Home Green Design Commitment Letter Boosts Employee Participation at Hyatt Property

Commitment Letter Boosts Employee Participation at Hyatt Property

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Are you unhappy with the rate of employee participation in the green initiatives at your property? You have done everything you can to make the programs work but are just not getting enough buy-in? Too many don’t recycle? Too many room attendants replace towels and linens even when guests say it is O.K. not to? You may want to try what the green team at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge is doing.

As part of an ongoing educational effort to make all current and new employees aware of the many green programs under way at the property, employees are asked to sign a “Commitment to the Environment” letter. It is strictly voluntary and employees are not disciplined if they don’t sign it. The letter simply states that the employee acknowledges that the hotel’s environmental policies have been explained and that the employee is personally responsible for “creating a green environment at the hotel through my daily actions.”

Believe it or not, the simple act of having employees sign the letter is having a significant impact on the success of the hotel’s green programs. According to Valerie J. Warnock, employment manager at the 469-room hotel in Cambridge, Mass., she has noticed an upward trend of associates being involved, especially in the area of recycling. “Once you sign your name to something, you feel more empowered to participate,” Warnock says. So far, 60 employees have signed the letter and Warnock hopes to have 100 percent participation by 2010.

Letter Has Made a ‘Huge Difference’

“When we rolled out our recycling program a year ago, we saw some participation but we felt like we were not getting enough,” Warnock says. “We found that once people sign something, it triggers something in their heads.” According to Tyler Adams, assistant director of engineering at the property, the letter has made a “huge difference.” In fact, thanks to the letter as well as a new food waste recycling effort, the amount recycled per month has increased from 15,000 to 20,000 pounds to 40,000 to 50,000 pounds. Chefs and servers have been particularly responsive to the new program, Adams says.

Interested in reading the complete text of the letter? Here is what it states:

“I, ________, acknowledge that the standards for recycling and providing an eco-friendly environment at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge have been explained to me. I understand that I am personally responsible for creating a green environment at the hotel through my daily actions.

Hyatt Regency Cambridge will continue in the commitment to the environment through new initiatives and processes. I am aware it is my obligation to acquire knowledge of any new standards and participate in continued training.

Hyatt Hotels is committed to designing, building and managing innovative and sustainable hotels that provide our guests with authentic and comfortable accommodations as well as protect the natural environment and respect the local communities in which we operate around the world. As an associate of Hyatt Hotels I will adhere to these expectations through my commitment to the environment.”

If your property has had similar success with this type of letter, I would love to hear about it. I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com, or by phone at (440) 243-2055.

Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference

I will be attending the 2009 Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference in Pittsburgh this week. The event will run from February 24 to 26 and will be held at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. Be sure to look for coverage of the conference on Green Lodging News. Click here for conference details.

Earth Day Plans?

Earth Day is just two months away (April 22). What is your property currently planning to celebrate that day? Please write to editor@greenlodgingnews.com to let me know. I will be focusing on Earth Day in an upcoming column and will mention those properties and/or companies that have the most interesting activities planned.

GLN Adds Mattress Safe, ClearWater Tech as Directory Partners

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