Where are the Role Models Gone?

Where are the role models?

Where are the Role Models?

A Swiss hotelier, Chef Tim Madl
At work sought a good role model
He looked far and wide
Much in vain he tried
Then fumed off to the Alps to yodel!

Mentor, exemplar, paragon, shining example, star, hero, superstar, epitome, idol, motivator – these are a few words one may find in Thesaurus to synonymize someone worth imitating.

In a freewheeling conversation a few weeks ago, with an industry paragon, the former president of the Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts, Mr. Rajiv Kaul talked to me of hospitality industry professionals nowadays in search of good mentors. He likened it to Don Quixote attacking the windmills, mistaking them for giants. Mr. Kaul gently remonstrated, “where are the genuine role models, those industry stalwarts, gone?” He shared his angst at the fact that both domestically as well as internationally, he receives this feedback from associates working in the best of brands, constantly in the hunt for a genuine role model.

This set me pondering… are we barking up the wrong tree and being quixotic when we look far and wide, like Chef Tim Madl (in my limerick above), for a good role model?

Don Quixote, the paragon of chivalry, in the book by the same name, written by Miguel de Cervantes in 1605 & 1615, battles the windmills as he believes them to be ferocious giants. He thinks that after defeating all of them, he will be able to collect the spoils and the glory as a knight. However, when he charges the ‘Giants,’ his lance gets caught in a sail, and he is knocked off his horse.

Many of us hoteliers battle our hospitality demons quixotically, hoping for mentoring and motivation, and leaders to coach us. Along the way, we are knocked off our steeds in this quixotic search. For, the truth is that Hook, Line, and Sinker Role Models (viz. perfect role models) are as hard to find as an ‘ignis fatuus,’ a ‘will-o’-the-wisp,’ or a ‘chimera.’

Is an ideal role model the real McCoy, in the hoteliering realm today?

I have never personally had an ‘ideal’ role model in my 23 years of active hospitality career, and most of us are probably in similar boats. Along the way, I realised I would have to create my role models from leaders around me… a ‘pick and choose’ if you please. Our industry is largely labour-intensive and there is no dearth of leaders to select ‘best practices’ from.

What stops us from identifying the good qualities of our leaders, and then emulating them into our hospitality DNA?

I had European bosses at one point in my career, and I noted them always bending and picking up paper trash while walking around the property… a sight to behold, as both towered over six feet tall. This discipline was wanting in my DNA, and in that of the 650 employees of our resort. Watching this humbling leadership trait, I followed suit, and soon, I noticed many people in my department doing so too! This has become a part of me now, and I do this wherever I go.

Antithetical to simply observing ‘best practices,’ I also advocate identifying ‘worst practices’ by looking to leaders with questionable praxis, to self-learn and pledge to yourself that you will never do what they do, even as you grow up the corporate ladder.

Here are personal examples of the benefit of identifying and utilising ‘worst practices.’

A General Manager I worked under, shunned meeting guests, perennially saying that he was busy. Another General Manager once told me that I could never hope to grow beyond the Head of Department level, as there would always be an expat in that position. These ‘worst practices’ of guest orientation and employee centricity spurred me to excellence, and I always made it a point to meet and make myself available to all my guests; and also, constantly exhort, coach, and motivate all subordinates in my organisation to grow.

Arguably, modelling yourself on your leader’s ‘best practices’ can be easier than modelling oneself by identifying and avoiding ‘worst practices.’

Why? Because at times you may have to go against the flow to avoid doing ‘worst practices,’ more so if your superior endorses these poor practices. Also, avoiding these bad practices is hard work, as opposed to following the right ones.

To illustrate my point, here is an example.

Sajid, an Executive Housekeeper worked at a luxury hotel in Chennai and saw his General Manager always avoiding meeting guests. He noticed that most of the HODs followed suit, and the complaining guest was often left to ‘dry on a hanger.’ He decided to go against the flow after watching this ‘worst practice,’ and made it a point to meet with all guests who wished to share their feedback. This was harder work than if he would follow his General Manager’s example. If conversely, his GM followed the ‘best practice’ of meeting with his guests, the HODs would do the same too, and Sajid would not have had to run from pillar to post, placating guests complaining about the hotel.

‘Hoteliering is a passion,’ opines Rajiv Kaul, and I concur to this with knobs on!

‘A manager who is not inspired, I guarantee you the fish stinks at the head,’ says Anthony Lark, who, at one time was the General Manager for Adrian Zecha’s first Aman resort, Amanpuri, in Phuket, Thailand, and who went on to open 3 Aman hotels thereafter. Strong words, perhaps, but the takeaway is that passion is one of the most important things to look for in a Role Model.

A role model Doyen must possess these Dozen ‘conditio sine qua non.’
  1. PASSION – This is underlying, and a must for all successful leaders.
  2. ONE WHO LEADS FROM THE FRONT – Leaders who follow the rules themselves, and who will never ask their subordinates to do something at work that they will not do themselves.
  3. CHANGE LEADER – Champions change, and is ever ready to innovate, especially in times of VUCA (volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity).
  4. RESPECT – Commands and gives respect.
  5. E.S.G. CHAMPION – Cares genuinely and acts positively for the Environment, Social, and Governance guidelines.
  6. DISCIPLINE – Self-care, self-discipline, respect of time (self & others), mastery of thoughts, focus, ability to resist impulses, and one who sees projects through to completion.
  7. COMMITTED – Focused Leaders honour their word, and always do what is promised. If unable to do so, they set re-aligned commitments as close as possible to the original commitment.
  8. ETHICS, HONESTY, FAIRNESS – Strong moral fibre, truthful, straightforward and honest, being mindful of the impact on others, not doing anything one wouldn’t like done to oneself, etc
  9. OWNERSHIP & ACCEPTANCE OF RESPONSIBILITY – Accepts one’s own, or team’s mistakes… Do not try to cover up mistakes or brush them under a carpet.
  10. EMPATHY – Tries to understand another’s point of view, and hears all sides; re-routes wherever feasible, to enhance productivity. More importantly, is caring and gives a hearing ear to others and their challenges.
  11. MOTIVATOR – Enthuses teams, appreciates their work, exhorts them with a vision to grow, and helps employees improve or sustain their performance.
  12. TRUSTWORTHY – Builds trust through deeds and actions, rather than through words. A ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ to people who rely on them.
‘Tis a Tall task worthy of a Tall Leader to have All these Tall Tenets!

Should you ever find such a leader, make the most of your time with them, as the odds are heavily stacked against you finding another such, in your career.

When you do not find the Ideal Role Model in your job, go ahead and use the ‘pick and choose’ option for emulating their ‘best practices,’ along with circumventing and learning from their ‘worst practices,’ to achieve excellence.

For those of you who have read my earlier blog in ET Hospitality World titled What would you like your WORK Tombstone to say?, you will note that the above ‘Dozen to be a Doyen’ leadership traits are what many of us would also want our people to remember us by.

And, as we look for all of these qualities in our Role-Models, remember that we also need to pay this forward, and one day become role models for others too.

