Claudia Choi, a junior in the Hotel School, had the chance to interview Robert Cole ‘81, Founder and CEO of RockCheetah.
Robert, has vast experience in different fields of hospitality, working with Four Seasons as Corporate Director of Marketing Planning, Sabre as Director of Hospitality Development, and Cendant as Vice President of Hotel and Car, in addition to being involved in three startups. His company, RockCheetah, is a hotel marketing strategy and travel technology consulting company. It assists global hospitality and travel organizations create successful marketing strategies and execute business processes, helping a wide range of clients from National Geographic and Marriott to the US government. He also serves as Phocuswright’s Senior Research Analysts for Lodging and Leisure Travel.
Robert Cole ’81
What inspired you to create RockCheetah, your marketing and travel tech consulting company?
Marketing and technology were always interests. Four Seasons gave me an incredible opportunity to prove myself during a summer internship for three sales & marketing vice presidents at their corporate office in Toronto. After graduating and working in pre-opening sales, I took over the property computer systems, since I already had operational experience in front office and food & beverage working during the summers at Sun Valley Resorts and Yellowstone National Park. There were challenges, like living on property and working 120-hours per week through a property opening, but it proved to be an extremely valuable experience.
After heading marketing for an economy lodging group, starting a global representation firm for four and five-star properties, running Sabre’s platform that was handling 50% of the world’s automated hotel bookings at the time, and starting up a company that introduced dynamic packaging to the travel industry, I felt it was time to start something new. Through RockCheetah, I was inspired to take my diverse hospitality experiences, to help my clients prove that marketing, technology and exemplary service could peacefully coexist. Since then, through RockCheetah, I have worked on a variety of fascinating projects like helping National Geographic create its Lodges soft-brand, Marriott develop its packaged vacations strategy and the US government and travel technology investors with some things I can’t discuss…
Did you envision this is where you would be? Can you describe a decision that you have made that you believe has helped shape the you of today?
I let my career path evolve organically as opportunities arose. I never planned to be where I am today – a self-described strategic plumber. Every decision I have made, or witnessed, has helped me grow to become more successful. I truly love my job and I am passionate about what advances the capabilities of the hospitality industry. I always challenge myself and my clients to exceed the expectations of their customers by delivering outstanding service.
Making organizations more profitable through strategy is baked into my DNA. It hasn’t always been an easy journey. I’ve sadly seen some companies make horrible decisions – sometimes due to fear, ineptitude, lack of quality data, or failing to listen to staff or partners – that were nearly always avoidable. Problems typically arise from inconsistencies between organizational business goals, strategic departmental initiatives and the operational tactics employed through core business processes. When leading a team, it’s critically important that expectations are clearly defined, that they consistently align with the corporate mission and that employees have the tools available to succeed. Then, if a gap is identified, discussions about any changes required to achieve expectations get pretty simple and the solutions can be collaborative.
On your website, RockCheetah.com, you describe that through your career you have been fortunate to have learned from highly respected and influential business leaders in the fields of travel, marketing and technology. Can you elaborate on your experiences?
I have been fortunate enough to work with some true visionaries through the course of my career. For example, I have been able to witness the transformation of Four Seasons from a small Canadian company to what it is today, through the course of my eight years working there. I saw Isadore Sharp, ensure the “Golden Rule” applied equally to staff, owners, investors, vendors and guests.
When a houseman responsible for overnight shoeshine accidentally separated all the shoes from the bags with their room numbers at 3:00am, nobody got yelled at or fired. The resident manager, director of housekeeping and chef quickly created and executed a plan to send notes to the impacted guests explaining the mix-up and inviting them to housekeeping for breakfast to retrieve their shoes. The guests loved it. They turned a negative into a positive, then fixed the process to make certain it would never happen again.
I’ve seen how Chiat Day advertising (the geniuses behind Apple’s breakthrough campaigns) organized their offices to eliminate silos and have every team member focused on how consumers would respond to a message or image given the context of their lives and the media. I have dozens of similar examples where the organizations encourage and empower their staffs.
Have you ever faced any challenges working with foreign markets? For example, on your website, you have described working with Japanese investors in the 90’s to create a business plan and financial statement for a joint venture.
Yes, I worked for six years on a startup where Saison Group was the primary investor, so I spent some time in Tokyo. It was fascinating to see how Yuji Tsutsumi handled our small business with the same care and attention as other massive entities across a diversified portfolio of holdings.
