Full marks, not only for honour but integrity too
In his novel How To Be Good, Nick Hornby describes the story of a modern man and his attempt to apply a new-found sense of goodness to his life and the lives of those around him. Values such as honour and integrity begin to play a greater role in his day-to-day world, but it's a struggle, and failure, or at least compromise, is never far away. One critic of the book was caused to describe this as "worrying".
For similar reasons, the word worrying might also be used to describe recent events at the Automobile Association, publishers of respected annual guides to the restaurants, hotels and pubs of the UK. In a remarkable display of courage and honour, the editor of one of the guides has resigned in protest at the way - it is claimed - that his senior manager has tried to impose personal and subjective judgements on the previously impersonal, almost scientific, assessments of his inspectors (Caterer, 25 July, pages 4 and 6).
The story goes that the managing director in charge of the AA Restaurant Guide used his position of influence to book a table at a top London restaurant but then, after eating at the restaurant, he felt that he and his guests had been let down by the service standards experienced, and he used the same position of influence to degrade the proposed rating of the restaurant in the guide.
To the outside world, this may sound insignificant - after all, a manager has the right to make managerial decisions; anyone is entitled to their opinion; and decisions about the rating of a restaurant should include input from as many customers as possible. But this denies the importance of the inspection process by which the AA guides have gained their enviable reputation.
This reputation has come through the honesty, hard work and expertise of the AA's inspectors. Without exception, they care passionately about what is published and, as a result, the guides are respected as trustworthy and have become accurate barometers for the industries they cover. To hear that the publishing management might casually disregard the opinions of its inspectors for the sake of personal pride will be of serious concern to all those chefs and operators whose careers are gauged by the guides.
If the allegations are true - and the evidence suggests that they are - then the situation smacks of self-importance and bullying. These are old-style management characteristics that the hospitality profession has been trying to stamp out for years. It is not a method we want to hear being employed in one of the profession's institutions.
Whatever the outcome of the current dispute, there is no doubt that the reputation of the AA as a publisher of guides will be at risk.
Full marks must go to those who are prepared to embrace wholeheartedly honour and integrity. These may be difficult values to sustain in the modern world, but this makes it all the more commendable that at least one representative of the editorial team at the AA is prepared to make a stand for what we all should feel is an important point of principle.
Forbes Mutch, Editor, Caterer & Hotelkeeper