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM June 2022

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What would you like your Work Tombstone to say?

What would you like your Work Tombstone to say about you?

What would you like your work tombstone to say about you?

Imagine an epitaph inscribed, ‘I’m glad I gave my all to my job! Nothing else matters.’

Now visualise your life represented as a stove with four burners on it, each burner symbolising a part of your life. The first burner represents your family, the second burner your friends, the third burner your health, and the fourth burner your work. The Four Burners Theory by James Clair says that to be successful you have to cut off one of your burners. And, to be more successful you have to cut off two. The Four Burners Theory reveals a truth everyone must deal with: nobody likes being told they can’t have it all, but we all have constraints on our time and energy. Hence, every choice has a cost.

Which burners have you cut off? Are you aware of the burners you have cut off, and the consequences of the same?

Many of us turn on the work burner to a high flame in our 20s and 30s, alongside perhaps, the friends’ burner. By the 40s & 50s, the health and family burners generally get more active. Thereafter, the work burner largely fades, and the health and family and friends’ burners interplay. While this is not cast in stone, there are exceptions to the rule. Captain CP Krishnan Nair, the founder of the Leela Palaces and Resorts, is a prime example of this exception, who turned up his work burner to the highest level once he crossed 60, an age when most hang up their work boots. To some extent, this also applies to P.R.S. Oberoi, for he became more active in his golden years.

For most people, the perspective on life changes as one approaches the golden years.

Spirituality, happiness, peace, equanimity, a Zen-like attitude, work-life balance, and stress management, are the buzz-words for Gen Xers as they approach self-actualization. While some continue to keep the work burner in a conflagration mode, many begin to realise that time waits for no one, and they turn to their friends, family, and health burners, to achieve a different and more holistic purpose in life. The recent pandemic has also spurred this thinking, as many have lost friends or family over the past two years to this dreadful virus.

Albert Einstein was once staying at Tokyo’s Imperial Hotel when a courier came to the door to make a delivery. The courier either refused a tip or Einstein had no small change, but Einstein wanted to give the messenger something nonetheless. So, on a piece of hotel stationery, Einstein wrote in German his theory of happiness: ‘A calm and modest life brings more happiness than the pursuit of success combined with constant restlessness.’ The bellhop saved this note. Subsequently, in an auction in Jerusalem, this note on happiness was sold to an anonymous European bidder for $1.56 million. Einstein was estimated to have an IQ of 160, but his Emotional Intelligence (viz. EQ – Emotional Quotient) seems pretty much to have been up there too, for he realised the worth of the pursuit of happiness over work success.

Whatever the choice one makes, one needs to make peace with it. There is no right or wrong choice, as long as one is content with the decision one makes on which burner to tend to.

However, whatever choice we make on which burner to concentrate on, one day, we will be in the past… whether work-wise or life-wise.

What would you then like your epitaph to say about your work achievements? What should your Work Tombstone say about you?

In the pursuit of this article, I called and spoke to several Vice Presidents, Managing Directors, and Entrepreneurs within the hospitality industry, and asked them what one legacy they would like to leave behind at their workplace, once they would graduate to the next phase of their lives, and what would they like their work tombstone to say about them?

A few wished to be remembered for their tenacity at work, their passion for excellence, or for giving their utmost (100%) to their jobs.

The majority spoke of professional soft strengths and ethical qualities they would like to be remembered for – being a great mentor, a caring leader, or a straightforward, fair, and honest leader.

How many of us can define our contributions to our jobs which are beyond the regular profitability parameters?

While, generating EBIDTA for our owners is important, and it is the primary reason for us being recruited for our jobs; it is the legacy of passion, ethics, impartiality, and mentoring that we will be remembered for.

Even as we are delighted and proud when our son or daughter is successful and seen as a ‘regular chip of the old block,’ we are also thrilled to see our legacies living on and practiced by people we may have mentored in our professional lives. More than achieving our work targets, the accomplishments of one’s mentees, which they duly credit to you, tend to give us much more far-reaching delight than other KRAs we may have achieved in our jobs.

Personally, my greatest joy is being remembered for the work I did, which has benefited my associates, colleagues, and teams. I am gratified when people come up to me and say that my passion and interest in their learning and development far outweigh any other work relationships they may have had with other leaders. And, I am equally elated when people remember me for my ethical qualities, rather than my professional achievements.

So, what keeps you ticking in your job?

What is the reason for your existence? What is it your Work Tombstone would say about you? For which attribute would you want to be remembered most? Your achievements for yourself, or your achievements for others?

On a lighter note, here’s a topical limerick I have composed for the occasion…

There was a hotelier from Boston
Who wrote his own tombstone
“I worked all hours, etched he
Not caring for friends or family
Now eventually, I’m all alone”

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM May 2022

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Of Waffles, Baggage, and More…

Customer delight goes way beyond regular SOPs.

Breakfast at a luxury resort… somewhere in India

“Can I have a waffle please?” asks a young, sarong-wrapped guest gaily, looking excited to be in this environment on her family holiday.

“Yes Madam.” says the young chef at the waffles and pancake counter. There were a host of toppings on offer, though not of the frozen variety.

“Can you put a scoop of vanilla ice cream on it?” asks Ms. Sarong, demurely.

“No Madam, we do offer ice creams at lunch and dinner buffets, but not at breakfast,” answers the budding chef.

Ms. Sarong persists, “But can you not serve my waffle with a scoop of vanilla ice cream?”

The young waffle & pancake chef chimes a collective ‘nix,’ ‘nada,’ and ‘nyet,’ by uttering “Sorry Madame.”

A last-ditch effort by the petite sarong-wrapped damsel floored me (I happened to be waiting to order my waffle, and hence had a birds-eye view)… she told the ‘The Rock of Gibraltar’ chef coyly, “It is my birthday today.”

The Rock wavered for a moment, batted his eyelid, and then continued to stick his feet in, refusing to budge from his Saran-wrapped position. “Sorry madam, I cannot serve you ice cream at breakfast,” he averred.

T’was a wretched sight to see the guest agreeing to the ‘Waffle a la mode du Chef Rock of Gibraltar,’ as she traversed dejectedly back to her table, to anticipate an average breakfast on the beginning of what was supposed to be a celebratory day for her!

There is a chance that this guest may go elsewhere the next time.

Moral: Guests may forget what the hotel associate says, but they will never forget how the hotel made them feel.

Check-in at an airport counter… also, somewhere in India

“Even the elephant carries but a small trunk on his journeys. The perfection of travelling is to travel without baggage” … Henry David Thoreau.

Alas, Henry never married, and hence probably did not fathom the lady traveller!

On a busy pre-Dassehra weekend, I had a first-hand experience of revenge travel mayhem at an airport. I was standing in an abominably long line, awaiting my turn at the check-in counter.

I finally pushed ahead to the counter, and asked the gaunt, harassed check-in counter assistant about my flight. He claimed he had already called out for passengers for my destination, and now the counter had closed for my flight. Reminding him that we were still 50 mins from the flight, I asked how he could dare close the counter before time. I put my luggage on the belt and insisted he check us in.

