English term
Egypt
Arabic Translation & L10n Professional
Native in: Arabic 
Works in: English to Arabic, Arabic to English
understanding...as
Understanding each guest as a unique individual
I would like to know the intended meaning of saying 'understanding as"
Nov 23, 2015 02:25: Cilian O'Tuama changed "Level" from "PRO" to "Non-PRO"
Non-PRO (3): Shera Lyn Parpia, Yvonne Gallagher, Cilian O'Tuama
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Responses
Ireland
right word, right place. everytime
Native in: English (Variants: US, Canadian, Irish, UK)
Works in: French to English, Spanish to English, English, and 1 more.
understanding THAT...is
An easy way to understand this
Understanding THAT each guest IS a unique individual ...
=
(Because) We understand that each guest is a unique individual (...therefore, we treat each person as such ...we give personalised/individual attention etc. etc.)
but "understanding" itself doesn't mean "treating or "dealing with" that comes AFTER you have understood this
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Note added at 12 days (2015-12-02 12:22:16 GMT) Post-grading
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glad to have helped. Probably should be Pro after all since it was so misunderstood...
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AllegroTrans
33 mins
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Go raibh maith agat arís:-)
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Björn Vrooman
: Also agree that treat + deal is too much. Considering the discussion, one might want to add that this type of phrase is not uncommon.
1 hr
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Thanks. Yes, indeed. This really isn't that uncommon:-)
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Victoria Britten
: That explains it nicely
8 hrs
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Many thanks:-)
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Veronika McLaren
13 hrs
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Many thanks:-)
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Tony M
: Not really: you ahve changed the source text in a way that changes the meaning; 'understanding the basic concept' is pretty much taken for granted, but the idea of 'understanding each guest...' is something much more specific.
14 hrs
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Cilian O'Tuama
: my neutral to CL5 Peter above was before reading this - same sentiment
3 days 4 hrs
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France
Here for you in linguistic challenges !
Native in: French (Variant: Standard-France)
Works in: English to French, Tagalog to French, Latin to French, and 3 more.
considering
| I do not know how to thank you. |
France
Here for you in linguistic challenges !
Native in: French (Variant: Standard-France)
Works in: English to French, Tagalog to French, Latin to French, and 3 more.
considering
Netherlands
ATA cert.,ENHU transl.,MA,MS, Netherl.
Native in: Hungarian (Variant: Hungary) , English (Variant: British) 
Works in: English to Hungarian, Hungarian to English, Dutch to Hungarian, and 2 more.
treating ... as
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Tina Vonhof (X)
4 hrs
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Thank you, Tina
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acetran
5 hrs
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Thank you!
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Cilian O'Tuama
: the treating comes after the understanding
3 days 4 hrs
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Yep, but if it stops there, it's useless (like in today's Europe - yeah, we understand, but to h... with them)
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Mexico
Confianza, certeza, creatividad.
Native in: Spanish (Variant: Mexican)
Works in: English to Spanish, Italian to Spanish, French to Spanish, and 6 more.
accepting. . . as
an understanding ... based on their individuality
"Understanding each guest as a unique individual" is not the same as:
* Understanding each guest is a unique individual
* Treating each guest as a unique individual
or
* Accepting each guest as a unique individual.
It implies a deep understanding of each guest that is based upon recognition of their individuality. This is liable not be what was intended if the context is just an ordinary hotel. Indeed, it could be seen as intrusive and unwelcome. If, however, the establishment involved offers some sort of therapeutic service that could be not just the literal, but the intended meaning.
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acetran
18 hrs
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Thanks
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Cilian O'Tuama
: "seeing" might've been better than "understanding" here
2 days 7 hrs
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Thanks Cilian. Yes, but that gets back to the possible gap between what the writer meant and what they actually wrote.
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Rosemary Schmid
: The writer of this sentence might be a native speaker of American English who has been brought up on the advertising bla bla that too often has become part of casual conversation passing as "scholarly." In Psychobabble everyone "understands."
8 days
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Thanks Rosemary. I think that whoever wrote this probably was rather careless about the wording and psychobabble does spring to mind.
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Discussion
There is really nothing too uncommon about this type of construction in English. Nothing "fishy" about it at all. And here, "understanding" means just that..nothing more. When/After you understand that each guest is an individual then you can treat them/deal with them as such (as an individual). But saying "understanding" means anything else here is wrong in my view. This is also clear from your linked question "guestography" where they plan to STUDY the guests (so they can understand them).
"Putting guest engagement first requires companies to understand the guest as an individual, making systems integration vital."
http://www.forbes.com/sites/oracle/2015/02/18/hospitality-fo...
Replace "guest" with "customer":
"Successful customer relationships depend on understanding the customer as an individual, not as part of their Zip+4 or demographic."
https://www.dunnhumby.com/braintree-and-beyond-what-marketin...
Or, replace it by "someone":
"Understanding someone as a ‘friend’ does not necessarily carry over when you try to make that friend your business partner."
http://www.pjtaccountants.com.au/topics
Actually, I do not know whether s/he is a native speaker of English or not. My first guess was that 'understanding' here means 'dealing with'.