Proven professional who is a strategic thinker using the box of team, training, and strategy to "reshape" the situation and drive results. Brand experience with Marriott, Hilton, IHG, and Choice Hotels.
For a minute, I challenge all of you to think like Einstein. Think about this for a moment and apply it to whatever challenge you are facing.... "The definition of insanity is doing the same experiment and expecting different result" Albert Einstein. Now for honesty's sake, I must point out there is not direct quote to him and this saying is not fully attributed to him until the 1980's, some 30 years after he had passed away, but for the sake of this thought, we are going to assume it is in fact his. Over the last 30 odd years, the hotel industry in the US has come a long way. Introduction of things, like the heavenly bed, REIT and softbrands (to name a few) have all had major impacts on the way business is done. As the reliance on brand grows, there is less and less time spent on development of people. The assumption is that the strength of the brand would carry it through. As different economic challenges have hit the industry the cuts and changes continue. Companies such as Marriott prove their worth by the standardized packages they develop. However, and this is where the definition of Insanity comes in.... the world changed after Covid for many hotel companies, employee's, and the buildings themselves. And yet.... and yet, we continue to do business the way it was done prior to this great change. Now to be fair, some situations (markets, cities, brands, management companies, even the manor in which customers review the hotels) the situations didn't not change as much as others. However, if you look at the number of hotels that are failing in their brand standards and the reviews that are being issued by their customers, there is a major disconnect. As an example, most Marriott Brands were designed primarily for business travelers. For the arguments sake, let's assume somewhere in the neighborhood of 2/3rds of the business (Monday-Thursday) corporate travel and 1/3rd leisure (Friday/Saturday). Usually the weekday had higher rates as business could and would pay more than the leisure traveler. That is no longer the mix of travelers in many markets and brands. In some "business brands" the mix has switched to 2/3rds of revenue is leisure based and 1/3rd is business. However, the brand, hotel operator, etc. have not changed what the brand offers or how they work. They have most likely adjusted their pricing strategies, but the brands have not altered what the brands were designed for... a room that was designed for a business traveler. Given the financial setbacks from Covid and since, owners have not either chosen or been able to re-invest in their properties and are missing opportunities to re-gain revenues and market share. Why if something isn't working, do we continue to do it and hope that we will get different results. Apply this to your labor market, your development, the way you approach your Guest Satisfaction. As yourself, what are we doing differently to make this a success?