Looking for an excuse to stall us, he told me our single suitcase weighed 30 kg. I told him it was so, as we were two passengers. He objected, splitting hairs on the fact that we had two separate PNRs, which permitted us to have one bag each of 15 kgs. As my wife and I were the travellers, I asked him what the problem was, so long as we had 30 kgs between the two of us. He continued reading me the rule book. Amidst this arguing, he nevertheless printed the baggage tag and initiated the process of handing over the stub.

My wife, standing afar thus far, and understandably cheesed at this Balaam’s ass’ stuck-up behaviour, vented her exasperation on his comportment. This annoyed our Paper-Tarzan at the counter, and he audaciously tore the just-printed luggage stub, telling me that now he was not checking our luggage in. I had to bite in my angst and apologise to PT, who was probably weighed down by his own emotional baggage, and request him to re-issue the luggage stub. PT did so, grumbling away, and then nearly threw his back out while trying to straighten the bag on the belt whilst attaching the stub… retribution from the skies I guess!

Moral: Keep your ego aside while dealing with a customer. Standard Operating Procedures must delight and not red-tape the customer.

Standard Operating Procedures, aka SOPs, define a path, a process for associates to walk on. However, the service industry must realize that SOPs have the ability to frustrate the customer, aka guest; and must be flexible to the guest and situation, keeping within acceptable parameters.

The service industry promises features, advantages, and benefits. Somewhere it has lost out on delighting the customer! Customer delight may vary from person to person. At an airline check-in counter, customer-orientated processes along with conviviality are sufficient at most times. Yet, how often do we ask for seats of our choice and are told by the airline associate that the flight is sold out; then board the aircraft, only to discover empty seats galore?

Customer delight goes way beyond regular SOPs. Decades ago, it was sufficient to be proficient with SOPs in order to delight a customer. Not anymore. The traveller today expects to be delighted impromptu. No longer does the customary complimentary cake delight the guest on their special occasion… they want an in-the-moment delightful experience.

They need ice cream on their waffle! 

Why the kerfuffle
Over a waffle
Or, the commotion
Over a check-in
Put the guest ahead
Don’t be pig headed
Follow SOPs
Yet, delight to please

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM October 2021

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The H.R. Manager’s Delight

The Human Resources Manager’s delight lies in a current cup of mixed H.R. challenges consisting of minimal woes and maximum advantages. The current and ongoing pandemic has stressed most businesses, none more so than the services sector. The hospitality and travel sector would never have wished this happenstance upon their worst enemy. Yet, through these times of duress, one department has a lot to thank providence for the Covid-19 phenomenon. That department is Human Resources. By now, they have got over the stress of drastically reducing their organization’s employee count. Post this, the HR department can probably count more positives in the offing, especially for the route ahead.

Employee metrics have dropped drastically. Hotels that were operating at a 1:2.5 ratio (1 room:2.5 employees) have dropped this ratio by up to half. For example, resorts currently experiencing 50-60% occupancies thanks to ‘revenge travel,’ have discovered they can work with much lesser numbers. This was necessitated by a sparse cash flow brought about by the steep drop in the top-line revenue. This is the main reason for the Human Resources Manager’s delight!

A 154 room luxury resort in Goa did an 80% occupancy in Nov 2019 with 353 employees. Currently operating with 180 employees, it has done a 62% occupancy in Nov 2020. While operations are being stretched, the fact is that one can achieve such a performance. This is definitely going to influence promoters and operators to stay with reduced numbers in the future. After all, due to exorbitant labour costs in the west, this has always been the trend. The Indian hospitality sector has been correcting employee metrics gradually over the past decade. The pandemic has now hastened the process and probably made the H.R. manager’s job more interesting.

Let us analyse the HR department’s KPI’s in today’s scenario. Here is a spin doctor’s largely positive analysis of the H.R. Manager’s path for 2021 and ahead.

PROCESS

Employee Multi-Functionality is now the name of the game. Pre-Covid19, Recruitment concentrated mainly on education, skills, personality, and experience. Now, since H.R. has reduced the recruitment count, the HR manager can additionally look for multiple competencies & behavioural skills.

Let me explain this with the same example of the aforesaid luxury hotel in Goa. A year ago, with 353 employees, it ran with an attrition rate of 50% annually. The H.R. department had to recruit to replace 176 employees annually.

In the current depressed job market, attrition is expected to fall significantly by up to half of earlier levels. This means that where earlier 2 employees attrited, now one will leave. With the employee count of this hotel currently at 180, attrition is forecasted to drop significantly (to 25%). The number of replacements in 2021 for this hotel may then be forecasted at only 45 employees. This drop from 176 to 45 employees to be replaced annually, will constitute nearly a 75% decrease in recruitment numbers.

What follows is that H.R. should now be able to perform their processes for a leaner number, much more effectively. A lower Attrition and Absenteeism rate, along with lesser Open Job Requisitions will support a higher Quality of Hire, Quality Interviewing Time, and a higher Job Offer Acceptance Rate. These would be some of the benefits accruing from this serendipitous situation.

The H.R. challenge here, if any, may be in replacing the blue-collar worker. With an enforced lockdown, India has witnessed for the first time, a reverse migration. Migrant Labour has returned to their towns and villages and are using their acquired skills to start their own businesses.

A CDP (chef de partie) who was earning ₹45000 p.m. in a 5-star hotel in Delhi, returned to his village in Uttar Pradesh during a forced retrenchment. He availed of a government scheme to purchase five milch buffaloes. After deducting upkeep and EMI expenses, he today makes a profit of ₹60000 p.m. Why would he come back to the city?

FINANCIAL

The obvious organizational benefit of a lower employee count would be a lower Payroll Cost in real terms. Now, this cost is now being reduced further. Along with reducing employees, most hospitality organizations are also lowering salaries (by lowering existing salaries and recruiting at lower salaries).

Organizations nowadays do not need to spend on recruitment in the manner they used to. Another area of expense reduction then, is the Cost per Hire, as there is now a supply glut.

Generating savings at the cost of the employee may help the P&L in the now, but never in the long run. Encouraging cross and multi-functional positions, (mentioned in the ‘Process’ KPI), will assist in lowering costs through lean employee numbers.

The H.R. Challenge here would be how to motivate employees to be more productive at the same salary.

EMPLOYEE DEVELOPMENT

To understand how satisfied employees are with the HR department’s services, one measures the NPS (Net Promoter Score) of HR. Using the NPS, one can also measure to what degree, employees recommend the organization to others. In the current context, more concentration can be given by H.R. towards development activities like Onboarding, Training, and Performance Management.

There are several examples of hospitality organizations around the world who have engaged their work-force during the lows. Not only has this helped in the continuous development of the employee, but it has also kept them motivated.

The H.R. Challenge is in staving off inadvertent cost-cutting of L&D measures normally used to motivate high performers. Also, in the drive to reduce costs, the training manager must not be made redundant. As Steve Jobs famously said, “You cannot mandate productivity, you must provide the tools to let people become their best.”

