Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts are widely known in their industry as a hospitable and decent company. The members of its team, from the founder and CEO, Isadore, to the ordinary employees, all work towards a common goal. Every employee is highly valued: they are given the best environment to achieve success. The company involves them in decision making and trains to improve their skills. The company esteems its customer and respects their views and decisions. Therefore, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts have distinguished itself in the hospitality industry through effective leadership and concern for its external and internal customers.

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts make a remarkable contribution to the hotel industry. One of the factors that brought this change is an effective leadership team which undoubtedly made a change by being different from other hospitality businesses. To begin with, the leaders of the company feel that they should not make any decisions in a vacuum; instead, they should involve others in the decision-making process. Additionally, they should consider how the decisions will impact other stakeholders. A good example is every morning meetings which result in good work quality. The meetings involve guests, and every department is represented there. During the meetings, they discuss advantages and disadvantages of the company according to the customers’ reports. This helps the company to develop and provide its guests with better service (Sharp 34).

Further, the leadership at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is flexible and makes quick decisions to seize any arising opportunities. Other hospitality companies are slightly different as they tend to engage in lengthy discussions to evaluate a viability of the idea. While they try to realize it, the idea has already been taken up. For instance, in 1968, when Isadore’s wife returned from a visit to Arizona where she had spent time in a resort with spa and fitness, she reported to him that spa food tasted better. As a result, Isadore instructed his vice presidents to investigate the feasibility of including spas to his hotels (Sharp 57). Within a short time, the business began reaping benefits from it.

Leaders at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts have shown another distinguishing factor which differentiates the company from other leaders in the industry: they view challenges as disguised opportunities. It is normal that not every visitor to the hotel would be fully pleased with the service, because at one point or another they could be stuck. Managers in the hotel take time to ask the visitors about any such experiences and offer possible solutions for them. When the visitors who have had a negative experience with the company see the problems being addressed, they want to come back to the hotel.

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts made a name globally because of its golden rule. The rule states that one should treat others as they themselves would like to be treated. For this reason, the company prioritizes its employees and provides them with the best work environment, as this employee will directly handle the clients (Sharp 76). From the way the employees are treated, the company demonstrates that people are always more important than profits, and it is the people that lead to the realization of profits.

Additionally, the company shows great concern for its employees by nurturing their good performance through training and motivation. The company hires local talents and spends a lot of money and time to promote them at their work. Eventually, the employees adapt to the organizational culture and show high performance which, in return, creates profits for the company. Additionally, the hotel employs its workers basing on their personality traits, and in the course of the work, new employees are trained some technical skills. Therefore, the employees are equipped with necessary skills at the expense of their employer.

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts allow its workers to enjoy autonomy. It views them as leaders as well as innovators (Sharp 72). They are given a chance to make decisions and act in a way they think is right and beneficial for the customers.  The employees do not have to enquire about their decision or wait for the directions from the senior staff. The management ensures that the staff understands the values of the company and as such they enjoy the flexibility in making decisions.

External customers of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts enjoy their visits because the hotel applies two of its pillars – quality and service – to address their needs. The services are timely and appealing hence leaving a lasting impression on the customers. The hotel does this by rethinking its services: the managers often ask themselves what the customers would consider important. While involving employees and customers, the management offers 24-hour service. Besides, the company has introduced television and rolling doors, fitness centers, non-smoking rooms, hair dryers, and concierge services among others (Sharp 67). As a result, the hotel fits for all types of people whether they are smokers or non-smokers, long-distance travelers or domestic tourists, etc. 

To follow the topic, the company spent considerable resources with the aim of enhancing luxury for the external customers. From Isadore’s autobiography, it is clear that the quality services are the most important feature of the hotel chain. The determinants of this aspect of service are the customers. The company questions itself whether the services they offer will be seen valuable for an external customer. The management does not stop there: it brings external customers on board to examine their views. Due to this fact, the morning meetings remain an integral part of the company. During these meetings, external customers will raise some of the challenges they faced the previous day and discuss what they would want to improve or have (Sharp 43).