EDITOR ’ S DIARY
PASSION FOR HOSPITALITY
EDITORIAL Jeff Weinstein , Editor In Chief 1.312.274.2226 jweinstein @ hotelsmag . com Barbara Bohn , Managing Editor 1.312.274.2209 bbohn @ hotelsmag . com Bert Ganzon , Senior Art Director 1.312.274.2227 bganzon @ mtgmediagroup . com Steve Vanden Heuvel , Vice President / Creative Director 1.312.274.2218 svandenheuvel @ mtgmediagroup . com Brittney Hackbart , Associate Art Director 1.312.274.2216 bhackbart @ mtgmediagroup . com Carolina Martinez , Freelance Design cmartinez @ mtgmediagroup . com
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Judith Crown , Megan Rowe , Juliana Shallcross , Erin Sund
PUBLISHING David Wood , Publisher 1.312.274.2225 dwood @ hotelsmag . com Bill Kinross , Vice President , Group Publisher 312 / 274-2214 bkinross @ meatingplace . com
INTERNATIONAL ADVISORY BOARD Nakul Anand Executive Director , ITC Ltd ., Gurgaon , India Stephen Bartolin President , Broadmoor Sea Island Co ., Colorado Springs , Colorado Alex Kyriakidis President and Managing Director , Middle East and Africa , Marriott International , Dubai Christopher Nassetta President and CEO , Hilton Worldwide , McLean , Virginia Monika Nerger Chief Information Officer , Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group , Atlanta Paul Sistare President and CEO , Atlantica Hotels International , São Paulo Susan Terry Vice president of culinary and food and beverage operations , Marcus Hotels & Resorts , Milwaukee , Wisconsin
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HOW TO ACHIEVE MAGIC
The new United States president was inaugurated on January 20 , the day I am wrote this diary , and for many it signals a new beginning and hope for greater prosperity , equality , unity and strengthened ethics . It reminds me of where the hotel industry is at right now — at an ebb , but on the verge of a new beginning , assuming COVID-19 is soon under control .
That day also reminds me of an interview I did a few days earlier with Maria Razumich- Zec , regional vice president of The Peninsula Hotels since 2007 and GM at The Peninsula Chicago since 2002 . I interviewed her for our hotelsmag . com website and our daily News & Views newsletter . If you didn ’ t receive it , I urge you to go to hotelsmag . com and register for all of our daily news and feature coverage , as well as our newsletters .
The first question I like to ask all of the subjects for this feature is , “ How are you ?” Most all of us have been through the wringer over the past 12 months and since these features focus as much on personalities as responsibilities , it is a natural ice breaker . For the most part , as I ’ ve done these interviews over the past six months , everyone talked about survival and planning for better days , but not without having been humbled by the pandemic .
Maria talked about how going through the pandemic and having to lay off staff softened her up and made her a gentler hotelier . “ You can ’ t help but become extremely compassionate during a crisis of this proportion ,” she said .
My only hope is that all of you have “ softened up ” a bit , as well . As the industry rebounds and starts to employ more staff again , please try to avoid having rough edges and short fuses . Hold on to this compassion we have all felt and be more ethical as it will serve you as a leader , make your teammates happier and , in turn , guests will notice and appreciate the palpable positivity . It
Editor In Chief is what guests need , too , and will come to expect . So , there is a payoff to showing your softer side .
The challenges of today also have made Maria very appreciative of all the little wins . So , when you are searching for ways to give yourself a pep talk , remember all the little positive things that happen each day . It might require you to slow down just a bit to notice and appreciate them . It is worth the time and effort , and it will be good for your mental health .
This month , our Special Report is titled “ The great reset ” ( p18 ) and focuses on how hoteliers are retraining their employees , recalibrating staffing needs and trying to motivate team members once again . If you are successful in reestablishing buy-in from staff , yes , guests will notice and , most importantly , trust you .
Leadership moving forward must look a lot like what Maria described : more empathetic , transparent and adaptable . It ’ s what this moment requires .
When I closed the interview by asking Maria for a message to hoteliers , she simply said , push forward , give it your all and be compassionate . “ It ’ s all about being together as a team . I always talk about how together everyone achieves magic .”
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