.”
