Travel+Leisure India & South Asia — December 2017

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BEYOND

Experience

JEAN-FRANCOIS DURAND

General Manager, Hyatt Regency

Moscow Petrovsky Park

When I took over as

General Manager of Hyatt

Regency Ekaterinburg,

the hotel was still under

construction. And, we had

the Shanghai Summit

with 13 visiting Presidents

to cater to! During this

time, I learned it’s crucial

to hire the correct talent

for a specific job. A hotel

is a place where people

are connected, where

work and leisure come

together. When the right

people for the task at

hand handle things, the

hotel comes alive with a

character of its own. This

is why you need to know

your staff and understand

their temperament. With

dedication and passion

anything is possible, as

was the case with the

opening of the hotel

during a demanding time.

MICHEL MORAUW

General Manager,

Hyatt Regency Paris Etoile

As intense as every

opening, closing and

running of operations has

been, I’ve always learned

something important from

them. One of my best

takeaways was that it

pays to believe in yourself.

At Hyatt Paris Madeleine,

after the Parisian concept

Cafe M started, one of

the influential food critics

took exception to the fine

china dishes we served

him, calling the deep dish

a “dish that looks like

a Golden Retriever dog

dish.” We were devastated.

But just as we were

thinking of pulling out

the crockery, we noticed

the restaurant started

getting more customers,

and they really loved the

food and the presentation.

Obviously, we stood by

our choice.

SARA KEARNEY

General Manager,

Park Hyatt Chicago

The care that is inherent

to the Hyatt way of

doing things is best

demonstrated in this

example. During the

opening of Park Hyatt

Hamburg, I was struggling

to sleep one night, so

I took a stroll around

the property to realise

that the hotel looked

eerily empty. In the staff

dining room I realised

the company president,

Bernd Chorengel, was

personally cooking a meal

for all the hotel staff. The

energy was electric and

everybody was having a

really good time. It taught

me that when you really

care for people, you bring

out the best in them. The

unconditional care I show

to my staff, they show to

guests, so it’s vital to be

connected to all.

VISHAL MEHRA

General Manager,

Park Hyatt Chennai

After many successful

stints in various roles

across Hyatt properties,

I returned to the UAE

to open Hyatt Capital

Gate, Abu Dhabi. The

experience was life

changing. Seventeen

months of pre-opening, a

majority of it being with

the full team onboard,

meant constant innovation

and engagement. The

millennials today take

jobs with the purpose of

adding a skill. But there is

only so much you can add

if the opening is delayed.

The resilience paid off and

the team that came out

of it was outstanding! It

was an incredible journey

with a multi-talented

team. Later, I had the

opportunity to open Hyatt

Place Dubai/Al Rigga,

another great experience.

MICHEL JAUSLIN

Area Vice President,

Hyatt of France

I experienced one of

my biggest challenges

managing Hyatt Regency

Delhi as GM, when former

Indian Prime Minister

Indira Gandhi was shot.

A mob had approached

our hotel and the staff on

premises did a splendid

job of fending them off.

On a lighter note, I learnt

a few things about Indian

hospitality the hard way.

When I turned up for

a dinner party at 8 pm

as per the time given

by the hosts, I realised

the hosts themselves

were unprepared. Even

other guests arrived late,

giving me the realisation

that you shouldn’t turn

up at the exact time of

invitation. Thereafter,

I made it a point to only

arrive for such invitations

by 10 pm. ▪

Memorable

Launches

Perhaps you’ve wondered what it takes

to make your stay at a hotel special.

The General Managers of select

Hyatt properties tell Shibani Bawa

about their experiences opening and

managing these hotels.

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