As much As they both commAnd the respect of their peers , tom hewitt And GeorG rAfAel both respect the business they love .
ExclusivE vidEos
Winner introductions
Winners discuss service
Winners ’ Mentors
Winners reflect
Achieving success in the hotel business isn ’ t easy , but Tom Hewitt and Georg Rafael — the 2012 recipients of HOTELS ’ Hotelier of the World awards — have had too much fun along the way to pay much attention to the challenges .
Hewitt , this year ’ s Corporate Hotelier of the World , began working at a hotel to pay his way through college , and decades later found himself at the helm of a global third-party management company in Interstate Hotels & Resorts . Significant stops along the way included numerous general manager positions at Sheraton as well as a leadership role at The Continental Companies . “ The hospitality industry gets in your blood ,” Hewitt observes . “ I just loved it . It ’ s a challenging business , but it ’ s a fun business , and it can be a very rewarding career . I ’ ve been blessed .”
The hotel industry was a blessing for Independent Hotelier of the World Rafael as well . At age 16 , at his mother ’ s urging , he left East Berlin and started his career by running the elevators at the Hotel Römerbad in Badenweiler , Germany . In the years that followed , Rafael became InterContinental ’ s youngest GM , helped create one of the world ’ s first true global luxury brands — Regent — and even founded his own Rafael Hotels in the 1980s . “ I love the interaction with colleagues and guests ,” he says of the hotel business . “ It is my life with total conviction .”
On the pages ahead , Hewitt and Rafael discuss their careers and passion for the industry and show why they both deserve HOTELS ’ highest honor .
www . hotelsmag . com November 2012 HOTELS 17