I’ve always found that trying to accommodate the regular business hours of an overseas partner was very beneficial. With Japan, there was a 15-hour time difference. At Neat Group, our development team was in Tel Aviv, so in addition to the time difference, we built processes that would help take advantage of crossing Sunday-Thursday with Monday-Friday work weeks.
In an international, multicultural setting, I try to be sensitive to their perspectives and personally adapt to provide the best quality work for them. It normally comes down to making sure they are comfortable with information and processes, so they are open to making good decisions.
How do you go about business with your clients?
The first question that I always ask my clients is “What are your core business objectives?” For any project, I try to gain consensus on what the finish line looks like and how they plan to measure success. If a goal is nebulous, like improving the guest experience, from the initial kickoff meeting, it may be important to discuss how the company business model creates value – simply put, the benefit divided by the cost.
Often, there are contradictions with the desires and needs of different guest personas, which can throw some hotel clients off track. It’s important to understand how business goals, strategies, tactics and budgets can impact dynamics like customer value perception and corporate profitability. One must consider the objectives holistically – what makes both the guests and the investors happy? Once the rules are known, coming up with methods to accomplish those goals gets much easier.
When evaluating or employing innovative technologies, it’s critical to avoid “shiny object syndrome.” Success rarely results from rushing to buy a cool technology; the devil is in the details – what does it do well or poorly, how does it integrate with existing or planned systems, does it scale, and who owns what data if ways must part in the future?
Earlier in the interview, you touched on the subject of providing guests with genuine hospitable services. Can you give an example of exemplary service?
When I was VP of Destination Experience for Mark Travel – a major North American wholesale tour operator – we had 3,000 guests in destination when Cancun suffered a catastrophic Cat-5 hurricane. The airport was closed with a damaged terminal and contaminated fuel. The US government wanted to move all the Americans to a damaged convention center with no electricity and uncertain water quality. Instead of citing force majeure and blaming mother nature, our owner, Bill La Macchia Sr. spent his own money [a huge number I can’t reveal] to charter planes and extract passengers via Merida, also relying on a herculean effort by Joe Martinez, owner of Lomas Travel, our destination management company, whose employees all had families impacted by the storm.
Bill and Joe knew that many of those travelers had saved for and eagerly anticipated that trip, which was pretty much ruined. They weren’t legally obliged to do anything. I don’t recall any discussion of the ROI or enhancement to customer lifetime value being weighed. They were in the best position to help, so they took the initiative and committed their organizations to do the right thing. Empowered, loyal employees are essential to success, but the leadership and sense of purpose always starts from the top.
Do you remember what you liked most about your experiences in university?
At Cornell, I was overly involved socially, but still allocated some time for academics. I was an officer for my fraternity, a student-faculty committee member, president of Ye Hosts honorary society, had a couple teaching assistantships, was house manager of the Cornell Concert Commission and a varsity cheerleader.
One of my most memorable experiences was as an event manager for HEC. We assembled an incredible team including Michael Cline and Jim Carmody to do a bar featuring flaming and frozen drinks in the Statler Auditorium foyer. Let’s just say we had a vision and pretty much did our own thing – much to the chagrin of the board. But it was an awesome event with champagnes, caviars, flaming frozen rum drinks, about four tons of ice for a massive bar and multiple lare carvings, homemade dry ice fog machines and a hydrogen explosion to start the event. We broke rules, but the result was spectacular, even though we didn’t have time to teach the bartenders slight-of-hand techniques to make the drinks…
Knowing what you know now, what advice would share with undergraduates or young entrepreneurial minds?
My first suggestion to students would be to follow your passions and discover what you are truly interested in. There may be rough times, but at least you will be pursuing a career that gives you joy.
My second recommendation is to find out if you are really good at what you are passionate about. Pure passion is great, but competency is essential. If you need to improve in any areas to be the best in your field, then you need a plan – that should help you avoid some obstacles.
Finally, it’s important to associate yourself with people and organizations that are ethically
grounded. Stick with people who have a strong work ethic and the moral fortitude to call out and eliminate any fraudulent, or abusive behaviors. This will go a long way in helping you lead by example. If you are great at doing something you love, don’t tolerate jerks – they bring drama, introduce risk, and are rarely worth the damage they inflict.
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The Cornell Hotel Society Executive Board thanks the Cornell Hotel Society – Collegiate Chapter for initiating and conducting the “Conversations with Alumni” project.
