Afraid, very AFRAID-meeting Owner

[JBloggs]

Well here I am. A different thought process and one you might not like.
She is the boss, you are the employee. Harder yet, you are in a live-in situation. I would be careful not to listen to local gossip to justify my feelings, it is the same old office water cooler thing, imo.
How does she know how effective you are and how much leeway to give you since you are new there? I would be careful jumping in with both feet. Yes, we know you, we know your experience, but she does not, she is also in the South, so things are done differently there.
Do your job the best way you can, see how she operates, as the boss, if she prefers men to women that is her prerogative, you can't change people. Work out what SHE wants and do your job within those parameters. If she is being unreasonable, then again, do the best you can do, you don't want a showdown situation. People are different, communicate differently (some not at all) so meeting her is way overdo...in person you will most likely find her to be a totally different person than the "WIZ" on the phone behind the veil.
Just my 2 cents.

 

[birdwatcher]

I will delete my profile and become annonymous some great ideas and I like the one about "goals" for the Inn as well as for ourselves and what she sees in the next year to five years-this will also give her the knowledge that we are here for the long run and have the best intentions for the Inn. Maybe she did get taken advantage of since she has really deep pockets and I will let my hubby do most of the talking-I can do that.
Joey-actually she is a born Californian, so she's really not from the South. They seem to have a totally different mentality.
Thanks for the advise-today is the day, but will not bombard her with too much, will wait till she's settled and stuff.

 

[Morticia]

As owner operators most of you don't always think this way but I noticed that there was not a mention of finding out the owners goals. Is she happy with how the place is now? Does she want to improve it? Perserve it? Improve cash flow? It sounds like it was an investment and i think I saw a thread about not spending too much extra money. Maybe the thread on here about saving money might give you some ideas to pitch. Are room rates too low? expenses too high? Can she avoid replacing that manager if you guys can gain her trust and create a working relationship? Sort of what would she like to see in a year's time? 3 years?
I know goal setting can be a big pain but "to set out on the same path can help you arrive at the same place".
PS maybe you can mention that property values have dropped in the area and you would be willing to talk to the assessor to save her some money on them. (personal favorite).

I think there was a previous thread on getting to know the owner where a lot of 'find out what she wants' was discussed. It sounds like the owner hasn't been forthcoming about what she wants and this may be the meeting where that finally happens. There was also another level of mgmt between the innkeepers and the owner which may have disappeared at this point.

 

[EmptyNest]

Did you not talk to this person when you were hired? All sorts of red flags come up for me here. She is your boss, but she sounds like a real control freak and if that is the case, maybe you would be better off searching for a position with someone you can work with. meet with her, stay calm, talk and then make a decision based on the facts and not emotions. Good luck.

 

[JBloggs]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!

 

[muirford]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

 

[Morticia]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.

 

[EmptyNest]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me??? Yes she is the owner and is in control, but they should have started out on the right foot together with everyone on the same page as to what is to happen. Can you say written policies and contract???

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me??? Yes she is the owner and is in control, but they should have started out on the right foot together with everyone on the same page as to what is to happen. Can you say written policies and contract???
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me???

It's actually not as unusual as you might think.

 

[EmptyNest]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me??? Yes she is the owner and is in control, but they should have started out on the right foot together with everyone on the same page as to what is to happen. Can you say written policies and contract???
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me???

It's actually not as unusual as you might think.
.

What boss would hire someone they have never met??? Not me.

 

[EmptyNest]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me??? Yes she is the owner and is in control, but they should have started out on the right foot together with everyone on the same page as to what is to happen. Can you say written policies and contract???
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me???

It's actually not as unusual as you might think.
.

Deleted...duplicate post

 

[toddburme]

I am coming at this from a diff perspective, if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.
Meet her, meet THE WIZ behind the curtain and you might find her bark bigger than her bite. Hope it all goes well!.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.
.

if I had not ever met you, I was living remotely from the business, I would also be a control freak, she has, I am sure, been taken advantage of in the past.

If she is a control freak, it only seems to be about some things. I am a card-carrying control freak (I think many small business owners are) and I would no sooner hire someone to run my business without meeting them than I would allow my parents to arrange my marriage. I need to meet someone if they are going to run my business for a few days.
I do agree that you should form your own opinions. It is important for BW and the owner to have the same goals for the business; otherwise, the partnership will never work.

