The Future of Guest Experience By Samantha Shankman Interviews with CEOs Skift Books of the world’s top hotel brands 2015 The Future of Guest Experience By Samantha Shankman with Greg Oates and Jason Clampet Skift Books 2015 The Future of Guest Experience By SAMANTHA SHANKMAN with GREG OATES, JASON CLAMPET AND SKIFT Published in 2015 by SKIFT 115 W. 30th St. Suite 1213 New York, NY 10001 USA On the web: skif.com Please send feedback to [email protected] Publisher: Skif Editor: Jason Clampet Copyright © 2015 Skif All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher 4 Table of Contents The Global Chains Luxury and Lifestyle Brands Craig Reid Auberge Resorts Frits van Paasschen J. Allen Smith 69 Starwood Four Seasons 8 41 Niki Leondakis Commune Hotels Christopher Nassetta Greg Dogan 72 Hilton Worldwide Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts 12 45 Insights: Kimpton and the Rise of Boutique Hotels Arne Sorenson Nicholas Clayton 75 Marriott International Jumeirah 16 47 Jason Pomeranc SIXTY Hotels Insights: Georgetown Herve Humler 76 University Rethinks Ritz-Carlton Executive Training 50 Brooke Barrett 19 Denihan Hospitality Group Sonia Cheng 79 David Kong Rosewood Hotel Group Best Western International 52 Larry Korman 21 AKA Insights: Luxury Hospitality 81 Mark Hoplamazian Returns to the Human Hyatt Hotels Element Insights: How Alex 24 54 Calderwood’s Ace Hotel Changed the Way We Travel Sébastien Bazin Alan Fuerstman 83 Accor Hotels Montage Hotels & Resorts 27 56 Marketing Organizations David Berg Neil Jacobs Lindsey Ueberroth Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group Six Senses Preferred Hotel Group 30 58 87 Wayne Goldberg Rocco Forte Paul Kerr La Quinta Inns & Suites Rocco Forte Hotels Small Luxury Hotels 33 60 90 Stephen Holmes Carl Michel Jean-François Ferret Wyndham Worldwide Generator Hostels Relais & Châteaux 36 63 93 Insights: Why Every Hotel Rob Katz Ted Teng Brand Wants in on the Vail Resorts The Leading Hotels of the Boutique Business 38 66 World 96 5 6 Introduction Te pace at which the global hospi- Tis collection of 28 CEO inter- physical extravagance. tality industry is changing has reached views captures the strategies and chal- Join the CEOs of lifestyle hospitali- an unprecedented high. lenges of leaders as they consider the ty groups including Commune, SIXTY, Mobile apps, social media, peer impact changing global economic and and Generator Hostels in a discussion reviews, online booking, and an on-de- cultural factors have on their business on the transformation of the boutique mand mindset have completely shifed and how they plan to anticipate and concept into a cultural zeitgeist and travelers’ expectations and given hotels adapt accordingly. how they protect truly boutique expe- the tools and opportunity to engage By collecting their thoughts on a riences from the onslaught of lifestyle customers with unprecedented fre- similar set of topics--from technology brands peddled by corporate hotel quency and accuracy. and marketing to fees and training-- groups. Simultaneously, a growing number we have tackled the hospitality’s most Learn from the CEOs of the four of global travelers is expanding the po- pressing topics from every angle and top hotel marketing organizations tential customer base of every brand, gained a glimpse at what the future of including Leading Hotels of the World, causing a life-or-death fght for loyalty hospitality will truly look like. Relais & Châteaux, Small Luxury Ho- and driving the frequent introduction Read InterContinental Hotels tels, and Preferred Hotel Group as they of new brands and collections to all Group CEO Richard Solomons discuss talk about the rising interest in inde- major hotel groups. brand diferentiation and experiences pendent properties and how customer “Te Internet has entirely changed for every kind of customer, or Marri- habits have fundamentally changed the customers’ expectations. Tey know so ott International CEO Arne Sorenson services they ofer. much about what exists in the hotel in- discuss the importance of marketing in Despite the size, location or sector dustry that they didn’t know ten years building and expanding hotel brands. of their specifc hotels, all of the CEOs ago,” says Accor CEO Sebastien Bazin. Best Western CEO David Kong concluded their comments by men- No longer satisfed with a clean bed talks about technology’s role in chang- tioning technology’s inability to replace and welcoming smile, customers are ing customer expectations and former true hospitality. searching for brands that embody the Starwood Hotels & Resorts CEO Frits As former Starwood Hotels & destination that they’re in, provide a van Paasschen discusses its ability to Resorts CEO Frits van Paasschen sums