I don’t know businessman and hotelier Manny Gonzalez from Adam. But I heard his name and that he owns the high-end Plantation Bay Resort and Spa in Lapu-Lapu City. Since the construction of that resort several years ago, it was already controversial. The original occupants of that area protested against its construction. I have not met Gonzales personally, but the way I sized him up, he is very arrogant. I might be wrong but that is my perception. I based my perception on the way he handled the latest controversy involving his resort. Just because he is a multi-millionaire or a billionaire, he treated people like his slaves.
If he is that moneyed, powerful and influential, why did he not help his former personnel (maybe some of them are still connected with his resort) seek justice after what happened to them on Dec. 13, 2002. If you can recall, six personnel of Plantation Bay who came from their Christmas party were injured when the van they were riding was peppered with bullets by National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) 7 agents and their civilian agents in a botched “mistaken identity” anti-drug operation. Luckily, all of them survived that “ambush.” But nothing happened to the case. I’ve talked to one of the victims and she said “they are hopeless in seeking justice.” There was no resolution to the case and those NBI agents involved remain scot-free. Why don’t you help them obtain justice by hiring the best lawyers to revive the case, Mr. Gonzalez?
Gonzalez is now involved in his resort’s brouhaha, which became viral on social media. From a simple complaint of a mother of a six-year-old child with autism, it went out of bounds because of Mr. Gonzalez’s arrogance. Miss Mai Pages posted on social media about her and her special son Fin’s sad experience while at the resort. Lifeguards of the resort prevented her son from swimming in the resort’s man-made beach because the boy with special needs created noise by shouting while swimming out of excitement. It is a policy of the resort that guests should not create noise as it will destroy the peace and tranquility of the surrounding and might disturb other guests who are there for relaxation. The mother was upset seeing her son’s short- lived enjoyment and delight.
But instead of addressing Miss Pages’ concern with a polite explanation and utmost courtesy, Gonzalez himself came up with a letter on social media, questioning the motive of Pages and even accusing the mother of neglect and deliberately lying on the diagnosis of her son. Gonzalez is not only a hotelier, but he is also a “psychiatrist” because he lectured Miss Pages about autism, saying that an autistic child is not that hyper contrary to the attitude displayed by Pages’ son. Gonzalez forgot that “mother knows best.”
He argued that ‘”uncontrolled shouting is not a sign of autism.” He said that an autistic child is just calm, silent and just sit down in the corner and does not enjoy the company of other people. Maybe Gonzalez was referring to a child with “Down syndrome” and not with autism. Autism and Down syndrome are entirely different psychological disorders.
But in the first place, Gonzalez should not have personally written that letter. He should have hired a public relation’s manager or communication’s expert to explain everything. Because he is the owner and you know how millionaires like him talk. He thinks he is God and immortal. His ego and pride were touched by that simple complaint. It could have been a different perspective if an ordinary personnel wrote that letter. Maybe the complaint was toned down and the letter was apologetic. Gonzalez’s letter shows only what he really is. Imagine telling the mother: “Hey, our resort does not need clients like you. Before you checked in, you know already the rules.” It is tantamount to saying: “We don’t need your money and you can look for another resort.” That statement is arrogance to the highest degree.
Though, he apologized later. But had he apologized immediately, this issue would not have been blown out of proportion and would just die down. Poor handling of public relations. Miss Pages is not even keen on filing a case against the resort and Gonzalez. She just wants an explanation not insults. The hotelier not only insulted Miss Pages, but other parents too who have autistic sons and daughters. It is better for Gonzalez to convert his resort into a retreat house or convent if he does not want noise and shouting from excited children.
And look what happened now? The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) 7 and the Department of Tourism (DOT) have come into the picture and initiated their own moto propio investigations. I hope that these investigations will have results and closure of this entire brouhaha.
Gonzalez should be reminded of the hospitality traits of a hotelier. Instead of enticing potential clients to his resort, his arrogance would drive away prospective clients. Good for you if customers will boycott your resort.
When you are in the hospitality industry, the first thing customers expect from you is politeness and courtesy. This expectation is all the more pronounced when a customer is upset about a service and feels like howling. No doubt dealing with an upset hotel guest is an extremely challenging task and it requires tremendous experience along with basic training. A customer who is upset about something is emotional and issues may not be resolved by logical arguments. The best service that you can do to such customer is to help him/her vent out all his/her frustrations. This will help him/her feel better. He/she may rather reconcile about the whole issue while he/she attained his/her cool.
There is no doubt that an upset customer is most likely to behave rudely and arrogantly and this could hurt your sentiments. (But not in the case of Miss Pages). You have to really work to train yourself to not to take things personally. This is one of the most essential qualities that anybody working in the hospitality industry should possess.
An agitated customer is likely to be a bit irrational and may not be able to communicate well. But once a customer had calmed down, you can politely ask questions to gather more information on the incident. This will help you resolve the problem better and effectively. While trying to resolve a customer issue, it is important that you retain the sense of fairness. If you believe that the hotel is at fault, make sure that you compensate the customer accordingly. It may not make sense for you to go overboard in an effort to pacify the customer. Or simply apologize.