I love events. It seems to me that we are far from using the full potential of the event. At the level of companies, cities and the whole country. And, of course, I cannot be indifferent to the biggest event in the world - the Olympics. And here are the ripe conclusions.
Unfortunately, it is now customary to criticize and doubt the 2014 Olympics. It has even become commonplace. Even more unfortunately, the Olympic project has become completely “another” government project. Like a gas pipeline and energy expansion.
Or it could become a national project, unifying, inspiring, a project of resurgent romance. As a matter of fact, this partly explains the reason for the criticism and doubts. Discrepancy between expectations and reality.
Getting out of this trap is one of the main tasks of those involved in communications for the Sochi Olympics. Until this moment, they were only involved in communication support of construction and the movement of money.
What is the main task of the organizers? It is generally accepted that construction. And I strongly doubt this.
We build, of course, not for long and at a very high cost. But we still build and we know how to build on time. So, having colossal resources, I am sure that everything that needs to be built will be built. The IOC has a well-established inspection system that allows them to conduct games at a high level year after year.
There are also environmental problems, problems of return on investment, the future of infrastructure and the facilities themselves. All this is too far away and abstract for us to seriously worry about.
Now there is also the problem of our team’s performance. After all, you have to be first at your Olympics. But this problem cannot be the main one. In the end, our responsibility is to host the Olympics, not to win.
And now we come to the main thing. To do this, let’s remember the sensational “Russia House” in Vancouver. Big, noisy, alcoholic, technologically advanced and very visited. I want to give a few reviews from visitors to the Russian House to understand how we are perceived from the outside.
- "Cool scenery, but unfriendly people. Almost no one spoke English"
- “Unlike us Canadians, Russians do not take their children with them on trips. so the house is not suitable for children.. I was especially disappointed with the food: the food was top notch and only for the media and VIP... my verdict: don't go. "
- "to the parents... take food and an interpreter with you...."
- “Going there is a waste of time. Many Russians don't know anything about manners."
- “a huge Russian blocked my way and said “closed”! I tried to find out why, but he..."
- "if this is a symbol of what will happen when they host the Winter Olympics, they will receive a cold response from the whole world"
- “I spent 3.5 hours in line. There's nothing interesting inside"
- "2 hours of my life that I will never get back"
- “I’m Russian, I grew up in Sochi. I would like to apologize for the lack of manners and friendliness during my visit to the Russian home."
There are, of course, positive reviews that say that the “Russian House” is the best House of all the Olympic Houses. But the leitmotif of most reviews - and this is very important - is our, to put it mildly, unfriendliness. At the same time, we are sure that the task of the “Russian House” is exactly the opposite. Show our openness, inspire trust, interest. And you can be sure that the staff was trained and that the right words were spoken. But it didn’t work out. Something came out.
And this, it seems to me, is the main problem that the organizers cannot get around to, because... We have a huge construction project here. We are not hospitable.
The employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who meets tourists at the airport is not hospitable. The seller in the store who will sell fruit is not hospitable. Even volunteers who are having a bad day and have a headache are not hospitable. It’s better and easier for them all without these guests. They are a nuisance, just like we are all a nuisance to that cleaning lady who walks among us and grumbles that we trample a lot.
We are reasonable people and we do not seriously believe in innate national properties. Everything can be fixed. But the “hospitality program” for hundreds of thousands of volunteers who will come from all regions of the country, residents of Sochi, employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and employees of sports departments will take several years. This program requires enormous resources, sincere faith and courage. In fact, we all must learn to smile, learn to readily help someone who needs help, and be happy to talk about the city and country. We must believe in another image of ourselves. Reclaim your romantic values.
Then the Olympics will fulfill its image goal. And not if our ice stadium is declared the best ice palace in the entire history of the Olympic Games. There is no doubt that this will happen, by the way.
This is the main pitfall of the event. You think it's all about the scenery, music and script. You think it's all about the architectural design of the stadium or the quality of the road. But your guests do not communicate with the decorations, they are not greeted by the star you invited. They don't communicate with your stadium. They are met by your people. Ordinary people. Who are happy to see them or not. Every single one of them, including the cleaning lady and the security guard. Happy or not. Two simple options.
The same problem was solved before us. Many years before the Olympics, the Chinese began to teach people to smile, communicate in a friendly manner and by any means create a positive image of the new China and Beijing. Similar "hospitality programs" have been implemented in London. Wariness towards guests is not only our privilege.
I want our Olympics to be not only “the very best,” but also hospitable. This is our real Olympic challenge 2014: to be hospitable, to be able to do your job with a smile.
