Problem Resolution and SRI Frequently Asked Questions
- Celia Karseno
How does the metric related to "Problems" get calculated?
On the survey, the guest is normally asked, "Did you have a problem/issue during your stay?" The percentage of problems metric represents the percentage of guests that responded with a "Yes" to this question. . Further, if the guest does not answer the question at all, it will not be included in the percentage- calculation, so the "Yes" % only counts guests that answered the question.
What does SRI mean?
This acronym stands for "Service Recovery Index" and is a reflection of how well you recover or solve a problem when a guest reports the issue at some point prior to completing the survey. .
How is "SRI" calculated?
Once a guest indicates that they experienced and issue or problem, we generally ask them what the issue was related to. Once they select a problem type, or types, we ask them how well each problem was resolved. Generally, the respondent is presented with four response options related to how well a problem was resolved. These include: 1) Did not Report, 2) Exceeded Expectations, 3) Met Expectations and 4) Below Expectations. Please note that not all companies choose to use this recommended and standard format on their surveys. The SRI metric score is derived by dividing the number of "Exceed" and "Met" responses by the total number of "below", "met" and "exceeded" responses. Responses related to "Did not report" are left out of the calculation. So, the formula looks like this: (Exceeded + Met) / (Exceeded + Met + Below). This is how the SRI score for each problem type is calculated. . For the property as a whole we aggregate each problem type for the overall SRI.
What happens if a guest does not report a problem?
Although these responses do not influence your SRI score, when a guest indicates that they experienced an unreported problem or issue during their stay, this information provides the operator with a few valuable insights, and the opportunity to reach out to that guest and resolve the issue to satisfaction, when possible. You should evaluate your percentage of "Did not report" by problem type to ensure your staff is seeking out issues, and taking every opportunity to ask your guests, while still on property, "How is your stay?"
What happens when a guest does not answer the SRI questions but they do answer the Problem question?
Similar to how the calculation behaves when a guests marks Did not Report", there is no data to influence the score. Anytime a survey is submitted with incomplete data we only calculate what is available. For example, if the guest responds "yes" they had a problem but they do not identify a problem type, we simply count them in the "yes" percentage. We do not report what problem type as they did not select one. They can also select a problem type and choose not to answer the SRI portion. In that case, we will report the problem type but not the resolution of the problem.
When I add all the % of problem types, they do not add to 100% - why is that?
The question related to problem type is typically a "Mark all that apply" question. It is possible for a guest to select multiple problem types on one survey. For example, the same guest that marked "yes" they had a problem may indicate they experienced more than one problem type. If they mark more than one selection, the percentage mix of problems is only calculated on the "yes" responses so that one "yes" response may have had multiple problems. It's also possible for the report to reflect less than 100% (unlikely, but possible) if multiple guests market "yes" they had a problem but never selected a problem type.
Is the "Cost of Problems" metric reporting on how much we spend to fix problems?
No. "Cost of problems" reflects the amount of room revenues at risk based solely on the group of guests who reported an issue or problem during their stay. It again uses a statistical calculation to derive the revenue impact based on intent to return and the room revenues provided to us from the property management system or reservations database.
How should I set a goal for % of Problems experienced?
In order to set a realistic goal for improvement for any metric, you must first understand your current level of performance. After baseline performance has been established (4 – 6 months of data collected) you then need to determine which problem types are actionable, and whether you intend to initiate any type of intervention for the purpose of reducing incidence occurrence. For instance, you may decide that there is nothing that can be done to reduce the number of problems linked to street noise for the rooms on the lower floors. You should probably not attempt to set a goal for improvement for this type of problem. Another type of problem, say accuracy of reservation, is highly actionable and a goal for improvement should be set based on the level and intensity of the intervention you plan. Once the goal performance has been achieved, you can assess whether further action need be taken and a further improvement is obtainable. This same process should be done for each problem type so that an overall reduction in the number of issues experienced can be achieved.
What is better to focus on – reducing the number of problems or improving our resolution skills?
Although both issue occurrence and how well the issue was resolved are very highly correlated to the guest's intent to recommend, most hotels initially focus their attention on reducing the number of problems experienced. Once improvement in this metric has been achieved, you can then dig deeper and analyze your staff's effectiveness at resolving the issues that can't be avoided. Perhaps they need additional training, or an empowerment program needs to be implemented in order to realize any improvement in SRI performance?
Should we even bother to set SRI goals?
Short-term improvement goals for the SRI by problem type are important. In reality, once you reduce the number of problems down to only the ones that can't be avoided, your team may not be able to resolve them. Setting SRI goals by problem type is the best way to approach this, rather than an overall SRI goal, depending on the make-up of issues that your guests most often report. Some problems require large capital expenditures that may be out of your hands, so setting a goal for improved resolution in some areas is just not realistic.
How do I find out more specifics about my problems?
In addition to using the "Problems" report in the dashboard to see the mix of problem types, review all comments using the Advanced Search tool. To filter the search, hold down the control key when selecting comment categories and select all problem categories. You have the option to review the results in the dashboard or export them to excel. In excel, you can easily sort by comment category to quickly read through all the comments regarding problems. Depending on your survey design you may also need to include comments from the "Everything working in the room" question, in order to get the full picture.
What are "Other" problems?
Most surveys have a problem type for problems called "Other" that is available for the guest to select. You should review the comments specifically related to this section to see what guests are saying and attempt to categorize them. If you see a consistent pattern related to a common theme, it may be prudent to add that as a problem type so you can measure the improvement over time.
How do I tell what problems we recover from more than others?
You can obtain this information by using the "Problems" widget from within your GUESTScope Dashboard.
Go to: Dashboard > Interactive Reports > Problems > Problem Types (at bottom) > Table
By clicking on the column labeled "SRI" you can sort and rank all problems by resolution score, which will indicate which problems you resolve better than others. NOTE: A minimum 90 day period should be used when evaluating this type of data to ensure sample sizes are valid.
How do I know which guests experienced problems?
Using the Department / Group Ratings widget of the dashboard, choose the Non-rated Questions tab. Click on "Problem Resolution" (may be named differently for various clients) and then drill into the question labeled "What did your problem involve?", or "Did you have a problem?" This will provide you with individual survey level detail of which guests experienced a problem. This data can be exported to an XML/Excel file.
What impact do the problems have on my guests' satisfaction?
Since problem occurrence is so highly correlated to the key outcome questions, such as overall satisfaction and intent to recommend, there is a rather noticeable difference in the scores of guests with problems versus those guests that did not experience a problem. The Dashboard allows for the cross-tabbing of date, to include slicing by "Did you experience a problem?" and "What was the problem related to/". . Use the dashboard and the Department / Group ratings report. Choose a question to slice, like "Intent to Recommend" or "Overall Satisfaction" and view the scores of all guests (the ones that said yes they had a problem and those who said no). Go to: Dashboard > Dates > Interactive Reports > Department/Group Ratings > Overall ??) > Demographic Slice
What do the colors on the Problems Experienced and SRI dials mean?
UniFocus has analyzed the data collected across hundreds of hotels over a period of several years for the purpose of establishing acceptable "norms" for these metrics. . Using these findings, we have determined some thresholds for what is considered above average (green), average (yellow), below average (orange) and significantly below average (red) for the purpose of providing a context for you to compare your own performance. It's typically helpful to our business partners to show industry averages for the purpose of setting baseline goals, and expectations for improvement.