STRATEGIC

A certain standalone international luxury hotel in Bangalore truly does standalone. It is the only hotel which has not retrenched its permanent employees and has continued to pay complete salaries. It is a brand deeply ensconced in ethics and compliance, which has stood by its employees. Recently, the hotel’s Director of Sales was approached by an Indian luxury brand. She was offered higher emoluments to join them. She refused, as she appreciated her company’s values. The company’s strategic H.R. decision to support and value their people during tough times certainly paid off in this case. This particular retention was the Human Resources Manager’s delight.

Innovation is often a key driver of business success. A strategic long term goal of an H.R. department is to create an environment of Innovative Employee Behaviour along with increased Employee Engagement. Higher levels of Employee Satisfaction via HR Initiatives will lead to higher Employee Productivity. This, in turn, will increase Employee Value to the organization.

The H.R. Challenge here is in changing employee mindset to accepting the new normal.

Another strategic H.R. challenge I foresee, thanks to lean staffing levels, lies in maintaining a work-life balance for the employees. Confucius said, “Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” Hence it is said that if you want creative workers, you must give them enough time to play.

Changing employee mindset to the current scenario, and maintaining a work-life balance will be tasks, easier said than done. It will take some serious application from the H.R. department to achieve them.

In summation, the Human Resources Manager’s delight lies in the fact that through these challenging times, their mug of joy overflows. For, the advantages of the current situation far outweigh their demitasse of woes!

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM December 2020

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Ethically Speaking

“Wishing you many happy returns on your sixtieth birthday,” so saying, I called my friend, Mahesh. He replied, “Rajan thanks for the greetings, but to be frank, my birthday is on 5th December and not today, on 2nd April. For the purpose of saving one academic year, this date of 02nd April was indicated by my father on my school admission form.”

The above is not an isolated event, it happens frequently.

During the Chemistry lab period in the PUC days, there were experiments on identifying an element defined by sequence; by performing the dry test, wet test, and then the confirmatory tests. The demonstrator used to tell us ‘during exams, don’t waste time on the first two tests; go straight to the confirmatory test, and if you get time, do the previous ones. Bypassing the system with false birth certificates or taking short cuts was the name of the game.

Engineering Drawing was one of the time-consuming subjects in college. Unlike the CAD/ CAM environment today, where designs are made on computers, we had to make elaborate engineering drawings. Each assignment made on an A2/A3 drawing sheet needed an elaborate setup of a drawing board, mini drafter, T-square, compass, divider, set square, etc. It used to take around 2-3 hours to complete an assignment. The practise of GT (Glass Tracing) among hostelites was quite common. The GT procedure was simple. An assignment completed by a sincere student was glass traced by other students. A table lamp was kept in a bucket covered with a glass sheet; the blank sheet was aligned over the completed sheet. The lit lamp helped the student trace the original and the assignment could be completed in no time. The general consensus among the student fraternity was that the guy who took all the effort to complete the drawing in the 1st angle, 3rd angle, and a sectional view, was an idiot, while the people who copied it in one fifth the time were intelligent and smart.

In one humorous instance, Iqbal Singh, from the Civil Engineering batch, was so ‘meticulous’ that apart from tracing the drawing, he copied the name and the roll number of the original student! The scene is no different today, for several agencies offer ready-made projects for engineering students for a fee.

A certain lecturer used to share with his colleagues, his life-long ambition of becoming a Vice-Chancellor (VC) of a university. Over a while, he moved up the hierarchy of senior lecturer, reader, and finally became a professor. A post for a VC was advertised in the papers. He applied but came to know that, more than merit, caste and money played an important role in the recruitment for this position. He managed to raise around Rs 3 crores for this, yet he was shocked to see the post eventually going to the highest bidder. The professor pulled back his application.

Much later, an advertisement appeared for another VCs post. This time, he knew the crucial role of politicians and middlemen. He developed contacts, moved heaven and earth to raise around Rs. 5 crores; despite being questioned by his friends, from an ethics and ROI perspective. The attempt for this second time to the post also eluded him. He committed suicide later.

I used to believe that such respectable positions need not be advertised but were filled by selecting eminent people with exceptional credentials. As Nirad Chowdhury wrote in the Autobiography of an Unknown Indian, an Indian’s faith in a bribe is infinite and unshakable. It is an infallible remedy for all workday inconveniences.

Academicians have used the terms ethics and morality interchangeably. Some people think that morality is personal and normative whereas ethics indicates the standards of good and bad as decided by community settings. It can be also looked at from a perspective of means and the ends. People have their own yardsticks in justifying their actions. As Robert Pirsig writes in the Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, and what is good, Phaedrus, and what is not good – need we ask anyone to tell us these things? The three examples to illustrate the point are:

  1. Ratan Tata used to say, “Why should I spend time with bureaucrats in Delhi? They are supposed to do their work and I am supposed to do mine.” On the other hand, (the late) Dhirubhai Ambani had a different take. “You offer naivedya to God while visiting a temple. Why not deal with bureaucrats on a similar line?”
  2. The Karnataka Vidhana Soudha has an inscription on its façade: ‘Government’s work is God’s Work.’ I overheard a babu saying, “Anyway it is God’s work. Why should I?”
  3. A departmental store was run by two partners for 30 years. The 2nd generation was to take over the business. The first partner’s son who had passed out from an elite management institute asked his father, “We have learned all the aspects of running a business, the one topic I am not clear is about ethics. Can you elaborate on the same? The father explained, “it is quite elementary. Imagine a lady buys a dress for Rs. 1000 and while paying at the billing counter she inadvertently pays Rs, 2000. Now my son, the question of ethics comes, should we tell our partner or not.”

My niece Rupali Patil teaches in an upmarket public school in Whitefield Bengaluru. She narrated some interesting anecdotes while conducting on-line examinations. The students are asked to keep the laptop at a specific angle to ensure they do not look at any material on their lap while writing answers. Parents are requested not to walk around or prompt the students while answering the question papers. Some parents have written papers themselves. One audacious father dared to sit underneath the table and prompt the answers. When asked how it was detected, I gleaned that the student used to normally score 10 out of 50, but scored 40 in that exam; he subsequently boasted to his friends how his father had helped him.

While websites like exam.net are used to ensure that students do not lose their focus on the screen, or use the second browser to get answers, by locking down; ingenious means are used to work around the system.

The school being in Whitefield, Bengaluru the following conjectures were thought of:

  1. Considering the location and the school fees, is it safe to assume that a majority of student’s families belong to the upper middle class, well-educated with Graduate/Post Graduate degrees?
  2. Is it safe to assume that the parents are working in renowned MNCs (Indian or International) with well-established guidelines on Vision, Mission, Values, and Ethics policies? If so, should there be a divergence in behaviour between the professional life of a manager vis-à-vis that of a parent?

Education can be perceived as an end to realize one’s potential, or it can be simply a means to get a job in earning a livelihood. The former makes us holistically look at life, whereas the latter makes it transactional. Philosopher Immanuel Kant says that a rational human being is an end in himself and not a means to achieve something. When our attitude and behaviour are oriented towards means, quality becomes the main casualty.

