PERSONALITIES
ate is an artwork to me . When I saw many ideas can be realized , everyone liked the experience brought by these efforts , and the personal development of employees brought by the development of Songtsam , all these make me feel happy and joyful .
H : What challenges you the most being a hotelier , and how are you trying to address it ?
BD : The biggest challenge should be how to transform from a family business to a modern corporate management system , which can make things more efficient and policies more reasonable , while maintaining a family atmosphere . In a word – how to achieve internationalization and modernization of the back-end , and personalization of the front-end .
H : Can you offer an example of how you have successfully supported the economic development of one of the local communities where your hotels are based ?
BD : The village where Songtsam was born , Kena Village , is a great example . Twenty years ago , it was a semi-agricultural and semi-pastoral way of life and production .
Twenty years later , the main industry here has been transformed into cultural tourism . Some people are employed in hotel services in Songtsam , some people open Tibetan home visits as must-have experience for Songtsam guests , and some people start to provide eco-food to hotels .
Some followed the example of Songtsam and opened a bed and breakfast hotel and became a tourist practitioner . Under the influence and drive of Songtsam , a small village with 98 families with 421 people now have 10 homestays , three restaurants , 70 people work in hotels , and more than 60 % of the villagers are directly or indirectly involved in the tourism industry .
We have a policy of insisting on hiring locals to give more opportunities to ordinary local people . At present , 92 % of Songtsam ’ s 636 employees are locals . This approach also makes Songtsam ’ s impact on mountain villages and the effect of improving the rural economy sustainable .
H : What do you think the more traditional hotel development community is getting right , and where do you think it needs to improve ?
BD : Believe in your own motivation , believe in the value of time , insist on doing things that your heart recognizes , don ’ t blindly follow others , work hard on the cause , and follow the effect brought by the cause . Perseverance will always bring good results .
H : How and where are you finding happiness , meaning in work today ?
BD : Work itself makes me happy , and practicing at work makes me happy . What we do is to pursue the source of happiness . Therefore , happiness is actually everywhere .
H : What matters to you in business now beside making money , or is that the driver ?
BD : Making money is never a motivation . To me , hotel and travel are my way of communicating with the world and my own way of practicing . These are not motivations .
H : What is your message to the hotel world ?
BD : Be patient , don ’ t worry .
Songtsam Shangri La , which was Baima ’ s ancestral home converted into the first hotel 20 years ago