At Jubilation by Silver Companies, members benefit from unmatched hospitality
They call it going the extra mile with a smile.
At Jubilation by Silver Companies, the 207-luxury apartment, resort-style, active adult community in Fredericksburg, members find themselves at the receiving end of a very personalized friendship between staff and other members. And it’s not something that just happens haphazardly.
For Shane Gabis, general manager at Jubilation, it’s a day-to-day effort that reflects the mission and vision of the company to personalize service and fulfill any unexpected needs the members may have. Under the auspices of the Silver Companies Hospitality Promises, the program that Gabis started, employees are engaged with members from their first day at the community.
“The Hospitality Promises culture we have built throughout the community helps create and solidify the relationships we have with each and every one of our members,” Gabis said. “We want the members, their family members and other guests to feel welcomed and embraced from the moment they set foot upon the campus.”
Gabis said he and the team at Jubilation are constantly listening to the voice of the customer from formalized satisfaction surveys and simply inquiring among members if there is anything else they can do to make their life easier or more enjoyable. Do they need help with anything? If they’ve just had surgery or been ill, do they need help walking their dog? Or help retrieving a delivery? One member, Gabis said, needed help arranging a haircut and removing snow from their vehicles. Members’ needs do vary.
“We continually look for opportunities to exceed expectations whenever possible,” Gabis said. “By anticipating and inquiring about their needs, we get to know a person at a more genuine and authentic level.” For example, one year on Mother’s Day flowers arrived for a member from her son. He purchased them at an online store and had them shipped to her at Jubilation. The flowers arrived wilted and dying. While most organizations would simply have delivered the package without a second thought, the front-line team members knew that both the member and her son would have been devastated had the flowers been delivered in that condition. So, what did the staff do? They went and purchased fresh flowers, placed those in the original box with the card and delivered them. The member and her son to this day don’t know about the actions taken by the team on their behalf. “They may never know what we did for them, but it’s not about receiving recognition or praise,” Gabis said. “The staff go above and beyond because they care deeply for the members and doing the right thing is simply the attitude woven into the corporate culture. We wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Dining room manager Kerry Hartig agreed. “We feel that a personalized touch is what makes this community different and it’s what differentiates us from anybody else in the business.”
For member Jayne Manger, the onsite hospitality is an incredible asset.
“The hospitality here is reflected in the little things,” Manger said. “My partner and I were sick one day not too long ago and after notifying the concierge that we wouldn’t be down for dinner, the kitchen staff delivered our meals to us with little Get Well notes handwritten on the containers. It was such a nice and welcoming gesture.”
During the holidays, Manger said she assembled a team of members to ring the Salvation Army Bell for an entire day at the area shopping center. Not only did Gabis’ team make up colorful sweatshirts for the bell ringers to wear, but they also even delivered a platter of warm cookies to them during their shift.
“It’s the little things like that that add up,” Manger said. “It’s such a wonderfully hospitable place at Jubilation. We are all family here.”
For Gabis, this is music to his ears.
“Most times in life, when you have a positive relationship with someone it’s not the big grand gestures that bring you together, like appreciation events or membership days,” he said. “I think it’s the opposite. Kind of like stringing pearls on a necklace — one act of kindness is one pearl on a string, but when you add them together, you’ve created a necklace that becomes more beautiful and whole the more you do it and practice. One act of kindness followed by another. And another.”
Gabis and Hartig said staff members receive ongoing hospitality training and have formal training twice a year to maintain enthusiasm and support for the program.
“We’re always asking one another, is there anything we can do to enhance the hospitality experience for those who call Jubilation home,” he said.
For more information, please visit jubilation.com or call 540.299.1563.