Which makes the whole thing weird. She's never met them but is letting them live in her 'house', run her business, meet her guests, etc.
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me??? Yes she is the owner and is in control, but they should have started out on the right foot together with everyone on the same page as to what is to happen. Can you say written policies and contract???
.

I find the whole situation really weird. But I felt that way from the very first time it was brought up here. Why wouldn't an owner want to meet face to face to interview an innkeeper who will be running an inn for her??? Doesn't make sense to me???

It's actually not as unusual as you might think.
.

What boss would hire someone they have never met??? Not me.
.

The only reason I can think of is that she was trying to give the "manager" ( i think a different word was used) a chance to show her stuff. In other words she was trying to stay hands off and use that person to free up her time. It is still odd. I would not hand over the keys to my $500k - ? business and hope for the best.
But that might also explain some of the weirdness they are experiencing now.

 

[toddburme]

As owner operators most of you don't always think this way but I noticed that there was not a mention of finding out the owners goals. Is she happy with how the place is now? Does she want to improve it? Perserve it? Improve cash flow? It sounds like it was an investment and i think I saw a thread about not spending too much extra money. Maybe the thread on here about saving money might give you some ideas to pitch. Are room rates too low? expenses too high? Can she avoid replacing that manager if you guys can gain her trust and create a working relationship? Sort of what would she like to see in a year's time? 3 years?
I know goal setting can be a big pain but "to set out on the same path can help you arrive at the same place".
PS maybe you can mention that property values have dropped in the area and you would be willing to talk to the assessor to save her some money on them. (personal favorite).

I think there was a previous thread on getting to know the owner where a lot of 'find out what she wants' was discussed. It sounds like the owner hasn't been forthcoming about what she wants and this may be the meeting where that finally happens. There was also another level of mgmt between the innkeepers and the owner which may have disappeared at this point.
.

Thanks. I remember that thread but just barely.

 

[Samster]

birdwatcher, you're right to be uncomfortable with the owner's behavior towards you. It should, indeed, be raising red flags.
Here's what I would do.
I would speak with her about what happened and the impact that had on you and your work. I'd remind her that you moved across the country to put your skills to work for her. That you were hired for your ability to deal with guests and run the inn smoothly and you need to know that she has full faith in your ability to do your job. That you hope the situation doesn't end as it has with former employees at the inn. That you would really like to make a commitment to stay on but that you also need a commitment from her.
What I would ask from her is an agreement as to roles, especially in regards to handling guests. No they are not clients, they are guests. And only the innkeeper can deal with guests unless the owner wants a constant problem.
I would not keep her informed of every single issue that comes up each day. I would, instead, keep her fully informed each week with a summary of issues and accomplishments. Remind her through that report what you are doing for her. I would also send a monthly and quarterly summary so she'd know exactly how the inn is being run. That does not need to include every guest issue; those are par for the course.
But I would not hesitate to explain to her that there were limits as to what was acceptable and what was not and that goes both ways. It is not only the innkeeper who needs to show respect in this situation. Respect needs to flow freely in every direction for this relationship to work.
Of course, all of those things need to be spoken respectfully and without undue emotion, as I know you can do. But you do need to stop this trainwreck before it moves out of the station, so to speak.
And yes, keep the job search going. Just consider this another learning experience. Now you'll know you need to interview the owner at the same time the owner is interviewing you..

That's really good advice.
The other thing that Birdwatcher might want to do is have the owner clarify specific responses to specific scenarios. We have a large inn here and the owners are always complaining about how often they get called by their employees. Well, the employees call them because there are two issues at hand: 1) There are no parameters for the employees for them to know how to handle certain situations & 2) The employees are not empowered to deal with anything on their own. Double whammy.

 

[Samster]

Well here I am. A different thought process and one you might not like.
She is the boss, you are the employee. Harder yet, you are in a live-in situation. I would be careful not to listen to local gossip to justify my feelings, it is the same old office water cooler thing, imo.
How does she know how effective you are and how much leeway to give you since you are new there? I would be careful jumping in with both feet. Yes, we know you, we know your experience, but she does not, she is also in the South, so things are done differently there.
Do your job the best way you can, see how she operates, as the boss, if she prefers men to women that is her prerogative, you can't change people. Work out what SHE wants and do your job within those parameters. If she is being unreasonable, then again, do the best you can do, you don't want a showdown situation. People are different, communicate differently (some not at all) so meeting her is way overdo...in person you will most likely find her to be a totally different person than the "WIZ" on the phone behind the veil.
Just my 2 cents..

