Hotel Supervisors, Employees Trade Places to Get ‘in Touch’

If the waiter at the Hyatt Regency Irvine botched your order Wednesday and the parking attendant fumbled for the keys to your car, it might have been because they were just filling in. As part of a chainwide program, managers took over employees’ jobs at the hotel, while subordinates tried out the executive suites.

The idea of “In Touch Day” is to give supervisors the employees’ view of the business of running a busy hotel. “It is important for managers to respect, understand and experience the daily routine of guest contact and back-of-the-house positions,” said hotel manager Jerry Lewin, who spent the day opening the front door for guests. “It is equally important for employees to understand the role management plays in the operation and marketing of the hotels.”

The general manager’s job went to Andy Wilhite, one of 15 engineers at the hotel who was Employee of the Year for 1992. Wilhite said he spent the day attending meetings, taking notes and crunching numbers. “It actually made me want to become one,” Wilhite said of his stint as a manager.