FOCUS INTERVIEW
this the brand will utilise a mix of in-person
and technology to o¦ er optimum customer
support, including for those working remotely
or at home.
Explains Angelico: “During COVID I checked
out some personal development events and
learnt how you could continue to create energy
in taking something originally built for real
life experience and transform that virtually
through a screen.
“I looked at the fitness industry who’ve gone
through this challenge, similar to facilities
management, where you had a physical place
and then it got ripped apart and everyone
had to go virtual. So now the fitness sector is
o¦ ering both, which is similar to the concept of
hybrid working.”
Given that the workplace is becoming
the where you collaborate, socialise and
engage with colleagues, the last thing you
want to do is travel there to find everyone
else is at home, so the tech is designed to
help people identify who is going to be in the
building and also enable people to pre-plan
where they’re going to sit. When it comes to
meeting and events, On Verve sta¦ can run AV
checks prior to a presentation or conference,
so for the employees it’s all ready to go and
they have the reassurance that everything
will work.
In terms of employee experience, with people
less likely to come in every day, perhaps just
34 AUGUST 2021
once or twice a week or even less than that,
employee needs are very di¦ erent than
before.
Says Angelico: “For someone who comes
in regularly it’s a casual ‘lovely to see you’,
how was your weekend?’ but when you’ve
people who aren’t coming in regularly it’s
about making them comfortable, taking
them to their desk, setting them up and
keeping them up to date with any changes.
“For new starters it can be daunting and
with many people starting virtually, it’s
important that employee services team
can help them with interaction, show
them where to go and introduce them
around, so our people are always thinking
about helping to make those connections,
identifying potential pain points and
carrying out floor walks to check things are
going smoothly.”
PEOPLE-CENTRIC
Although the use of tech is integral to the
guest services mix, this kind of o¦ ering
relies heavily on having the human touch
to meet, greet and look a˜ er employees
and guests alike. For this reason, Angelico
is intent on recruiting and training the right
people to help meet demand.
She says: “It’s around understanding
what your clients need and finding the
right people to match that culture - love
what they do and be their true selves. We’re
currently getting some incredible people
through from the Arts world, and as they’re
used to being on stage and using impro
they’re ideally placed to cope with di¦ erent
situations.
“But it’s our approach to training that
really makes us stand out; in fact, it’s the
most people-centric and collaborative
programme in the guest services industry.
With it we have created an online platform
which is basically a community with
training. One of the bugbears of my previous
teams was feeling you were limited to the
site on which you were based, so instead,
here, we’ve created a community online,
where we can host videos, ask questions,
and especially for those on site by
themselves, come together and talk.
“Our training programme uses a learning
platform that fuels teamwork by combining
collaborative tools with e¦ ective features
such as feedback loops, peer-based learning
and gamifaction, and because it is all bite
size, employees can digest and absorb it
fully.”
Guest services is arguably still an evolving
part of the FM mix, but according to
Angelico, alongside other services such
as catering, cleaning and even hard FM, it
should take centre stage in FM.
She explains: “We’re predominantly
managing the scheduling, the food required
for a meeting, the AV required and to ensure
the environment is just right, how hot or
cold the air con is running.
“We’re o˜ en working with hospitality and
with security, while allowing for the fact
that each client has di¦ erent requirements
around entry. I see guest services as at the
very middle - gathering everything together,
because most of the time if something goes
wrong people go straight to us.”
Looking at the development of the guest
services market and for On Verve, the first
new front of house brand to be launched for
over five years, Angelico predicts the guest
services market is growing with a lot of firstgeneration
contracts coming in.
“I’m delighted to be able to create and
design something for both now and the
future as I don’t have to wipe or change
anything from previously, and when clients
have issues I am there to fix it.”
She also believes that the idea of
reception being the brand ambassador of
the client needs to go further: “I think it’s
the heartbeat of the organisation, as guest
services are the ones gathering the data,
understanding what’s going on and feeding
that back. It’s an integral part of FM and
those who persist in seeing it as a ‘nice to
have’ will lose out if they ever want to make
their workplace a destination.”
For someone who comes in regularly it’s a casual ‘lovely to see you’,
how was your weekend?’ but when you’ve people who aren’t coming
in regularly it’s about making them comfortable, taking them to their desk,
setting them up and keeping them up to date with any changes.”