I think this is very sound advice from Joey. There are always two sides to every story.
I find it unusual that there is no "innkeeper's manual" already in place since this has been overseen long distance. Having said that, I worked at a large inn and there was nothing written down as far as any kind of procedures. The owners were very rarely on site. Everything was done by the get ready, get set, punt method! It's very hard to work as an employee when you don't know what the rules and procedures are. Everything from how much you can discount rooms to when you can waive cancellation fees/room charges, and more.
Best of luck with the meeting!

 

[Morticia]

Well here I am. A different thought process and one you might not like.
She is the boss, you are the employee. Harder yet, you are in a live-in situation. I would be careful not to listen to local gossip to justify my feelings, it is the same old office water cooler thing, imo.
How does she know how effective you are and how much leeway to give you since you are new there? I would be careful jumping in with both feet. Yes, we know you, we know your experience, but she does not, she is also in the South, so things are done differently there.
Do your job the best way you can, see how she operates, as the boss, if she prefers men to women that is her prerogative, you can't change people. Work out what SHE wants and do your job within those parameters. If she is being unreasonable, then again, do the best you can do, you don't want a showdown situation. People are different, communicate differently (some not at all) so meeting her is way overdo...in person you will most likely find her to be a totally different person than the "WIZ" on the phone behind the veil.
Just my 2 cents..

I think this is very sound advice from Joey. There are always two sides to every story.
I find it unusual that there is no "innkeeper's manual" already in place since this has been overseen long distance. Having said that, I worked at a large inn and there was nothing written down as far as any kind of procedures. The owners were very rarely on site. Everything was done by the get ready, get set, punt method! It's very hard to work as an employee when you don't know what the rules and procedures are. Everything from how much you can discount rooms to when you can waive cancellation fees/room charges, and more.
Best of luck with the meeting!
.

From a little 'Google research' it appears the PO was operating the biz after it was purchased. When that ended is unknown by us. There's a whole world of stuff going on.

 

[birdwatcher]

The owner as far as I can tell when she bought this B & B she also hired a director to oversee all of the aspects of the business including the events for the B & B, marketing and making a presence in the community including supervising or overseeing the innkeepers. I don't know what happened to the pevious Innkeepers or the previous directors but we where interviewd over the phone by both the owner and director; we visited the Inn and we liked what we saw and knew we could do the job, of course we had no idea that the director had given her notice shortly after we accepted the position. The owner lives in CA and has always lived in CA and I don't think that she thought that it would be so difficult to have someone qualified run her businesses, pleople do this all the time but have someone that is directly involved with the owner and all aspects of the business
I do know that she's never had a hospitality business and didn't understand alot of it but has all the great intentions, its just that managing people is nto one of her strongsuits, she's been told this before so perhaps she just hasn't found the right employees or maybe she's learned from her past mistakes...I don't really know, but my hubbie and I will just listen and bring all up as we can and I will let him do the talking, he's pretty good at that. She also has personal things going on at home and that has also taken her time and effort so she can't always come here to see how things are going...she's got alot on her plate.
Will let you know how its going, she's already late.

 

[Innkeeper To Go]

The owner as far as I can tell when she bought this B & B she also hired a director to oversee all of the aspects of the business including the events for the B & B, marketing and making a presence in the community including supervising or overseeing the innkeepers. I don't know what happened to the pevious Innkeepers or the previous directors but we where interviewd over the phone by both the owner and director; we visited the Inn and we liked what we saw and knew we could do the job, of course we had no idea that the director had given her notice shortly after we accepted the position. The owner lives in CA and has always lived in CA and I don't think that she thought that it would be so difficult to have someone qualified run her businesses, pleople do this all the time but have someone that is directly involved with the owner and all aspects of the business
I do know that she's never had a hospitality business and didn't understand alot of it but has all the great intentions, its just that managing people is nto one of her strongsuits, she's been told this before so perhaps she just hasn't found the right employees or maybe she's learned from her past mistakes...I don't really know, but my hubbie and I will just listen and bring all up as we can and I will let him do the talking, he's pretty good at that. She also has personal things going on at home and that has also taken her time and effort so she can't always come here to see how things are going...she's got alot on her plate.
Will let you know how its going, she's already late..

I have a good feeling about this birdwatcher.
Sounds like you and your DH are all set for a productive meeting that can put everyone's anxieties to rest.

