Several articles have been published regarding Diamond Resorts International CEO, Stephen Cloobeck’s going “undercover” on the CBS primetime reality show “Undercover Boss” which begins its third season on Sunday, January 15, 2012.
Stephen Cloobeck, CEO of Diamond Resort’s International, thought he knew the inner-workings of his company from top to bottom. Confidently, he has placed his business cards at the front desk of more than 177 of the branded hotels with the intent that if a customer was upset, the customer could email him and Cloobeck would respond in less than ten minutes.
He preached to his company “the Meaning Of Yes,” which at its essence meant never telling a customer “no.”
At first Cloobeck declined the invitation from CBS to appear on the third season of its primetime reality show. He carried out “surprise attacks” at various resorts all the time and thought everything was under control.
After talking to other CEO’s who had gone thru the experience, David Palmer, President of Diamond Resorts encouraged Cloobeck to reconsider and see for himself.
A disguised Cloobeck worked with four different Diamond Resorts employees and realized that the employees he worked with weren’t “bad”, they were just “improperly trained” in the way to carry out his company motto, “the Meaning of Yes.”
“I realized my company was nowhere near as efficient as it could be,” Cloobeck said. “I also understood after my experience that everyone in my company needs to communicate better, which means they’ll communicate with our guests better.”
“I’m really proud of my team members,” Cloobeck said. “This was such a great experience because the company starts and ends with me, and now I know the work that goes into every aspect of it.”
In response to an article published in Business Insider regarding the upcoming “Undercover Boss” episode, a reader had this to say: “After reading the article, I thought that Diamond resorts was an upscale international hotel chain. But, out of curiosity, I googled their web site. Surprise – this is a time-share shop! Oh, the meaning of yes!… Could not BI write about some other episodes of the Undercover Boss? What it is so special about this one? Now I think that this article is a [somehow paid for] plug for Diamond Resorts. Is it that or just lousy journalism?”
Vegas Inc., an on-line news report featuring all things Las Vegas, posted an article on December 19 regarding the opening season of “Undercover Boss” and Stephen Cloobeck. The article ended as follows and is copied as it was written:
The one negative of being the subject of a reality TV show is that Diamond Resorts is getting criticized on the “Undercover Boss” Facebook page over fees, maintenance and sales tactics.
Cloobeck said the problem is between timeshare owners and their homeowners association, not with the company. He said the sales occurred before he became associated with the property. The fact that the company has collected 99 percent of its revenues indicates the criticism is coming from a vocal minority among thousands of owners, he said.
“All I want is for any guest to contact me and I will fix any issue and make them happy,” he said. “That’s why my business card is at every front desk and matters come right here to me.”
Sounds like an invitation to Point at Poipu owners to contact Mr. Cloobeck directly with their concerns and encourage him to investigate the water intrusion special assessment and other problems the owners are experiencing at this Diamond Resort on Kaua i.
Advantage Vacation is a member of the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) and offers the best buys on the timeshare re sales market today. We never charge an upfront fee for clients who want to sell a timeshare and only receive a commission, paid from escrow, when the transaction is closed.
We have been in the timeshare industry for over 30 years and are Accredited Members of the BBB with an A+ Rating.
Advantage Vacation is using Twitter and Facebook to help educate people on the changes in the timeshare industry along with current timeshare tips, up to date timeshare news and timeshare FAQ’s.
We hope you will follow us and our blog, Timeshare Blogging by Advantage Vacation and make your voice heard – what questions do you have?
At Advantage Vacation you can be assured you are working with professionals who believe that honesty and integrity are the most important aspects of the business they are in – timeshare re sales. Our business has been built on relationships and we pride ourselves on providing excellent service to our clients.
Would you like more information about Advantage Vacation?
I think that you said it all. Thanks for being the good guys in the timeshare industry and telling it like it is.
We have found our timeshare to be useful. We purchased it in 1995 and have used it every year. Being in the military, it is challenging to get time off and take trips to nice locations. Around 2006, when DRI took over management of the timeshare, the fees increased about 20% per year. Even with the fees reaching $1400 per year, it was worth it for our family to take one nice vacation between my multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. We just modified our budget to include the additional fee. Then this year the bill arrived and indicated that we had to pay $6000. And we had 90 days to pay it or DRI would aggressively commence collections, put our account into a delinquent status, and ruin our credit. Luckily they ‘generously’ provided a payment plan which only required us to pay $4000 of the fees and spread the remainder over the next three years. DRI claims that only a minority of customers are upset with these fees, I tend to think that the majority are boxed in the same corner as the rest of us and are forced to pay. There are many other factors contributing to this story, but I have already taken too much of your blog space.
I am disappointed that CBS is running this show, which will result in ‘good press’ for this company. I am certain that many people will buy into the scam as a result, and end up in the same trap that we have found ourselves in. People who buy today are not warned about the water damage during the sales pitch and do not find out until the bill arrives. I really cannot understand how these folks can sleep at night.
Jim,
Looks like your fears of showing Stephen J. Cloobeck as anything other than the truth were unfounded. Looks more Bad press for Diamond Resorts International and Stephen J. Cloobeck, enjoyed all of comments on the different pages though. Like Stephen J. Cloobeck Executive Profile. Read em they are a hoot.
hmmm too bad
Don P.