Hotelogix speaks to a few home-grown and established hotel groups to understand how they hire General Managers at the property level Like any other business, running a successful hotel depends on all the stakeholders’ combined efforts. While in an independent property, one person can wear the hat of an owner, manager, front office staff and everything; this would entirely differ in hotel groups or chains. Given their sheer size involving multiple properties across locations, hundreds of staff, a range of offerings and all, it is essential for everybody – owner, operator, asset manager, franchisor, etc, to be on the same boat. In this context, we can’t ignore the importance of general managers as they play a very critical role in the overall success of hospitality entities.
Hotelogix spoke to a few homegrown and established hotel groups to understand how they hire general managers at the property level. Whether elevating somebody from within the ranks or hiring somebody from outside, they critically examine a candidate’s several traits before conferring them the leadership position.
Perkin Rocha, Sr Vice President – Operations, Royal Orchid Hotels: “We believe in offering them autonomy to run their respective properties. But there are a few questions before zeroing in on the right one. Are they ready to lead from the front while aligning with our corporate strategy? Have they ever made any decisions on digitisation and automation in their prior roles? Can they manage everything well – from daily operations to special big-ticket events? We will be happy to have somebody with a tremendous analytical mindset and a demonstrated track record of making a hotel more hospitable for our guests.”
Vibhas Prasad, Director, Leisure Hotels: “Well, for us, it is pretty straightforward. We are looking for candidates with top-notch business acumen. They should be good at communication, team building, sales, marketing, finance etc. They should be ready to go the extra mile to drive growth and serve guests. We also need to know their depth of understanding about emerging trends, changing guest behaviour and even our competition. Their levels of interaction with solutions, like Hotel PMS and system-generated reports, is also a critical factor while leaving our property in their hands because this will help them make informed decisions favouring our enterprise.”
Ruchi Uberai, Director, Amritara Hotels & Resorts: “At Amritara, we place a high degree of importance on maintaining our brand’s ethical standards and values at all levels of our operations. As such, we expect our General Managers to exemplify these values within their respective properties. When searching for candidates to fill this vital position, we recognise that bringing in someone from outside of our organisation will require a significant level of adaptability to our company culture. This means that we look for individuals with a strong eagerness and ability to align themselves with our values and work towards our shared goals.”
“In addition to cultural fit, we also emphasise on the importance of staying up-to-date with the latest hospitality technology solutions. As the industry continues to evolve rapidly, our General Managers must remain well-versed with the latest trends and developments. Failure to do so can lead to inefficiencies and missed opportunities, which can negatively impact the performance of our properties and the satisfaction of our guests. “To ensure that we hire the most qualified and capable candidates for this role, we carefully evaluate each candidate’s experience, knowledge, and ability to adapt to our company culture and technological landscape. Through this approach, we aim to build a team of highly effective General Managers who can provide exceptional service and uphold our brand’s reputation for excellence.”
Originally published on Hotelier India