Dateline: Bangkok, November 21, 2010

I’ve been visiting The Oriental (now the Mandarin Oriental) in Bangkok for more than forty years and have always marveled about the ultra-caring staff. We know that the better one looks after one’s staff, the better they will look after the guests, but now the place has gone over the top!

I was invited to lunch at Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok last week to experience “O-Zone.” My dictionary says “ozone is essential to our well-being” but I didn’t have a clue what to expect.

Up the main elevators, we emerged to find O-Zone—a hotel within a hotel. This newly renovated space contains all the elements of a real hotel; however it is solely for the staff!

The venue provides everyone with a unique working environment: a staff concierge, recreational center, Café 48 and Kiosk 48, and state-of-the-art locker room facilities. O-Zone is divided into 10 zones: Sell, Fashion, His, Her, Health, Café 48, Talent, Mind, Dream, and Relax. There are meeting rooms, computer rooms, even a bilingual lending library. Opposite the elevators is a wall covered with group of plaster hand prints that showcases those employees who have worked here for more than 40 years. Next to this display is a flat-screen electronic display comparing, in real time, guest appreciation ratings department by department. None were under 93%!

Judging from the dress, the queue for the buffet in Café 48 included toqued chefs, sales executives, housekeeping staff, and janitors. I chose the stir-fried port and curried chicken, and joined the new Hotel Manager, Torsten van Dullemen, the laundry manager, the F&B Manager, and my charming host, Susie Hansirisawasdi, the fabled director of PR. The food was good, the conversation stimulating. Discussing the challenges caused by the political unrest last spring, Torsten said “the greatest learning comes out of strife.”

Well, one thing’s for sure, O-Zone — a tribute to the dedication and passion of the 1,300 part and full-time staff members who call Mandarin Oriental, Bangkok their “home away from home”—provides the best hotel working environment available anywhere. No wonder this place is so often at or near the top of the world’s “best” lists.

Bangkok is getting busier every day. Many of the hotels are swinging from half-full to full as regulars return and new markets try out the best Bangkok has to offer. As the new ad campaign says, Thailand is just as amazing as it has always been...now is a great time to visit!

Uncle Ted

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