By BRITTANY KHOO

IF YOU take good care of your associates, they will take good care of your customers, and the customers will keep coming back - such is the philosophy of Singapore Marriott, as spoken by its founder J W Marriott Snr.

Main Story: » Meet Singapore's best employers

'This is the bedrock of our success thus far,' says Greg Allan, the hotel's general manager. 'It identifies our main assets as our associates, setting us apart as an employer with a heart and an employer of choice.'

This belief has served Singapore Marriott well, for it has been deemed one of the country's Best Employers this year. It also won the award back in 2007.

Since it first opened back in 1995, Singapore Marriott continues to be steadfast in its commitment to training and developing its associates. With a staff strength of approximately 460, the hotel has a strong focus on staff welfare and career advancement.

'The working environment at Singapore Marriott is fair and dynamic,' says Mr Allan. 'We believe in providing equal employment opportunities and thereafter, development and training to all existing and potential associates.'

Associates new to the organisation embark on an orientation programme that spans across three months, immersing themselves in Marriott's rich history, core values and culture.

For operation staff, an on-the-job training scheme - called Passport to Success - is designed to guide associates with the end goal of boosting their confidence to perform duties and serve guests. Further courses are also made available to the staff of Singapore Marriott for personal enrichment, such as practical life-skills workshops and management & corporate core programmes, which aim to deliver a holistic growth process on top of work.

In addition, departmental training is held on a daily basis for all staff. During 15-minute blocks, peer mentoring occurs as best practices within the department are shared and good performance lauded. Supervisors and managers also take the lead in providing relevant training topics delivered in 'bite-sizes'.

The hotel also offers employees the opportunity of cross-property exposure. With an extensive network of hotels, the Marriott chain sends staff on taskforce assignments to other sister properties, where they may gain invaluable learning experiences and grow their career with Marriott.

Perhaps the clearest illustration of Singapore Marriott's emphasis on employee welfare would be the refurbishment of Club B2, the dedicated staff area. With a 50-inch LCD television and superior model massage chairs, the hotel spent close to $1 million to replicate its guests' experience for the staff.

At Singapore Marriott, retaining talents is a serious business. Well-performing associates are recognised as 'Associate of the Month', and given cash rewards and certificates. Long Service Awards are similarly handed out to associates who have worked with the hotel for three, five, 10 and 15 years.

'Apart from staff rewards programmes, we also identify and retain talent through regular career discussions held at a one-to-one level between associates and supervisors,' says Mr Allan. These sessions serve to chart a clear career progression path for the associate and identify key strengths to develop and opportunities to improve.

'Although we are in a recession now, attracting, grooming and retaining talent are always pertinent and will remain a top priority,' says Mr Allan.

'We will continue to do our very best to ensure the business traveller is comfortable so they can focus on their key objective - doing business. Likewise, we will ensure our associates are comfortable so that they can focus on growing with the company.'

This article was first published in The Business Times.