CHS New York – Annual F&B Business Panel
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumOn April 4, 2018, the CHS New York Chapter held its sixth annual F&B Business Panel. This year’s event was held at The James NoMad Hotel. The following panelists discussed how F&B has reemerged into the spotlight, continuing to evolve, and innovate within traditional and non-traditional hotel environments.
Networking with delicious cocktails and passed hors d’oeuvres followed the panel discussion.
The James NoMad Hotel
CHS Japan Welcomes Prof. Quan and Students
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumIn April 2018, Daniel Quan Ph.D., Robert C. Baker Professor in Real Estate, School of Hotel Administration, and his students in Real Estate Program visited Tokyo for a field trip. On April 2, CHS Japan hosted a party at the Boomin Vinum restaurant in their honor. About 25 Cornell graduates gathered to welcome the field trip group consisting of Prof. Quan, assistant Ms. Erica Heim, and 14 RE program students. Some of the alumni were students and teaching assistants of Prof. Quan, and were very happy to see him again.
CHS Japan hosts Prof. Dan Quan and 14 students from the Real Estate Program.
CHS Japan hosts Prof. Dan Quan and 14 students from the Real Estate Program.
CHS Japan hosts Prof. Dan Quan and 14 students from the Real Estate Program.
CHS Japan Annual General Meeting & New Year’s Party
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumOn February 15, 2018, CHS Japan held their annual General Meeting and New Year’s party at Moxy Tokyo Kinshicho, a very unique hotel with non-traditional design and a friendly atmosphere. Forty-seven Cornellians, their families and guests joined the event and learned details about the hotel during a very informative presentation.
CHS Japan gathers at the Moxy Tokyo Kinshicho to celebrate New Years.
CHS Japan gathers at the Moxy Tokyo Kinshicho to celebrate New Years.
CHS Japan gathers at the Moxy Tokyo Kinshicho to celebrate New Years.
CHS New England Celebrates the Coming of Spring
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumDuring the last week of March, CHS New England hosted a networking event at Boston’s newest hot spot, City Winery Boston; a venue featuring a winery, an entertainment venue, and a restaurant. The group enjoyed cocktails and conversation and toasted to the start of spring!
Pictured: Nate Berkowitz ’11, YuQun Lu ’16, Michelle Cannon ’13, Mike Hintsa ’15, Sebastian Colella ’05, Yana Bushoy ’10, Alan Suzuki ’03, Sadie Garside ’15, Nala Holmes ’12, Greg Bodenair ‘10
CHS General Meeting at HEC 93
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumOn Friday, March 16, 2018 the Cornell Hotel Society held its annual General Meeting during HEC ’93.
Global President Bill Minnock ’79 opened the meeting with a review of the CHS goals for 2018. The highlight of the year will be a worldwide celebration of the 90th anniversary of CHS. Each chapter is encouraged to host an event on, or near, the May 12 anniversary date. CHS Collegiate Chapter President Michael Baldyga ’19 then provided an update on an impressive calendar of student events for the year.
Dean Kate Walsh addressed the alumni in attendance with a review of her agenda for The Hotel School. This included an update on the search for the new Dean of the College of Business, and SHA’s plan for expanded undergraduate, graduate and executive education programs in New York City. Following her presentation, several CHS Chapter Presidents presented Dean Walsh with checks for their respective scholarship funds.
The meeting concluded with First Vice President Dexter Wood ’87 interviewing the three finalists for the Hotelie for Life® Senior Prize: Kayti Stanley ‘18, Alex Levy ’18, and Christie Choy ’18.
Click on link to watch the video (Note: the CHS meeting starts at the 32 minute mark.)
President Bill Minnock ’79 discusses plans for the 90th anniversary of CHS.
Dean Walsh shares her vision for The Hotel School.
CHS Chapter Presidents present Dean Walsh with donations for their respective scholarship funds.
CHS Collegiate Chapter President Michael Baldyga ’19 provides an update on chapter events.
First Vice President Dexter Wood ’87 interviews the three finalists for the Hotelie for Life® Senior Prize.
Nearly 80 percent of CHS funds go toward student, faculty, and chapter support.