personalized experience or give them improve the guest experience and free up, “In the end, you can’t download the tools to get in and out exactly how up staf for true engagement. a hotel or outsource a butler. Te they choose. Hilton Worldwide CEO Christo- hospitality business is about going “Nowadays hotels are not merely pher Nassetta touches about the global somewhere, having an experience and hospitality companies; they are lifestyle war for talent and Hyatt Hotels CEO seeing people face-to-face. providers. Guests expect us to inform Mark Hoplamazian compares the risks Dig in as hotel CEOs from Con- them about what’s happening at a and rewards of empowering front line necticut to China discuss guests’ rapid- particular location,” Shangri-La Hotels employees. ly changing expectations, technology’s and Resorts CEO Greg Dogan. Read the CEOs of luxury hotel role in improving and personalizing Hotels are also in a frantic search groups including Ritz-Carlton, Four a stay, and how hotels hire and train a for new employees and shaking up both Seasons, and Jumeirah talk about the nimble workforce. Tey’ll also dispel who and how they train their front changing defnition of luxury and their strategies for digital content line employees in an efort to empower how they’re adapting their products marketing, social engagement and them to stray from a guidebook and and services to meets travelers’ rising post-stay communication in an efort surprise guests as opportunities arise. demands for personalization over to create and keep loyal customers. --Samantha Shankman 7 The Global Chains 8 Starwood Hotels and Resorts Frits van Paaschen Photo courtesy Starwood Hotels and resorts the hospitality industry in technical lenges you face to improve the guest With international tourist innovation, constantly taking its place experience today? arrivals reaching a record as one of, if not the, frst hotel brand to Frits van Paasschen: Te big- 1.087 billion in 2013, travelers introduce a Google Glass app, an Apple gest challenge today is making sure from emerging and leading Watch app, a robotic staf member, and our brands stay relevant and ahead nations are crossing more stellar social customer service. of people’s changing expectations. Te brand is also rapidly expand- Between new generations of travelers borders more frequently than ing overseas, meeting the needs of its people coming from and going to new ever before. increasingly global guest, with plans to destinations around the world and Global hotel brands are tasked double its presence in India and China, experiencing the benefts of technology with responding to these increasingly add up to 20 properties in Africa, and in other facets of their life, we need to sophisticated guests no matter where expand throughout South America. make sure that we move 1,200 hotels in the world they are or where they’re But it wasn’t expanding fast enough and a couple of hundred thousand peo- from. Today that means acting as a for board members: One month afer ple as quickly as possible to meet those portal to a destination’s local culture, Skif spoke with Starwood CEO Frits changing expectations. Tis isn’t just arming travelers with technology to van Paasschen, he resigned his posi- the biggest challenge facing me; more make smart decisions quickly, and cre- tion. importantly, it’s the biggest challenge ating a company culture that encour- His insights into the industry are facing our organization overall. ages staf to step outside their defned still valuable, of course. An edited Skif: Let’s touch on some of those roles. version of the interview follows: changes in guest expectations and Starwood Hotels and Resorts demands. What are some of the broad Worldwide, in particular, is leading Skif: What are the biggest chal- changes that you’re seeing? Are any of 9 them unexpected? ask you whether you know how to why I say that: You’re able now as an van Paasschen: Te fundamental get to our hotel. If you’re on property, associate to know who’s coming into thing here is that most of the change increasingly, we should be able to deal your property. We used to have a print will happen in the coming years will, with you through our mobile app in daily pre-arrival report identifying in fact, be unexpected. Internally, we case there’s something you need or what people want and all kinds of talk in terms of agility being the new want. information about their stays. What smart and that it’s far less important to Tere’s so many more touch points we were fnding was that it was really have a long-range plan or strategy and now where we can learn from you, and hard for our properties to absorb and far more important to decide what you it’s not just by the way of “big data.” respond to that.