Abraham Lincoln in his letter to his son’s headmaster wrote:

“Teach him if you can that a dollar earned is of far more value than five found. In school teach him it is far more honourable to fail than to cheat. Teach him to have faith in his own ideas, even if everyone tells him they are wrong!”

On a personal note, now when I call my friends, with trepidation I first ask “Before wishing you birthday greetings, is today your actual or official birthday?”

We set our own standards: “Jahaan hum khade rahtey hain; wahin se kataar shuru hoti hai!” – Wherever I (honorific) stand, the queue starts from there!.

Jai ho ‘Atmanirbhar’ Bharat!

Rajan Parulekar – Director, Hospitality Paradigm

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The four noble truths

The first sermon Buddha delivered after enlightenment was on the Four Noble Truths.

  1. The truth of suffering
  2. The truth of the origin of suffering
  3. The truth of the goal
  4. The truth of the path to the goal

Quite often it is felt that Buddha was pessimistic and was against the good things in life when he uttered the first noble truth that ‘Life is Suffering’ (Dukkha). It is not so. The term suffering can be interpreted in terms of day-to-day anxieties, irritations, etc. When we are all by ourselves, the thought of something missing, that we are not our ideal self, the current problems, start troubling us. The truth is: we do not think, the thoughts happen to us by default; without our choice. These random thoughts include the pain of earning a living, keeping the near and dear ones (and also the professional colleagues) happy, job uncertainties, etc. For those going through an existential dilemma, the pain of being me, the purpose of my life, Who Am I maybe also a part of constant irritation. The constant chattering of the mind from past to future is THE first noble truth, the truth of suffering!

How do we address this perennial irritation? We feel by working hard in our existing jobs or business, we may be able to address the uncertain future. Some people feel that the latest mobile or car may make them happy. Those with an intellectual/spiritual disposition of mind may resort to reading self-help books or attend spiritual retreat/personality development programs. People work on these different options hoping to calm their chattering minds. But beyond a superficial feeling of well-being, the pain resurfaces!

Do self-help books really help? In the US alone, self-help is around a $50 Billion industry. Despite being the pioneers in self-help along with the latest objects of desire, the country has an alarming crime and divorce rate, with a pervasive feeling of loneliness. Bhutan, a country without a commercial self-help industry is considered as one of the happiest countries. Incidentally research shows that people who are dependent on self-help books invariably tend to buy another book within the next 18 months! Paradoxically it is only the (fake) Gurus who make money, leaving their subjects poor, and the latter looking out for new techniques all the time! Our constant endeavour to drive away the pain either by acquiring new objects or self-improvement techniques is the root cause of suffering; the second Noble Truth.

After running on this hedonistic/spiritual treadmill for long; somehow the mind gets exhausted. You say to yourself: enough is enough, and stop trying! You accept the way you are; you accept your chattering mind. And lo behold, magic happens! There is a gap between consecutive thoughts. Your thought process slows down. Now you start seeing gaps, the emptiness between two thoughts, and you start arriving at peace with yourself. Your mind shifts from the past/future treadmill to the present moment! This is the third noble truth, the truth of the goal.

But these gaps are intermittent, ephemeral. If you start craving for the gaps, you go back to the first noble truth. The truth of suffering!

The media has conditioned us in making us believe that multitasking is good and that one should try to compress as many activities in the shortest possible time, which can make us productive and in turn lead to happiness. Nothing can be farther from the truth than this view. While watching TV, if a commercial appears, immediately we turn to the remote. We drink coffee while watching TV, we read a newspaper while having breakfast, and we WhatsApp messages during meals. We are trying to keep our minds busy to avoid the pain of the chattering mind. Most of these activities we do are in an auto-pilot mode: fingers on the mobile, with eyes on the TV screen, while sipping tea; but with the mind chattering at the speed of light about an important client meeting!

Let us understand the fourth noble truth, the truth of the path to the goal. Imagine you are making a cup of tea. Pour the water into the kettle, feel the sensation. Watch the water boiling and feel the steam and the warmth. Pour the tea powder into the kettle, smell the aroma of tea leaves in the boiling water. Allow the tea to percolate, watch your mind while pouring the tea slowly in the cup. Sit comfortably in your chair, and start drinking it with mindfulness. Observe the sensations at your lips, the tongue, and the way it travels down your food pipe. While doing this, you are in the present moment all the time and appreciating the tea with all the five senses: the aroma, the taste,  the colour, the warmth of the cup as well as sensation while tea is going down the gullet. When you perform every action in a similar mindful way, you are disconnecting the chattering mind and that is the fourth noble truth: the truth of the path to the goal! Practise even ordinary activities with total awareness and complete attention. Let it be choiceless.

All actions are intrinsically noble: sending a mail to a client or a WhatsApp message to a friend is in no way superior to cleaning the sink or washing the clothes! You do not have to outsource the latter activities to servants thinking them (both the activity as well as the servant) to be inferior! Every activity whether small or big, if done mindfully leads to salvation! And that is the truth of the path to the goal.

When we are multitasking with a chattering mind hovering in the past or the future, we are nowhere; acting like a zombie, no different than a robot – but perennially suffering. A robot in a way is still better, at least it does not suffer!

When we are doing one task at a time with complete awareness, we are in the present moment. That is the journey from nowhere to now and here, a paradigm shift from confusion to enlightenment! Be Happy!

Rajan Parulekar – Director, Hospitality Paradigm

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Avoid like the Plague

Avoid like the Plague
Hospitality Covidioms ~ an idiomatic approach to the ‘Covidian’ era.

In these masked, socially distanced times never has the idiom “Avoid like the Plague,” been understood better.

Though I wish nothing better than for us to dodge the Covid-19 bullet, reality augurs on a different plane. This hurtful lallapaloosa has been thrown smack dab at us and has kept us under siege. It is now for us to mask it out effectively. This ain’t a time to cry me a river or behave like a cat on a hot tin roof.

Experience (positive or negative) is one of life’s biggest teachers. Negative experiences wire humans to learn quicker. Were we to avoid it like the plague and steer clear from being thrown under this Covid bus, would we emerge stronger? We would surely not have developed into what we are today if we had not experienced this calendar year 2020. Woody Allen rightly said, “we are the sum total of our choices,” – it is these choices we make during distraught times like these, which will define us.

Covid-19 falls into this category of negative experiences, something one would desire like a hole in the head.

We cannot avoid it like the plague that it is, so why not be stoical about it? Rise to the challenge, and look for the silver lining instead.

The inefficient boss has been a kick-ass contributor to my life’s learnings. This personage would preen like he/she were the cat’s whiskers, yet scrape the barrel of managerial effectiveness. I learned to use this to my advantage as an effective case study… Of what I would never want to grow to be! Here is a situation where one can learn first-hand from another’s hair-raising stultifications, that too at close quarters. Most well-wishers would recommend you to ‘avoid an inept boss like the plague.’ Antithetically speaking, I encourage spending time studying the boss’ management style of ‘not knowing his arse from his elbow.’ For, this may not be entirely bereft of its benefits. When viewed from this angle, maladroit leaders may be well worth their weight in gold!