CHS Georgia Hosts Hunter Conference Reception
/in Uncategorized/by Robert MandelbaumOn Wednesday, March 21, 2018, the CHS Georgia Chapter hosted its 3rd Annual Hunter Hotel Conference Reception at White Oak Kitchen & Cocktail. Our host for the event was Alan LeBlanc ’84. Sponsors included White Oak Kitchen & Cocktail, Burr & Forman LLP, and Davidson Hotels and Resorts. Approximately 65 Hotelies from across the country, and their guests, enjoyed fine food and beverages while networking and catching up.
CHS Georgia hosts Hotelies attending the Hunter Hotel Conference.
CHS Reception at Hunter Hotel Conference.
CHS Reception at Hunter Hotel Conference.
CHS Reception at Hunter Hotel Conference.
CHS Reception at Hunter Hotel Conference.
“Conversations with Alumni” – Stacey Nadolny MAI ‘05
/in Conversations/by Robert MandelbaumMargil Quijano, a senior in the Hotel School, had the chance to interview Stacey Nadolny MAI ‘05, Managing Director and Senior Partner with HVS in Chicago.
Stacey Naldony ’05
What was your favorite course in the hotel school?
During my time at the hotel school, I enjoyed taking courses that were related to my concentration, hotel design. The drafting class with Professor Richard Penner was one of my favorites; it helped me better understand the thoughtful design and complex planning that goes into building a hotel. I also loved the restaurant courses, and the restaurant concept class with Stephani Robson was another stand-out. But, I also took a lot of really unique and interesting classes outside of the Hotel School, including a Wood Shop class in the Ag School (I think I was the only Hotelie to have ever taken that course) and a Supermarket Retail class. That is one of the best things about Cornell—”an institution where any person could find instruction in any study”.
What did you do after graduation?
Once I realized that a career in hotel and restaurant design required further education and credentials, I decided to pursue my passion for food. I had grown up in restaurants and had always worked in food and beverage (aside from a short stint as a valet at the Statler), so I interviewed primarily with restaurant and catering groups my senior year. I was fortunate to secure an opportunity in the management training program with Hillstone, and worked with them in three cities for about a year and a half.
I figured out pretty early on that operations was not a life-long career for me, but I worked hard to absorb as much as possible while I was there. In the restaurant management role, I was able to learn how to run a profitable business, how to think on my feet, and how to handle guest complaints, and that maintaining high standards are everything to a consistent guest experience. The experience truly humbled me and made me recognize the value of the customer interaction—in every business setting.
I was able to survive as a young manager by learning from the seasoned managers that became my mentors. All of them had more than ten years of experience, and I was lucky enough that two of them were women, which helped me realize the potential for female leadership in the hospitality industry, as well as how to carry myself in a male-dominated field.
How did you transition from operations into consulting?
The SHA alumni network can be credited with my transition into consulting. I was attending the New York Hotel Show alumni event after I left Hillstone and was on the job hunt. I ran into a former classmate employed by HVS who told me about an opportunity available in the Dallas office. I was very interested in moving into a more analytic role in consulting, and I jumped at this opportunity and applied in December 2006.
While I had limited exposure to real estate as a restaurant manager or in school, I spent a lot of time studying the financial statements at my restaurant and really enjoyed the finance and accounting classes at Cornell. Additionally, HVS offered appraisal training and internal training that was unparalleled at that time, and it allowed me to catch on very quickly once I started in January 2007. This helped me develop my analytical skills that, paired with the training and resources that HVS offers, has enabled me to succeed in my current role.
What does your day to day look like?
In my current position, I am responsible for overseeing my team of six associates based in the Midwest. My other tasks include business development, client management, supervising appraisals and market studies, speaking at conferences, and creating connections in the hospitality industry, especially the within the Cornell Hotel Society. For hotel consulting work, we work with developers and help them make decisions related to their hotel projects. Prior to becoming a Managing Director, my role as an associate included site inspections and interviews the hotel managers, market participants, and economic officials, which I still get to do from time to time.
After we conducts the research, we sit down and run the analysis. The most important part is the analysis and having support for the conclusions we make as market experts. Everything is data driven, such as occupancy, average rate, and financial performance; it is important to weave through what we gathered in order to find the facts.
What do you see as the most prevalent trends in the hospitality industry?
One of the biggest trends is the integration of technology and how it has facilitated the sharing of information. It has greatly influenced how hotel rooms are booked and how hotels are marketed. Today, guests turn to social media sites, such as Instagram, Facebook, and Yelp, to research the hotels, and the “Instagram Effect” has certainly made its way to help bring popularity to Instragramable food and destinations in hotels. For example, this year in Chicago, the “Bean” (Cloudgate) overtook Navy Pier as the most visited destination, credited to everyone wanting to take a selfie with a big round mirror sculpture!
