The "Excellent" speech

[NYDisneyMom]

Has anyone every approached the Head Server and asked that they be spared the "excellent speech" ? After all these posts, I'm thinking about doing that!

 

[saturday97]

I also had Rishi as a server and got the excellent speech but we really didn't mind. He was excellent and I was happy to let him know that we were impressed with his service. I knew this was a speech that management had written, but he seemed sincere about wanting to provide us with "excellent service" so I didn't mind hearing it a couple times. Just part of the Disney way of doing things!

 

[natdencro]

We have never had the Excellent speech in 4 cruises - so have never been "bothered" by it. Our daughter who has been a server for 4 years is unhappy about giving such speeches, and so are most of her pals. All she does is mention the comment card, and leave the rest up to you. Naturally, they all want to be rated well, as the comments you put on the card are checked each week, and they are awarded extra time off, if their ratings are 100% during one week. (As they NEVER have a day off, or an evening off in 6 months, it is very important to them!) However, if you are unhappy about your service, or dont feel your server has provided an excellent service, then you should say so. We have always had excellent service, and hopefully our servers have been acknowledged for their hard work: we always tip them well too. Tell your server that you understand why they need a good comment, but you dont need to be reminded every day!It is darned hard work being a server, and despite what you may think - not as glamorous as it seems! Be honest on the comment cards, and tip accordingly. Nat

 

[BoardwalkBabe]

We got the 'excellent' speech from the head server (dining room manager? What was he? We had to tip him but he wasn't one of our servers) every single time he came by our table.

I told DH to handle it and he refused to say the word excellent because he felt he was being forced to do so. Additionally, we felt things were either good or very good - "excellent" just wasn't applicable in our minds.

 

[WMILLER86]

I guess I will be in trouble on my cruise. I only have two replies for questions about the quality of service, food, etc.

Mr. Server- Mr. Miller, how was your steak?

Mr. Texas Hick- "Jus fine."

Mr. Server- That is not acceptable, we want it to be excellent!

Mr. Texas Hick- "Well, it wuz either "jus fine", or it wuz "not too good", those are the only options from my neck of the woods."

Mr. Server- I guess "jus fine" will be just fine!


I guess what I am saying is that my idea of excellent service is to hear the fewest words possible from the server. Just do the job, and interrupt my meal and my conversation with my wife as little as possible. If I want to have small talk, be entertained, learn about the servers private life, etc, then I will initiate that conversation. A really good server should let the customer dictate how much interaction or how little there is.
I have had over friendly waiters that have ruined meals by hanging out at my table dominating the conversation.
And there probably have been times when I bothered a waiter by taking up his/her time chit chatting.
But I always have tipped well regardless!

This of course is my not so humble opinion.

Keep that tea glass full, and stay outta the way!

Willie

 

[nswift]

We rec'vd the "excellant" speech on two nights of our seven night cruise. I did resent it as the service had been good, not really excellant, and his speech took up about 20 minutes each time. And quite frankly I was wanting to see excellant, even if it wasn't there. If you have to keep telling people you are doing an excellant job, you probably aren't.
I agree - actions speak louder than words.
NSwift

 

[disboo]

what words I should use to describe something, either. I find the "excellent" speech barely tolerable once, and wish I would have had a gentle, effective comment to have them limit it in the future. I haven't been prepared for a comeback - maybe now I will be. Let their excellent service speak for itself!

 

[bostonlass]

I laughed when I saw this post because my table mates and I were talking about this very thing on the ship. I think that they should obviously mention the survey that they give at the end of the cruise but that they shouldn't give the speech. We got it from our server every night. Actions speak louder than words. With that said, our server and assistant server were personable which we loved, but the actual service, i.e. bringing our drinks in time, making sure you got everyone's order, etc. was not excellent.

It's one thing to tell everyone that they are giving excellent service and to ask you over and over again to put that on the survey but if you don't actually give excellent service then it's a mute point.

I felt that they were special because of the special attention that they gave us and the fact that they remembered our names throughout the cruise, but there were times when they took a while to get a drink or two and they did forget to ask a guest or two what they wanted for dessert and we had to remind them.

I tipped them both over the recommended amount and actually preferred the wonderful personalities over the waiters that I experienced at lunch at Atlantis, but definitely could have done without the prepared speech.

Just my 2 cents

 

[momsgoofy]

Originally posted by WMILLER86
I guess I will be in trouble on my cruise. I only have two replies for questions about the quality of service, food, etc.

Mr. Server- Mr. Miller, how was your steak?

Mr. Texas Hick- "Jus fine."

Mr. Server- That is not acceptable, we want it to be excellent!

Mr. Texas Hick- "Well, it wuz either "jus fine", or it wuz "not too good", those are the only options from my neck of the woods."

Mr. Server- I guess "jus fine" will be just fine!


