Hospitality Mavericks Podcast Show · 2026-05-14 · 1h 5m
In this episode, Michael interviews Alexander Kjerulf, a former tech entrepreneur who founded a company in 2003 focused on happiness at work and has delivered talks and workshops in over 50 countries for clients including Microsoft, IKEA, IBM, Hilton, and Shell. They discuss research linking workplace happiness to higher productivity, creativity, retention, lower absenteeism, and stronger company results including profitability, growth, employer brand, and stock performance, alongside an ethical responsibility for leaders. A central theme is improving customer experience by putting employees first and rejecting “the customer is always right,” which can betray staff and reward abusive customers; examples include a hotel manager enforcing rules, Southwest Airlines “we will miss you” letter, and buying a rude passenger a competitor ticket. Practical practices include training and culture immersion (Zappos), celebrating great service stories, giving frontline autonomy (Nordstrom, Middelfart Sparekasse), measuring care over efficiency, hiring carefully, and using weekly feedback tools like Heartcount.
#326 Tom James Managing Director at Bill's - Putting Guest Happiness at the Center70 / 100
#325 Stephen Logue Consultant at Hospitality Blueprints - Why Cleanliness and Service Can Beat Food
#324 Sam Jett Executive Chef at Audrey - Appalachian Cuisine, Local Sourcing, and Circular Restaurant Systems
#322 Graziano Cocco Performance Mental Coach - Lessons from Elite Sport for Hospitality Leaders
#321 Anthony Collins Founder at Work Better Studio - Lean Thinking in Hospitality: Fix the System, Not the People