A Day in Their Shoes
Posted by Mark Currier on Fri, Dec 02, 2011
By Jeff Landry
During the month of September, the Curbside Hospitality Human Resources team threw off their business casual attire and donned the signature orange and black for an eye-opening tour on the curb. The “Day in their Shoes” program pulled seven corporate employees out of their comfort zone and put them at locations throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire to spend a day training and working as a Curbside hospital valet.
The impetus behind the initiative was clear. In order to fully and efficiently service our field employees, and by extension our clients, we at the corporate office needed to know exactly what they go through on a day-to-day basis. How busy are the valets during the day? How does weather impact their job? Do they have everything they need to take their service to the next level?
As the Payroll Manager, and relatively new to Curbside, I was slightly terrified. I didn’t know the first thing about a hospital valet parking operation. I was dispatched to Portsmouth Hospital and placed under the tutelage of longtime valet Bill Clemens, who displayed great patience and knowledge and quickly put me at ease. He walked me through the extensive Driving Safety orientation, gave me a tour of the operation, and stationed me at the front door to greet and welcome guests.
As I observed and interacted, what struck me most was the rapport that the valets had with patients and hospital employees. They knew everyone, and everyone knew them. It seemed like they had a story about everyone, whether it be a witty anecdote or a moving experience. Patients greeted them as longtime friends, and many, when they found out I was from the corporate office, pulled me aside to make sure I knew how appreciated they were. It became clear that Curbside employees didn’t just work at the hospital. They were truly part of the hospital family!
The experience was similarly positive at other locations. Office Assistant Shaunte Ferguson was impressed at the fluid, seamless operation the Mass General valets had developed. In visiting Anna Jaques Hospital in Newburyport, Office Manager Alexice Harwood was surprised at how far beyond valet parking the service extended. Manager Clark Webb and his staff routinely went above and beyond, from helping patients with wheelchairs to running important errands for hospital staff. Above all, though, Alexice was struck by the thought that, “this job is not as easy as it looks!”
The consensus all around was that it was helpful to see just how tough the hospital valet job can be. Senior VP of Administrative Services Leanne Gent was exhausted after spending a day legging it back and forth from podium to garage at Winchester Hospital. At Mass General, HR Coordinator Meg Vallee saw the potential hazards of working in a dark hospital garages with cars whipping around tight corners, and could only imagine how tough it’ll be in the winter months, standing in bitter cold with snow piling on their shoulders.
Despite the challenges inherent to the job, we consistently found Curbside employees rising to the challenge and taking to heart our message of “Whatever It Takes.” In tough conditions, under stressful circumstances, it was great to see our valets showing true compassion and care for the patients and staff members of our partner hospitals. In experiencing what it was like to wear the orange and black and spend a day in a valet’s shoes, we gained a better appreciation of what it meant to be Curbside.