 

[Copperhead]

Well here I am. A different thought process and one you might not like.
She is the boss, you are the employee. Harder yet, you are in a live-in situation. I would be careful not to listen to local gossip to justify my feelings, it is the same old office water cooler thing, imo.
How does she know how effective you are and how much leeway to give you since you are new there? I would be careful jumping in with both feet. Yes, we know you, we know your experience, but she does not, she is also in the South, so things are done differently there.
Do your job the best way you can, see how she operates, as the boss, if she prefers men to women that is her prerogative, you can't change people. Work out what SHE wants and do your job within those parameters. If she is being unreasonable, then again, do the best you can do, you don't want a showdown situation. People are different, communicate differently (some not at all) so meeting her is way overdo...in person you will most likely find her to be a totally different person than the "WIZ" on the phone behind the veil.
Just my 2 cents..

I think this is very sound advice from Joey. There are always two sides to every story.
I find it unusual that there is no "innkeeper's manual" already in place since this has been overseen long distance. Having said that, I worked at a large inn and there was nothing written down as far as any kind of procedures. The owners were very rarely on site. Everything was done by the get ready, get set, punt method! It's very hard to work as an employee when you don't know what the rules and procedures are. Everything from how much you can discount rooms to when you can waive cancellation fees/room charges, and more.
Best of luck with the meeting!
.

Samster, I agree. This may be the straw that broke camels back with the past employees. If there are no guidelines to follow and the owner is not present to guide, no wonder it has evolved to its current state.
Here is hoping the meeting goes well with much dialoge from all parties. BW, do not become too silent in the meetings, whos to say that the info you received is accurate? Watch her body language as each of you communicate and then let that be your guide to know how much to say. But she does need to know you plan to work as a team and in doing so she should be familar with your ideas and personality as well as your DH.
Wish you the best of luck with this BW. There is a lot of great advise here for you.

 

[One Day]

The owner as far as I can tell when she bought this B & B she also hired a director to oversee all of the aspects of the business including the events for the B & B, marketing and making a presence in the community including supervising or overseeing the innkeepers. I don't know what happened to the pevious Innkeepers or the previous directors but we where interviewd over the phone by both the owner and director; we visited the Inn and we liked what we saw and knew we could do the job, of course we had no idea that the director had given her notice shortly after we accepted the position. The owner lives in CA and has always lived in CA and I don't think that she thought that it would be so difficult to have someone qualified run her businesses, pleople do this all the time but have someone that is directly involved with the owner and all aspects of the business
I do know that she's never had a hospitality business and didn't understand alot of it but has all the great intentions, its just that managing people is nto one of her strongsuits, she's been told this before so perhaps she just hasn't found the right employees or maybe she's learned from her past mistakes...I don't really know, but my hubbie and I will just listen and bring all up as we can and I will let him do the talking, he's pretty good at that. She also has personal things going on at home and that has also taken her time and effort so she can't always come here to see how things are going...she's got alot on her plate.
Will let you know how its going, she's already late..

The owner as far as I can tell when she bought this B & B she also hired a director to oversee all of the aspects of the business including the events for the B & B, marketing and making a presence in the community including supervising or overseeing the innkeepers. I don't know what happened to the pevious Innkeepers or the previous directors but we where interviewd over the phone by both the owner and director; we visited the Inn and we liked what we saw and knew we could do the job, of course we had no idea that the director had given her notice shortly after we accepted the position. The owner lives in CA and has always lived in CA and I don't think that she thought that it would be so difficult to have someone qualified run her businesses, pleople do this all the time but have someone that is directly involved with the owner and all aspects of the business
I do know that she's never had a hospitality business and didn't understand alot of it but has all the great intentions, its just that managing people is nto one of her strongsuits, she's been told this before so perhaps she just hasn't found the right employees or maybe she's learned from her past mistakes...I don't really know, but my hubbie and I will just listen and bring all up as we can and I will let him do the talking, he's pretty good at that. She also has personal things going on at home and that has also taken her time and effort so she can't always come here to see how things are going...she's got alot on her plate.
Will let you know how its going, she's already late.

Good Luck BW
Trying not to get to involved here...........but......she having alot on her plate means nothing.........nothing to you....nothing to the B&B.......that is her problems......not yours or the businesses............don't fall for the sympathy ploy....be cordial, respectfull........above all.........all business.
This is your golden opportunity to get things squared away between the 2 of you........use this opportunity wisely.....
Again.......best of luck !!!