Hospitality Mavericks Podcast Show

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.
Connect with Alexander:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chiefhappinessofficer/
https://positivesharing.com/2006/07/why-the-customer-is-always-right-results-in-bad-customer-service/
https://woohooinc.com/
https://heartcount.com/
Books:
Everybody Matters - Bob Chapman
https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8596/9780241975411
Hug your customers - Jack Mitchell
https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8596/9781401398040
Hug your people - Jack Mitchell
https://uk.bookshop.org/a/8596/9780553820089
Connect with the podcast
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Tune in via your favourite podcast platform - here
More episodes for you to check out here
A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.
They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.
Head to their website to sign up.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

Michael interviews performance mental coach Graziano Cocco about what separates thriving “maverick” leaders from those merely surviving and how to build high-performance teams.
Graziano shares his journey from London hospitality roles (including Head of People) to founding Inside Up, coaching football for 10 years and working at Crystal Palace plus athletes in sports such as tennis and rugby, while consulting hospitality businesses including ARO QD and DRG in Glasgow.
They discuss why mental toughness matters in today’s pressured hospitality environment, reframing “I have to” to “I get to,” and prioritizing self-management because leaders can’t pour from an empty cup.
Key team elements include trust, conflict navigation, commitment, clear goals and accountability, and praising effort. Graciano introduces the “Plan–Do–Review” habit using a plus/Kaizen reflection and recommends setting daily intentions and visualization.
Connect with Graziano:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/graziano-cocco-b6b39158/
https://insightup.co.uk/
Connect with the podcast
Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter
Tune in via your favourite podcast platform - here
More episodes for you to check out here
A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.
They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.
Head to their website to sign up.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

Michael interviews Anthony Collins, founder of Work Better Studio, about applying lean thinking and the service-profit chain in hospitality and service businesses by focusing on processes and resources rather than blaming people.
Collins shares his path from graphic design to founding DirectSki.com, acquiring Ski Beat, and becoming group CEO of Topflight Travel Group, then leaving to advise companies on productivity, quality, and process improvement.
He explains lean’s roots in postwar Japanese quality-first principles and describes using Enterprise Ireland training and Toyota-led practical problem-solving to build capability before crises like COVID.
A key case study shows how small chalet maintenance issues hurt both staff workload and NPS, leading to a preventative maintenance program, revised seasonal hiring, fewer management layers, and improved autonomy.
The conversation covers PDCA, frontline observation, controlled tension, recruitment and training (one-point lessons), and why AI can optimize the wrong work and reinforce silos without system thinking.
Connect with Anthony:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/antocollins/
https://www.workbetter.studio/
Connect with the podcast
Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter
Tune in via your favourite podcast platform - here
More episodes for you to check out here
A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.
They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.
Head to their website to sign up.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

In a Copenhagen podcast, Michael interviews Gregers Knudsen, co-founder of Monotree, about creating a platform that unifies frontline communication, onboarding/learning, checklists, and events on top of workforce management systems to replace fragmented tools like Facebook, WhatsApp, and overpowered enterprise software.
Gregers traces his path from hospitality into tech (via Planday), where he saw multi-site operators struggling with too many disconnected systems, unused spend, and GDPR risks.
He and two senior tech partners began building Monetary in 2018, launched in 2019 with a 1,500-employee customer, stayed self-funded for control, long-term product quality, and customer service, and have grown to nearly 300 customers and about 85,000 users across 18 countries, with UK as a key growth market.
They discuss engagement drivers, manager enablement, using video content, culture as an amplifier, and cautious, practical AI use focused on removing boring work rather than automating human relationships.
Connect with Gregers:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregers-knudsen-9a0a23148/
https://monotree.com/
A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.
They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.
Head to their website to sign up.
Connect with the podcast
Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter
Tune in via your favourite podcast platform - here
More episodes for you to check out here

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy

Michael interviews Bjarke Just Nielsen, founder of Norrlyst Koncernen in Copenhagen, about building a fast-growing restaurant ecosystem and related tech companies.
Nielsen left corporate roles at Novo Nordisk and TDC, opened his first restaurant about five and a half years ago, then pivoted during COVID—without government support—by keeping staff and launching a deli that succeeded, accelerating his focus on online customer acquisition and data.
Today the group operates about 20 restaurants with roughly 550 employees, serves around a million guests yearly, and runs centralized systems where a small team drives demand using a toolbox of 16 traffic levers while restaurants focus on delivering the promised experience.
He discusses agility over rigid planning, professionalizing the organization through disciplined hiring, pursuing Michelin recognition with intense preparation, leadership role clarity, and upcoming projects including new tech initiatives, convenience stores, and a large all-day restaurant.
Connect with Bjarke:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bjarke-just-nielsen-6a71445b/
https://norrlyst.dk/
https://freetable.com/
https://eater.dk/
Connect with the podcast
Join the Hospitality Mavericks newsletter
Tune in via your favourite podcast platform - here
More episodes for you to check out here
A big thank you to our episode sponsor Monotree.
They help hospitality operators strengthen operations and scale company culture by creating a "Branded Front Door" for your workforce.
Head to their website to sign up.

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy