Hotel General Managers Tell It All
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
A hotel is like a small city: nearly everything one might need is contained in it. You can wine, dine, chat, sleep, shop and or engage in a host of other activities that may please you. A hotel is all about you ― hundreds of staff, thousands of services and scores of facilities all waiting for you.
Such service is like an orchestra in need of a good conductor ― someone to look at all the fiscal notes, listen to the staff and customers, and satisfy the shareholders of owning companies. The conductor of a hotel is the general manager.
Many general managers at franchised hotels in Seoul come from foreign countries, with tons of experience already under their belts. They come to the hotels six days a week, for more than 12 hours a day. They wander around their hotels more than twice a day, look into every little detail ― whether a picture frame is hung properly or a teaspoon is presented in the right way.
The Korea Times invited four of the leading general managers in Seoul and listened to their hotel stories.
Full of Unpredictability
``You never know what will happen inside the hotel,'' Lee Jung-yeol, general manager of Lotte Hotel, said.
He recalled when he was the banquet manager and a fire broke out in the middle of a ball. ``More than 200 women were dancing on a large stage and the staff had to kneel down to let them step down. We suffered from backaches for a long time,'' he said, smiling.
Jerome Stubert, vice president of operations at Accor Hospitality and general manager of the Novotel Ambassador, recalled when he worked for a hotel in an African country in 1989. ``A general strike broke out and the whole staff ran out to the streets. I literally had to keep the guests and do all the work all day long; I stayed at the hotel 24 hours a day. I never felt a hotel could be that small and that large at the same time!'' he said.
The managers all said that hotels are definitely the places they love. Dealing with the stress of staff training, designing new projects and dealing unexpected episodes still gives them and adrenalin rush and makes them smile on their way to work, they say.
``We aren't always the calmest person in the hotel but we definitely enjoy every bit and bite,'' Adam Simkins, general manager of the Hyatt Regency Incheon, said.
Well Informed Korean Customers
However, the hotel business has become less romantic and more competitive.
``Korean customers have become demanding. They are quick in searching the Internet to for the best service at bargain prices. They are also very much sensitive as to what they get and should get,'' said Gerhard Schmidt of the Westin Chosun. ``We often come across people bargaining for prices they have seen on the Internet or ask for such incredible services ― you can't blame them. They are just well informed.''
Stubert agreed. ``Korea has seen dramatic improvement in the economic field and the level of their service has risen at an incredible pace, too,'' he said. ``You cannot imagine the changes we feel everyday in terms of the economy.''
Open information does not always work well for the hotel management.
Schmidt said it isn't easy for the hotels to raise room rates, which means less money for reinvestment. ``In fact, considering the pace of the Korean economy, the increase rate of room rates is too slow. It leaves little space for the management companies, or the general manager, to draw out large picture,'' he said.
Double-Faced Seoul
Therefore, Korea is not always the most favored location among general managers. They cite heavy intervention into day-to-day management by owning companies, radical labor unions, and soaring living costs here as negative factors.
But they generally think Seoul is a good place to work. ``People are very well educated, they are sophisticated, and work efficiency is quite high. The weather isn't exactly four-seasoned, as I had expected, but the overall living conditions are quite good,'' Schmidt said.
Lee, one of a very small handful of Korean managers in Seoul, said it's time that Korean hotels take further steps and spread what they have learned from franchise hotels. ``I managed to learn from the best foreign hotel experts decades ago. Now we can compete with world-class hotels,'' he said. In fact, Lotte Hotels are planning an aggressive expansion from next year.
So what does it take to be a good general manager taking care of guests and staff?
Simkins thinks not taking things to a personal level is the key. ``You cannot satisfy everyone but if you get stressed about it too much, everyone feels uncomfortable. Don't let things overwhelm you but stick things together,'' he said. ``After all, this is a great job. You travel a lot and see and experience new things. Enjoy!''