My own personal implosions have been another great teacher, for it is by seeking and blundering that we learn. It is only when we learn from our botch-ups that ‘Bob’s your uncle,’ viz. success is guaranteed. Thomas Alva Edison once famously said “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

We are with our backs against the wall today, and there is no eschewing this dark cloud on the horizon. Things have come to a pretty pass. Business is down, unemployment is up. The shit seems to be not just hitting the fan, but also spreading itself across the ceiling. ‘Tis a heavy cross for anyone to bear.

Yet, could this really be an ill wind (that blows nobody any good)?

The Great Depression, a severe ‘riches to rags’ era, began in late 1929 and ran through the next decade. By 1933, the economic decline had pushed world trade to one-third of its level just four years earlier. Yet, through this ‘tough row to hoe’ time, there were some sterling examples of companies that hit home runs and brought home the bacon, becoming howling successes.

In 1929, the onset of the Great Depression saw the incorporation of Walt Disney Productions. Walt & Roy Disney knew that America needed to laugh their way to their ‘bottomed out’ banks more than ever. WDP was able to swim through the tide and navigate through the deep waters of the depression. They grew their business to the point where they could subsequently begin work on their first full-length animated feature right after The Great Depression ended.

During national Prohibition in the U.S.A. from 1920 to 1933, the country’s breweries were ‘going to hell in a handbasket.’ Many closed their doors for good. Pre-Prohibition, more than a 1000 breweries had made hay while the sun shined. Amidst the dark clouds of the Great Depression, most landed up paying the piper and eventually kicked the bucket. By 1932, there were only 164 that could be ready to make beer again.

These surviving brewers realised that when life gives you lemons, one needs to make lemonade. They stayed ahead of the curve by running dairies, selling meat, and venturing out into other agricultural enterprises. Breweries innovated against the grain and created ‘Near beer’ that had only trace amounts of alcohol. They also applied their expertise to non-alcoholic tipples like root beer. As of 2019, the five best-selling beers in America are all produced by pre-Prohibition/pre-Great Depression brands.

The Indian hospitality industry has shown a great fighting spirit.

Almost as dead as a doornail during lockdown 1.0, it refused to throw in the towel. With little or no support from the government, it has ‘not allowed Elvis to leave the building’. Hanging by a slender thread, the resilient hospitality industry believes that ‘it ain’t over till the fat lady sings’. The pandemic has thus pushed the hospitality industry to throw down the gauntlet and walk the tightrope creatively.

New life is being breathed into Room sales through workcations, office space, drivable revenge travel, etc., to keep the wolf from the door,

Stuck between a rock and a hard place, F&B and other ancillary revenues (laundry, spa, housekeeping, etc.) are upping the ante. They are raising the bar, through ‘break the mould’ concepts. These range from cloud kitchens to home delivery to DIY meal & cocktail kits; from individual experiential home parties with chefs and a bartender to food retail; from drive-through F&B parcel pick-ups to online sessions, etc. Brands today are now ring-fencing their P&L by curating ‘out of the ballpark’ experiences. And, these are not limited to locations, time zones, demographics, or generational cohorts.

If Covid-19 had not come along now, would we have burned the midnight oil so diligently, to discover the potential within our very own country, to the extent we are doing now?

International travel is at ‘sixes and sevens’ and will continue to be in limbo for some time to come. Targeting inbound tourism would be akin to flogging a dead horse and be as successful as a one-legged man in a butt-kicking contest. Brands have understood the need to reposition their strategies to now better target a domestic clientele, that too at drivable distances.

The pandemic has pushed us to the wall to better understand our profit margins and keep our heads above water. It has led to an increased understanding of the P&L and helped us better re-engineer our expenses to emerge from ventilator support. On payroll manning, I’d go out on a limb to forecast that our industry will never return to pre-Covid-19 levels. ‘He who pays the piper, calls the tune’ – and so when businesses eventually return to normal, manning will not. This crisis has taught us to live in dearth and insufficiency and how not to spend a pretty penny. We are now learning the ropes on how to manage with less and be more circumspect on our expenses.

The new bag of tricks we have learned from this Covidian era should develop our hoteliering chops vastly. It will be some time until we can ride the gravy train again. In the meantime, we should be sharper in running a tight ship and delivering the goods positively onto the P&L sheet.

A smooth sea has never made a skilled sailor. So, the next time you use the idiom “Avoid (someone/something) like the plague,” think about what Covid-19 has taught us. Oft-times, we may be better off taking it on the chin and confronting it, rather than avoiding it!

  • Avoid like the Plague

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM October 2020

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Personal Selling – Will it survive WFH?

The other day in our town hall meeting our VP-Sales announced that henceforth all sales folks are to work from home. I have been in the sales profession for the last fifteen years, and with this company for the last five. I could see most of my colleagues clapping with their emojis during the zoom meeting. And the thought process started working… Why did I join Sales as a profession in the first place?

Being a B.Sc 2nd class graduate from a mofussil town in North Karnataka, I had no option of pursuing further studies due to my precarious financial position and my mediocre academic background.

My first job was as a sales executive in a weighing scale company in Bangalore. The pressure on numbers was part and parcel of my sales job. Incidentally, a few of my colleagues left the sales profession within a year. Those with a better academic record decided to opt for a full-time MBA while others opted for a factory job. I still remember one of them, Ganesh, who told me on his last day, “Ravi, I have decided never to get into the sales profession again in my life. Travelling daily on a bike on traffic-congested roads, customers reluctant to meet you, and if this is not enough, my manager screaming down through my throat asking for the numbers is more than I can bear.”

Somehow or the other, I had started enjoying the profession very much. Within the first month, I was able to close a major order and there was no looking back, thereafter. All these years I have been reaching or surpassing the targets. Even in my company, only I would turn up to the office on Saturdays, and my colleagues from production, design, and QC were envious of me. Their tone would express their envy that salespeople have all the freedom in life, they come and leave the office whenever they want, etc. Bhaskar from the accounts department, while clearing my conveyance and outstation claims, once commented, “you lucky guys, you travel by taxi, live in five-star hotels, dine in the best of the restaurants; and all this at company expense.”

I could not explain to my colleagues doing their desk jobs in an air-conditioned and predictable environment that I was in the field most of the time, working in ‘unpredictable enemy territory,’ where even getting a glass of water, leave aside a cup of tea, was a luxury.

But then, how did I survive and grow in this sales profession? Was it the salary and incentives? It was much more than that. As a salesman, I was not perturbed with rejections. Even though seven out of ten prospects did not show interest in my products, it was the sheer thrill of meeting new people every day. Was meeting these prospects easy in the first place? A friendly conversation with a security guard or complimenting the receptionist to get the decision maker’s name was more of a fun game than a chore.

