By Harlan Butler, Former Innisfree President


Back in Topeka, we had a General Manager at one of our hotels, years ago – and she was a lady.


(We were told later that she had perhaps a bit of a cocaine habit, but we didn’t know that at the time.)


She wasn’t performing – and things were missing from the hotel in the lobby.


What she was doing was selling the artwork off the walls to friends and customers, and she was keeping the money. There was no reason to do this … it wasn’t like we were remodeling.


Well, anyway, she was fired, and I was sent in as GM of the hotel. We had the hottest bar in town. There wasn’t anyone anywhere better. We had people come and dance and have the best time.


So one night, I’m in bed at home, and I get a call that the former manager is on the dance floor mooning the crowd.


She mooned everybody in our entire bar. There were 200 or 300 people in there!!!


Of course I had to go tell her she could never come on the property again.


The takeaway?


Today, we’re more diligent in our hiring processes. Because when an employee shows his you-know-what, it’s a shiny moonlit reflection of your company.


– As told to Ashley Kahn Salley

Lead Storyteller, Innisfree Hotels


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ABOUT ‘BACK IN TOPEKA’

In order to have a great future, we must celebrate and learn from our incredible past. The Innisfree Hotels story began in Topeka, Kansas. So when the folks who were around back then start a story with ‘Back in Topeka,’ we know it’s time to listen. These are tales of the challenges, of the laughter and tears that come with building a company like ours. That’s the sentiment behind this blog series, a chronicle of days gone by at Innisfree Hotels – and a map to get us where we’re going.