Another trend is the changing dynamic of food and beverage. Hoteliers are catching on that strong food and beverage drives guests to your property, and a restaurant not longer has to be a loss leader on your P&L. There are more and more hotels outsourcing their outlets for new concepts to local restaurant groups and celebrity chefs. Combined with the surge in food bloggers/Instagramers, hotel restaurants are targeting these influencers to put them on the map.
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The Cornell Hotel Society Executive Board thanks the Cornell Hotel Society – Collegiate Chapter for initiating and conducting the “Conversations with Alumni” project.
“Conversations with Alumni” – Sophia Lin Kanno ‘05
/in Conversations/by Robert MandelbaumLizzie Jeon, a junior in the Hotel School, had the chance to interview Sophia Line Kanno ‘05, Event Producer with Kehoe Designs in Chicago.
Sophia Lin-Kanno ’05
While I am an events designer, I am also a strategist. As a designer, I look to create a full environment and experience. I ask the client about the purpose of the event: What is this event for? There often is a deeper mission and message that clients are trying to portray through this event. Then, I take their mission and make sure that everything I select for the event channels back to that idea. It’s a lot of work: I want to make sure that the guests understand the message when they enter the space. It’s like painting a picture by taking really important points, enlarging them, and making them a part of the décor.
There’s a quote by Maya Angelou: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” This is true with events; people won’t remember the floral arrangements but they will remember how they felt when they walked in to the space. Ultimately, we are looking for that reaction. When people can remember, I know I’ve done my job.
There was a corporate conference assigned only six weeks before the event. We had about 2,000 people to entertain in the event space and the attendees were mostly senior representatives of a large international consulting company. They were flying in from all over the world for this week-long conference in Chicago. Because the client wanted something very unique and over-the-top, we adopted the idea of a darker version of “Alice in Wonderland.” We came up with a very creative and smart way of displaying the food through design. We created vertical shelves and expressive rolling carts that were capable of serving hundreds of guests simultaneously. This event is one of the most memorable ones because it really took design to another level by finding the perfect balance between design and functionality.
The most significant differentiating factor is that Kehoe Designs wants to know all the parts of the book and sees a big picture. All the touchpoints of a guest experience must fit together. Another critical factor is that we own a lot of our equipment and can bring any vision to life. We house all thirteen production departments under one roof. From art creation to custom furniture and floral design to technical production – we pride ourselves on delivering solutions, whether for a challenging venue, a high-profile security event, or a demanding timeline.
Technology has evolved the industry dramatically. With LED screens and tiles, you can apply amazing enhancements such as fragmenting a project image and applying video mapping. If you don’t have the budget, we can now project imagery in the space and make it something really cool. With advancements in technology, the event can convert into completely different atmospheres and experiences. It’s like walking into a moving picture that can change with a snap of a finger.
Listen to what the message is about for HEC. Why are people attending HEC? What is the goal? Within that goal, how can you allow your design to speak that message and solicit that goal? For example, if the goal is networking, maybe the gala could be a reception where everyone interacts by moving around. Pick one or two things that impact HEC the most and shake things up by changing the approach!
Cornell is an environment that allows you to really explore. Even as a Hotelie, I felt like I was able to build my own curriculum. It’s an extremely diverse place as well, not just culturally but also socioeconomically. I met some of my closest friends there that I still talk to today.
Take advantage of what’s in front of you. Cornell offers you so much. I highly recommend taking courses outside of the Hotel School. For those interested in design, I also suggest enrolling in film analysis classes. The more you push yourself to face your fears, the more you realize how un-scary those fears are. Be adventurous and be a risk taker!
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The Cornell Hotel Society Executive Board thanks the Cornell Hotel Society – Collegiate Chapter for initiating and conducting the “Conversations with Alumni” project.
Randy Garutti ’97
/in Hotelie for Life/by Robert MandelbaumRandy Garutti ’97, CEO of Shake Shack, shares with us what it means to him to be a Hotelie for Life®
Randy Garutti ’97 and Family
“Conversations with Alumni” – Robert Cole ‘81
/in Conversations/by Robert MandelbaumClaudia Choi, a junior in the Hotel School, had the chance to interview Robert Cole ‘81, Founder and CEO of RockCheetah.
