Danny Meyer (who I mentioned a few days ago) has a philosophy about who everyone at his restaurants should be focused on. He calls this this the “virtuous cycle of enlightened hospitality”, and it goes in this very specific order.
- Team
- Customer
- Community
- Suppliers
- Investors
As he shares during a podcast with Adam Grant, this isn’t intended to leave the investors out to dry. In fact, it’s the opposite; by focusing on the team first and going from there, the business is likely to be more successful and provide even better returns for the investors.
You can really look at this list from the bottom up. The investors are happy because of the items above them, all of which trickle down from the team.
It’s easy to say “the customer comes first”, but if the customer comes before your team you’ll struggle with retention and create a worse situation for everyone involved — especially the customer. The idea that “the customer is always right” is short-sighted and has likely led to a lot of great employees leaving companies over the years.
If you want your customers to be treated well, start by putting your team first and everything else will fall into place.
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