Quite often a client would be reluctant to share competition details. Going out of factory premises for a cup of coffee or a cigarette, discussing office politics, and sympathising with him on his personal challenges would help break and melt the ice.

Talking with security guards with key phrases in their mother tongue also revealed crucial information about competition activities, which was not only fun but also adrenaline-boosting. However one needs to have a considerate manager to encourage you. My first manager, Mr. Inamdar recognised my passion for sales and the results I was generating. He once said, “Ravi, I do not care what time you come to the office, or how many calls you make. You have been given targets in terms of the number of units, value, and profitability. You know the company guidelines and policies. Within that framework, please get the results. If you need any help, please let me know. However, keep me updated on important developments.” He turned a Nelson’s eye if I crossed company limits on my daily expenses. Once in a while, he would say “I trust that you have spent money from your pocket during this outstation call. The company rules do not allow me to pass your travel expenses, and I have to follow company rules. You may cover this amount in your local travel.”

Mark Twain once said, “I did not prevent my school from getting me educated.” On similar lines, my manager, Inamdar was never an obstacle between me and my targets. He was an exception. Most of my subsequent managers were sadly, otherwise.

Pradip, one such manager used to always hanker about reports. I once told him, “I have surpassed my targets, why then do you insist on daily activity reports?” He said, “In our company, we get orders even otherwise. What I need are reports.”

The town hall meeting on Zoom was in progress. I was drawn out of my reverie. The people who were clapping for WFH sales, did they ever have a passion for sales, I wondered? Both the stakeholders, the management as well as the salespeople were gung-ho about WFH selling, but what might be the real issue?

Harsh Goenka-led RPG enterprises have announced that the sales force henceforth shall work from home. The group has companies like CEAT Tyres, Zensar Technologies with a Global employee strength of 30,000. The office-bound staff is to work 50% from the office. ( WFH: Home will Always be an office for RPG Staff ) . WFH has the following advantages for management:

  • Lower office procurement costs in terms of rentals or purchase
  • Lower operating overheads in terms of electricity, house-keeping, tea/coffee, cafeteria, etc.
  • Lower sales expenses in terms of local and outstation travel, lodging, and boarding expenses. The company also claims that for the salespeople it also amounts to the following: Lesser fatigue, lesser travel & quicker TAT (turnaround time)

In the above article, it was claimed that this would lead to higher employee efficacy and business output with an improved work-life balance.

WFH may be the need of the day. But will the management ever realize that there is another side to the story? For a few star performers, Selling is more of fun, passion, and a personal adventure on a daily basis, which distinguishes them from the crowd. Will WFH and its related efficacy claim, ever address this passion?

And, how will star sales performers differentiate from the crowd?

For details: Contextual Selling – A New Sales Paradigm for the 21st Century

Rajan Parulekar – Director, Hospitality Paradigm

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Salary – A philosophical & aphoristic perspective

An 'Aphoristic' perspective
“The tragedy of our age is salary”… writes Sunday Adelaja in ‘No one is better than you.’

My fellow working hoteliers are mostly receiving their salaries in part and the extremely fortunate few, in full by now. One’s reaction to a truncated salary receipt, while not initially positive, must compel ourselves to look at our half-filled glass and consider that ‘I have a salary,’ if even in part; for there are many who have not been fortunate to have retained their employment in these trying times. Thus the need to look at Salary from a philosophical & aphoristic perspective.

Those of us who have a passion for hospitality have chosen our own area of calling and purpose and we are working and converting our life into that area of calling. If you are such a passionate employee, you will realize that if you genuinely believe you are not being compensated with salary, it is then that you become the boss over your own life, for you have not allowed money to rule your life.

Mokhonoana in his aphoristic style writes “The reason that man is seldom satisfied with his salary is that when it increases, he increases his expenses.” For those who have received a 50% deduction, a positive way of approaching the current salary crisis is to remember how one lived when one’s salary was half what it is now. The answer perhaps may startle us – we were equally happy and experienced the same level of wants, needs, and satiation at that time. It is only then, that we began to view our Salary from a philosophical & aphoristic perspective!

This tells us that money is a means to an end and not an end to a means.

There’s no money in poetry, but then there’s no poetry in money, either,” said Robert Graves, the Poet; while Voltaire, the writer said, “Don’t think money does everything or you are going to end up doing everything for money.” Profound statements, both eviscerating the ideal stance in the prevailing scenario.

At the pandemic’s outset many months ago, most international & domestic hotel chains in India took policy decisions to cut salaries as per grades and retrench employees in order to stay afloat. These chains are mostly managed or franchised where individual owners come into play. Those employees who were, and still are blessed to receive any salary, need to maintain an aphoristic perspective, to retain their philosophical sanity. On the other hand, some of the larger Indian chains with self-owned properties did not withhold salaries (barring performance bonus), making their employees amongst the fortunate few in the industry – these few and rare instances display the company’s courage to pay complete salaries during these stressful times and it clearly reflects the importance they give to their human capital.

Salary - A philosophical perspective

On the other end of the spectrum, there are some hotels which have retrenched and cut salaries quite ruthlessly. A luxury chain has rationalized all salaries above Rs. 50000 p.m. to the base amount (a Manager earning 60k p.m. will get 50k, and a GM earning 500k p.m. will also earn 50k) while several luxury chains have asked its people either to leave or to sit out until further notice. Dickson G. Watts, Author states “Not to have the courage to accept a loss, is fatal. It is the ruin of many.”

Such are the vagaries of business that in order to survive, a business has to reengineer expenses in tune with market trends. Frederic Bastiat, a French economist of the 19th century once famously said “Everyone wants to live at the expense of the state. They forget that the state wants to live at the expense of everyone.”

Airbnb Chairman, Brian Chesky released a note a few months ago, announcing layoffs and the surmise behind it. In the note to his employees, he writes:

“We don’t know exactly when travel will return. When travel does return, it will look different. While we know Airbnb’s business will fully recover, the changes it will undergo are not temporary or short-lived. Because of this, we need to make more fundamental changes to Airbnb by reducing the size of our workforce. It was important that we had a clear set of principles, guided by our core values, for how we would approach reductions in our workforce. These were our guiding principles:

  • Map all reductions to our future business strategy and the capabilities we will need.
  • Do as much as we can for those who are impacted. 
  • Be unwavering in our commitment to diversity. 
  • Optimize for 1:1 communication for those impacted. 
  • Wait to communicate any decisions until all details are landed — transparency of only partial information can make matters worse. 

The result is that we will have to part with teammates that we love and value. We have great people leaving Airbnb, and other companies will be lucky to have them. To take care of those that are leaving, we have looked across severance, equity, healthcare, and job support and done our best to treat everyone in a compassionate and thoughtful way.”

This seems to be an empathetic manner of approaching severance and salary cuts.

In the book To Kill a Mocking Bird, by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch tells her daughter: “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view – until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

I sincerely commiserate with all my industry colleagues going through this current crisis and do pray that we all live through this period with grace, equanimity, and a strong belief in the Almighty and faith in recovery to better times ahead. It is not easy to have to receive wages less than what has been contracted for and I trust owners will empathize with their employees’ pain whilst implementing such measures.