Robert, has vast experience in different fields of hospitality, working with Four Seasons as Corporate Director of Marketing Planning, Sabre as Director of Hospitality Development, and Cendant as Vice President of Hotel and Car, in addition to being involved in three startups. His company, RockCheetah, is a hotel marketing strategy and travel technology consulting company. It assists global hospitality and travel organizations create successful marketing strategies and execute business processes, helping a wide range of clients from National Geographic and Marriott to the US government. He also serves as Phocuswright’s Senior Research Analysts for Lodging and Leisure Travel.
Robert Cole ’81
What inspired you to create RockCheetah, your marketing and travel tech consulting company?
Marketing and technology were always interests. Four Seasons gave me an incredible opportunity to prove myself during a summer internship for three sales & marketing vice presidents at their corporate office in Toronto. After graduating and working in pre-opening sales, I took over the property computer systems, since I already had operational experience in front office and food & beverage working during the summers at Sun Valley Resorts and Yellowstone National Park. There were challenges, like living on property and working 120-hours per week through a property opening, but it proved to be an extremely valuable experience.
After heading marketing for an economy lodging group, starting a global representation firm for four and five-star properties, running Sabre’s platform that was handling 50% of the world’s automated hotel bookings at the time, and starting up a company that introduced dynamic packaging to the travel industry, I felt it was time to start something new. Through RockCheetah, I was inspired to take my diverse hospitality experiences, to help my clients prove that marketing, technology and exemplary service could peacefully coexist. Since then, through RockCheetah, I have worked on a variety of fascinating projects like helping National Geographic create its Lodges soft-brand, Marriott develop its packaged vacations strategy and the US government and travel technology investors with some things I can’t discuss…
Did you envision this is where you would be? Can you describe a decision that you have made that you believe has helped shape the you of today?
I let my career path evolve organically as opportunities arose. I never planned to be where I am today – a self-described strategic plumber. Every decision I have made, or witnessed, has helped me grow to become more successful. I truly love my job and I am passionate about what advances the capabilities of the hospitality industry. I always challenge myself and my clients to exceed the expectations of their customers by delivering outstanding service.
Making organizations more profitable through strategy is baked into my DNA. It hasn’t always been an easy journey. I’ve sadly seen some companies make horrible decisions – sometimes due to fear, ineptitude, lack of quality data, or failing to listen to staff or partners – that were nearly always avoidable. Problems typically arise from inconsistencies between organizational business goals, strategic departmental initiatives and the operational tactics employed through core business processes. When leading a team, it’s critically important that expectations are clearly defined, that they consistently align with the corporate mission and that employees have the tools available to succeed. Then, if a gap is identified, discussions about any changes required to achieve expectations get pretty simple and the solutions can be collaborative.
On your website, RockCheetah.com, you describe that through your career you have been fortunate to have learned from highly respected and influential business leaders in the fields of travel, marketing and technology. Can you elaborate on your experiences?
I have been fortunate enough to work with some true visionaries through the course of my career. For example, I have been able to witness the transformation of Four Seasons from a small Canadian company to what it is today, through the course of my eight years working there. I saw Isadore Sharp, ensure the “Golden Rule” applied equally to staff, owners, investors, vendors and guests.
When a houseman responsible for overnight shoeshine accidentally separated all the shoes from the bags with their room numbers at 3:00am, nobody got yelled at or fired. The resident manager, director of housekeeping and chef quickly created and executed a plan to send notes to the impacted guests explaining the mix-up and inviting them to housekeeping for breakfast to retrieve their shoes. The guests loved it. They turned a negative into a positive, then fixed the process to make certain it would never happen again.
I’ve seen how Chiat Day advertising (the geniuses behind Apple’s breakthrough campaigns) organized their offices to eliminate silos and have every team member focused on how consumers would respond to a message or image given the context of their lives and the media. I have dozens of similar examples where the organizations encourage and empower their staffs.
Have you ever faced any challenges working with foreign markets? For example, on your website, you have described working with Japanese investors in the 90’s to create a business plan and financial statement for a joint venture.
Yes, I worked for six years on a startup where Saison Group was the primary investor, so I spent some time in Tokyo. It was fascinating to see how Yuji Tsutsumi handled our small business with the same care and attention as other massive entities across a diversified portfolio of holdings.