I guess what I am saying is that my idea of excellent service is to hear the fewest words possible from the server. Just do the job, and interrupt my meal and my conversation with my wife as little as possible. If I want to have small talk, be entertained, learn about the servers private life, etc, then I will initiate that conversation. A really good server should let the customer dictate how much interaction or how little there is.
I have had over friendly waiters that have ruined meals by hanging out at my table dominating the conversation.
And there probably have been times when I bothered a waiter by taking up his/her time chit chatting.
But I always have tipped well regardless!

This of course is my not so humble opinion.

Keep that tea glass full, and stay outta the way!

Willie

Ah, Mr. Miller,

I am so glad we will be sailing together!
You took the words right out of my brain concerning this topic of server etiquette.

My ds has a similiar response when eating steak. After the server brings the steak he/she always asks "Will you need steak sauce or A1 for that?"
He says, "Not if it's cooked right!"

Having never been on a cruise I didn't know this "speech" existed and am a bit hesitant about how I might react to it. I tend to be more vocal than Dh so I try not to embarrass him, but I do dislike being preached at by anyone. I remember back in junior high school when I helped serve at the school honor banquet and the home economics teacher who taught us how to serve would be livid with the "excellent speech".


Can't wait till our cruise!


Laura ºoº

 

[Talking Hands]

Never heard the excellent speech on the 4 day cruise. Of course I really never actually heard what the server was saying all the time. The background noise was so much that it was impossible to hear and the server never faced me so I could net lipread him at all. Fortunately the interpreters were at the same table and Vince went ahead and interpreted for me. Oh, he never interpreted the excellent speech so I figure it never happened.

 

[FredS]

Originally posted by ThreeCircles
Wow. With all due respect I think that was a rather rude thing to say. Especially since you just met these individuals and it was the first night. And then to make jokes at the servers’ expense? I certainly hope they did not hear.

Can't the serving staff be proud of their job? I would hope so. I see nothing wrong with the serving staff wanting to emphasize that they want to provide excellent service.

In four cruises I've never once encountered this so-called "excellent" speech but I can assure you that the service I've received has far exceeded anything I would rate as excellent.

Sorry, just my opinion.

I agree. If a server went on for twenty minutes, or got on his soapbox extensively every night, then I would say something to stop it. However, I think that it is so important to these folks that you give it some thought and not, as one poster mentioned, NEVER rate someone excellent "as there is always room for improvement." That rating would be "perfect", not excellent. IMHO that is very unfair and probably the sort of mentality that prompts them to mention it at all.

Our servers were great, and they very briefly mentioned, on the last night, that they would appreciate it if we were pleased to complete the survey and note that. That was my first clue that it mattered and to be honest I might not have even completed the survey if I had not realized that it was taken so seriously by DCL in their dealings with the staff.

I would have felt really bad if I had later learned how much it mattered and I had not taken the time to report that our servers were excellent.

 

[Muushka]

Nevermind. I was going to defend myself again, but decided against it. Judge away!

 

[jrydberg]

If it is so important to those folks, then they shouldn't be giving a speech that makes a significant portion of their clientele uncomfortable. Seems to me it's rude for the staff to "correct" their clients by insisting they use the word "excellent" every time. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for rewarding excellent service. But frankly, if servers tell me that the service will be excellent, I'm more inclined to nitpick and consequently less inclined to rate the service as excellent. If you're shouting it from the rooftops, the service better live up to it in every way.

As a side note, excellent service should never be intrusive. -- like, for example, taking time out of everyone's schedule to inform them that the service will be excellent. Excellent service is all about making customers comfortable and happy. Judging by this thread, the "excellent" speech detracts from that.

 

[JenLynn]

We got the 'excellent speech' on the last night of our 3 night cruise. We were not surprised by it (have gotten similar speeches in similar situations). Thankfully it was short and direct and i appreciated the brevity as well as the server telling me how important an 'excellent' rating was on the survey. Prior to one of the evening shows, the cruise director person also talked about "excellence" and that speech bothered me ... so much that i almost wanted to leave the theater because it was long and condescending (in my opinion).

 

[crisi]

If Disney knows anything about surveys (and I suspect they do) they account for some individual variation among respondants. i.e. some people never give out excellents. So they are looking for sample size and mean response. One poor might be enough to have a talk with a manager, and a mean of "good" when everyone else has a mean between "very good" and "excellent" would be a problem. But one "very good" shouldn't be - that's probably someone who always believes there is room for improvement.

They also know a lot about human behavior. Put the "excellent" word in people's heads regularly throughout the cruise and you'll see the mean creep more towards excellent.

 

[kcashner]

Unfortunately for the servers, their scheduling for the next cruise is dependent on the results of the surveys we turn in. Bottom line, the highest rated serving teams get the preferred schedule. That said, the only speech I've gotten in the dining room was on the first night--like, it is our goal to give excellent service. If anything is less than that, please let us know so we may attend to it....and on the last night.."if we met our goal of excellence, please let that be reflected in your comment card."

Nothing long or drawn out was said...just let us know. Yes, the cruise director did her speaches too, but those weren't in the dining room.