Customer Service and Healthcare

Ritz vs. Mayo Clinic

When it comes to purchasing and spending, there are two things that perhaps do not always compare equally and favorably and that would be healthcare and hotels. Luxury hotels like Ritz Carlson stand out simply because not everyone can or chooses to stay at hotels like Ritz Carlton whereas everyone will need healthcare at some point. What draws these two firms together is that customer service is the epicenter of what they focus on and they do so in a way that is unique. Even with all of that, there are some clear differences between the two and it comes down to their motivations and why they do what they do. While both firms have impeccable customer service, there is clearly one firm that stands out from the two and it is for more than one reason.

Analysis

As noted in the introduction, both Ritz Carlton and Mayo provide impeccable customer service. Something else noted in the introduction is that the two organizations are in two entirely different paradigms. While some may try to put the kibosh on any negative comparisons along those lines, the factors in play are certain relevant to point out. Primary among those is the fact that Ritz Carlton is a for-profit business and they are engaging in their high level of customer service as a selling point. Doing all of this well allows the firm to make more and more money. There is nothing inherently evil or wrong about that. This report's comparison is not a condemnation or lambasting of capitalism. At the same time, one cannot ignore that Mayo, on the other hand, involves healthcare. That service is not part of the Constitution of the United States or other countries but it is commonly held to be a civil right in the 21st century. Having proper access to healthcare and to a degree where it is everything that is needed by the people involved is almost an expectation, rather than something that some firms just choose to provide. Even with that, Mayo seems to be willing to do just that despite the fact that they are not a profit-based firm, which is something that is true for much of the healthcare industry (Ubel, 2014).

Even with the start differences, it is clear that both firms have impeccable service standards. The motivations, of course, are a little different. Ritz-Carlton is doing it to gain and retain high-dollar customers and those high-dollar customers presumably expect a high level of service from a five-star hotel or any location that is even close to being the same. On the other hand, the healthcare paradigm is so different. Indeed, so much of the healthcare industry is for-profit and so much of the healthcare industry is about volume. The market for healthcare is rather skewed given that people can pay less if they simply pay in cash rather than require insurance or other processing. There is also the fact that many profit-based healthcare firms seem to be more worried about processing people and getting the volume of patients up rather than doing a good job. Beyond that, the assembly of a team is rather unique to Mayo and something that many other healthcare firms are not going to do. In many cases, there are nurses that do the initial and simple checks and then there is a doctor (or maybe just a PA or APRN) that comes in and checks over everything quite quickly and then walks out (Dayaratna, 2012).

All of this matters because of the expectations and norms involved. While Ritz-Carlton should be applauded for what they are doing, most of what they are doing is expected or even demanded of the clientele that they deal with and there are huge slivers of the market that they do not even consider, presumably. After all, a working-class person taking a vacation is probably going to drive a car to where he is going and he will likely stay in a fairly low-dollar motel. Indeed, that person would stay in a Best Western or Holiday Inn long before he stays in a Ritz or a higher-end Marriott (Hartman, 2016).