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UK: Organised by the Master Innholders, this year’s Hotel Leadership Conference was held at Hilton London Bankside and focussed on the theme ‘Distilling Excellence’.
More than 500 hoteliers attended the two-day event. Tim Hassell, estates director of Thurlestone Hotel and Mullion Cove Hotel, served as chair of the conference agenda.
Data emerged a running theme on day one, particularly the need for hoteliers to improve their analytical capabilities to extract meaningful insights.
For instance, Billy Mohan, head of digital marketing and analytics at Journey Hospitality, shared: “86 per cent of luxury travellers express a preference for unique experiences over material goods… it is now time for change and to create these unique experiences… [shifting] us from can kickers to road pavers.”
Ian Miller, CEO of Crafted, encouraged specialist support. He said: “Have a data analyst. I think data is underutilised at times in the hotel world – you as an industry have access to a wide range of data and information about your customers that other industries do not.
“Having a deeper understanding of how your guests book can help you personalise their experiences in future, as well as look at wider trends to help make better improvements across your hotel,” he added.
On day two, presentations focussed on leadership skillsets and how improved engagement can drive loyalty amongst guests as well as staff.
Mark Robb, consultant and expert on culture and human performance, said: “Not taking risks to enhance the experiences of guests means you are staying static. The opposite of risk culture is a blame culture – not a safety culture. Playing safe overtime leads to mediocre performance and complacency.”
He referenced a Gallop study which revealed that only 10 per cent of the UK workforce is engaged. The immediate line manager was ranked as having the biggest influence on engagement (70 per cent), and that profitability increases 23 per cent when people are truly engaged.
Summarising the Hotel Leadership Conference, Hassell said: “This event simply doesn’t happen without the support of our attendees, sponsors and supporters, all of whom help ensure the Master Innholders raise funds for the education of our hotel leaders of the future. It also would not have happened without the incredible team at Hilton London Bankside for helping to deliver this amazing event.
“As our amazing speakers over these two days have shown, excellence can be found in many different areas within the hotel world. It is now the responsibility of all of us as hoteliers to distil this excellence back at our own hotels, being bold and not afraid to try new things or risk getting things wrong. Excellence lies outside of the comfort zone – and we must venture there to truly distil the excellence we all strive for.”
Awards for General Manager of the Future and Hotelier of the Year were presented to Brigitta Kovács and Gareth Banner respectively.
The gala dinner held on the first evening also raised more than £5000 for charity partners Hospitality Action, Springboard and the Master Innholders Charitable Trust. The funds will be used to support those most in need within the hospitality industry, as well as to contribute to funding Master Innholder educational programmes such as the Aspiring Leaders Diploma and Innholder Scholarship.
