Top award for Doolin hotel

A North Clare hotel this week received a top award from national tourism development authority Fáilte Ireland.
Hotel Doolin was awarded the Service Excellence award, through Fáilte Ireland’s Optimus Programme, as special recognition for their ongoing commitment to continuous improvement and first-class customer experience.
The Optimus Programme was established by Fáilte Ireland in 2004 to develop a culture of excellence within the Hospitality Industry through supporting organisations to become more profitable, efficient and competitive.
“Hotel Doolin has undergone a full assessment based on the Optimus framework. This assessment confirms the performance of the hotel and the ability to embed the principles of continuous improvement across their business, while transforming these principles into tangible results,” said Liam Campbell, Fáilte Ireland.
“The evident drive and commitment of all is very clearly demonstrated by this award. They deserve to be proud of the results they have delivered in raising the profile of quality management within the Irish tourism industry,” he continued.
The performance of Hotel Doolin reflects well on the tourism industry’s willingness to embrace change and innovation towards self-improvement by providing a practical approach to improving the quality, value and delight that visitors experience during their stay in Ireland.
Donal Minihane, general manager, Hotel Doolin said, “Optimus has changed the ethos of the operations in the Hotel Doolin. Even in the middle of a recession, it has given us the confidence to plan for the future and adapt to changing trends. Optimus has helped us deliver improved productivity and higher efficiency, as well as increases in customer service and repeat business.
“The programme has also changed the culture within the hotel, where there is a more positive attitude to change and increased employee motivation and drive. It has allowed us to keep looking forward through target setting, benchmarking and analysing results, along with better staff retention.
“At a time when the hotel industry has been hit hard, I certainly feel we are reaping what we sowed with Optimus when we started in 2010,” Mr Minihane said.