I’ve always found that trying to accommodate the regular business hours of an overseas partner was very beneficial. With Japan, there was a 15-hour time difference. At Neat Group, our development team was in Tel Aviv, so in addition to the time difference, we built processes that would help take advantage of crossing Sunday-Thursday with Monday-Friday work weeks.
In an international, multicultural setting, I try to be sensitive to their perspectives and personally adapt to provide the best quality work for them. It normally comes down to making sure they are comfortable with information and processes, so they are open to making good decisions.
How do you go about business with your clients?
The first question that I always ask my clients is “What are your core business objectives?” For any project, I try to gain consensus on what the finish line looks like and how they plan to measure success. If a goal is nebulous, like improving the guest experience, from the initial kickoff meeting, it may be important to discuss how the company business model creates value – simply put, the benefit divided by the cost.
Often, there are contradictions with the desires and needs of different guest personas, which can throw some hotel clients off track. It’s important to understand how business goals, strategies, tactics and budgets can impact dynamics like customer value perception and corporate profitability. One must consider the objectives holistically – what makes both the guests and the investors happy? Once the rules are known, coming up with methods to accomplish those goals gets much easier.
When evaluating or employing innovative technologies, it’s critical to avoid “shiny object syndrome.” Success rarely results from rushing to buy a cool technology; the devil is in the details – what does it do well or poorly, how does it integrate with existing or planned systems, does it scale, and who owns what data if ways must part in the future?
Earlier in the interview, you touched on the subject of providing guests with genuine hospitable services. Can you give an example of exemplary service?
When I was VP of Destination Experience for Mark Travel – a major North American wholesale tour operator – we had 3,000 guests in destination when Cancun suffered a catastrophic Cat-5 hurricane. The airport was closed with a damaged terminal and contaminated fuel. The US government wanted to move all the Americans to a damaged convention center with no electricity and uncertain water quality. Instead of citing force majeure and blaming mother nature, our owner, Bill La Macchia Sr. spent his own money [a huge number I can’t reveal] to charter planes and extract passengers via Merida, also relying on a herculean effort by Joe Martinez, owner of Lomas Travel, our destination management company, whose employees all had families impacted by the storm.
Bill and Joe knew that many of those travelers had saved for and eagerly anticipated that trip, which was pretty much ruined. They weren’t legally obliged to do anything. I don’t recall any discussion of the ROI or enhancement to customer lifetime value being weighed. They were in the best position to help, so they took the initiative and committed their organizations to do the right thing. Empowered, loyal employees are essential to success, but the leadership and sense of purpose always starts from the top.
Do you remember what you liked most about your experiences in university?
At Cornell, I was overly involved socially, but still allocated some time for academics. I was an officer for my fraternity, a student-faculty committee member, president of Ye Hosts honorary society, had a couple teaching assistantships, was house manager of the Cornell Concert Commission and a varsity cheerleader.
One of my most memorable experiences was as an event manager for HEC. We assembled an incredible team including Michael Cline and Jim Carmody to do a bar featuring flaming and frozen drinks in the Statler Auditorium foyer. Let’s just say we had a vision and pretty much did our own thing – much to the chagrin of the board. But it was an awesome event with champagnes, caviars, flaming frozen rum drinks, about four tons of ice for a massive bar and multiple lare carvings, homemade dry ice fog machines and a hydrogen explosion to start the event. We broke rules, but the result was spectacular, even though we didn’t have time to teach the bartenders slight-of-hand techniques to make the drinks…
Knowing what you know now, what advice would share with undergraduates or young entrepreneurial minds?
My first suggestion to students would be to follow your passions and discover what you are truly interested in. There may be rough times, but at least you will be pursuing a career that gives you joy.
My second recommendation is to find out if you are really good at what you are passionate about. Pure passion is great, but competency is essential. If you need to improve in any areas to be the best in your field, then you need a plan – that should help you avoid some obstacles.
Finally, it’s important to associate yourself with people and organizations that are ethically
grounded. Stick with people who have a strong work ethic and the moral fortitude to call out and eliminate any fraudulent, or abusive behaviors. This will go a long way in helping you lead by example. If you are great at doing something you love, don’t tolerate jerks – they bring drama, introduce risk, and are rarely worth the damage they inflict.
* * *
The Cornell Hotel Society Executive Board thanks the Cornell Hotel Society – Collegiate Chapter for initiating and conducting the “Conversations with Alumni” project.