Are we ready for an Olympic standard?

I was lucky enough to get myself onto a guided tour of the 2012 Olympic site at the weekend. I was even luckier to discover that our tour guide was David Higgins, the Chief Executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority.

The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) is the public body responsible for developing and building the new venues and infrastructure for the Games and their use after 2012. So our guide was well placed to offer lots of insight into the politics, the decisions and sheer magnitude of the incredibly complex build and its schedule.

The scale and design of the main stadia that we’ve all seen in the media is only part of the story. The infrastructure to support the event is equally impressive: The Olympic park site has its own Energy Centre, Primary Substation and Pumping Station; the media centre is almost as big as the main stadium and will use enough power for a small city; there is a hotel on site as well as, what will be, Europe’s largest shopping centre. And don’t forget the Olympic village to house 16,000 athletes.

The great news is that they’re on schedule. The park will be ready for summer 2011 and a year of testing and refining the stadia will follow.

The ultimate challenge for the games themselves will be the people. The people involved in delivering the experience to the athletes, the sports fans, the tourists, the customers of the games.

Will the UK stand up to scrutiny in delivering the standard of customer service that our visitors will expect? Will the hospitality industry be ready to embrace the millions of people visiting the UK, London and the rest of the Olympic sites? With an estimated £2 billion boost to the industry it’s clear that the opportunities will be huge, but are we making the right investment in training and development now?

Back in 2005 when London first won the bid there was a lot of talk about whether we could develop the service culture we need to welcome the world. From Heathrow, to the transport systems, hotels and restaurants, the UK has to pull its collective socks up.

We’re less than two years away now and I wonder whether we’re any nearer to achieving an Olympic standard in hospitality?