At the end of it all, we must remember that there is that which is in one’s hands and then, that which is not… As an employee, the quantum of salary pay-out may not be in your hands. However, accepting the inevitable that salary is transient, would be a philosophical way of looking at this aphorism.

In the meantime, it is highly recommended that we invest this time in upgrading ourselves in various areas. You are the best judge for what you need to upskill on, professionally or otherwise. “Better capital in a man’s head than capital in a bank.” – Dickson G. Watts

So keep your thoughts positive. To quote John Assaraf, “Keep your chin up. No one expected you to save the world, otherwise, you would have been born wearing a cape and tights. Just do the best you can.”

#hotelsalaries #hotelindustry #hotelowners #hoteliers #hoteliernews #salarybenchmarking #salarysurvey #salarysacrifice #hotelmanagement #ownershipchallenges #covid #leadership

This article has appeared in ET HOSPITALITY WORLD.COM September 2020

This article has appeared in ET HR WORLD.COM September 2020

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A Successful Failure

Circa 1988, I was chosen for the Management Trainee Program of the fabled Oberoi Centre for Learning & Development aka OCLD, then known as Oberoi School of Hotel Management (OSHM).

Interestingly, the path to this successful selection involved a lot of drive, humility, diligence, and industriousness.

I had always aspired to join the hotel industry. In the 1980s, there were very few people who wished to truck with this industry, unlike now. I learned of the OSHM during this time and read whatever magazines I could on the industry and Oberoi Hotels.

Gen Z (students and new industry workers) may have heard of such ‘prehistoric times – the non-internet age’ from their parents but may find it difficult to comprehend; nowadays any thirst for knowledge is easily quenched online.

A distant relative worked at Oberoi Hotels, Bombay and I requested to be connected with him. I met him for the first time and went to his home to try and understand something about an industry I knew practically nothing about. He was most helpful and supplied me with magazines, newsletters, and brochures, etc., apart from tutelage on the Oberoi way.

IHM Bombay had a professor who was a family friend and I connected with her, to understand what the hotel industry was about. She was very kind to allow me to use the institution’s library to study books on the industry. Lillicrap’s Food & Beverage Service – a reference used even today, was one such book. I poured over all this reading with keen interest, making notes along the way.

All this preparation began a year earlier while in my second year of graduation, and I used this time to also prepare for GMAT and GRE as I was told this would be useful in the OSHM selection process. I simultaneously worked hard to develop my General Knowledge using library time effectively.

Come D-Day, I was all fired up and floated through my college selection (I was the only one selected from at least 100 students). The next stage was at The Hotel Oberoi Towers where I got through the Group Discussion, the written test, and the pre-final interview.

Having got through four stages, 3 months later I was called for my final interview with PRS (Biki) Oberoi and the board of directors at The Oberoi New Delhi. Of all the hundred-odd selectees called in for the final interview, I found myself in the final 18.

Imagine my dismay, when this final 18 were assembled at the end of the interview selection process and told that 15 of them had made the grade. I was among the rejected 3 candidates, who after seemingly getting through the 5th and final stage of selection, had to now fly back home downcast and woebegone and take fresh stock of my life.

I analysed the reason for my rejection and figured that the uncertainty amongst the interview panel, of my passion and sincerity for the hotel industry, probably weighed heavily against me. Being an Economics graduate, my seriousness for this service industry was probably in question. I realised that to show my seriousness for the OSHM, I would have to prove my passion for this industry, the next time I came up before the Oberoi Panel.

I joined a two-year course in Hotel Administration and Food Technology at Sophia Polytechnic, Bombay. During this time did my industrial training at Oberoi Towers, Nariman Point, and then at Sea Rock Bandra.

A year later, when the OSHM selection began, I requested my graduation college to allow me to attend the 1st stage of selection. The rest is history. I sailed through all five stages successfully. In Delhi, at the final interview, I was quite startled when Biki Oberoi told me I had put on some weight since my previous attempt a year ago!

And, that is how I joined the OSHM batch of 1988-90.

Well, the learnings I would encourage here are:

Failures happen… They must encourage and exhort you to do better. Look at ways to convert failures into success. Many of us may achieve success without going through the failure stage and this is dangerous as it does not prepare us for the real world. Popular belief says that ‘failure is bad.’ You need to redefine this for your situation.

Analyse failure. Do not simply disregard it, as it could happen again in a different form unless you are able to fathom the reason for it.

Hard work, hard work, hard work. There is no better formula for success.

Focus on what you want to achieve. Keep your focus constant. Do not say ‘I will try this and if it works – well and good, else I will do something else.’

Without passion for what you want to achieve, you are like an empty vessel. Aspire for something by design and not by default.

For Gen Z who has passed out this year from their catering schools, it is indeed a trying time. Many of you are waiting for the appointment letters you were promised during hotel selections done pre Covid-19, and many are still sitting out waiting for employment.

This is not your personal failure… it is the environment that has played a trick on you. Instead of rueing your luck, look at how you could use this time to upskill yourself or possibly join an organisation as a trainee instead of an employee – for the experience.

Create your future instead of waiting for the future to create you.

Ramiah G. Daniels – Director, Hospitality Paradigm

This article has appeared in Champions of Hospitality October 2020

This article has appeared in Hospitium, December 2020

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Pandemic breaks Pricing Myths

Are hotel pricing myths being busted simply to offer Luxury at lower rates?
Picture credit – Ramiah Daniels

Covid-19 has busted hotel pricing myths even as we are in the worst performing year for hotels in a century. This pandemic is nothing like 9-11 or the 2008 global financial crisis – Nor even India’s demonetization or GST implementation!

As a result, corporate travel, leisure (inbound, outbound, domestic), heritage, adventure, MICE, religious, spiritual events are all smitten. Also, the same holds for upcoming high-value niche tourism products. Culinary, Wellness, Sea & River Cruises, Glamping, Rafting, Sports, Wildlife, Agritourism, and many more are all affected.

The harsh reality of Covid-19 has busted a few hotel pricing myths:
  1. “Our brand image will take a beating if we offer lower rates.”

    We (the industry) are now on a survival mode. Your guest will not necessarily perceive lower rates to equate with a lower quality. Consequently, market perception during such extreme times will not necessarily define rates. Aspiring travellers are looking for a deal right now and hence being cautious with their money. This is even more relevant for independent and boutique hotels that have spent millions building a brand and a following. Therefore, give guests a chance to experience your product for the first time or as returning guests. Besides, their money will help your cash flow. That is how global recovery starts… one room at a time!

  2. “Sub-optimal rates will adversely affect the quality of our guests.”

    Millions have lost their jobs in 2020, thanks to the pandemic. Since mid-March, the impact on organised and unorganised tourism has been severe. The result is a very high unemployment rate in the industry. These are numbers not seen since the Great Depression (1929-33). There is a very good chance the same people who paid a high rate at your hotel pre-pandemic are now under or unemployed. So, are the same people now undesirable because they are financially stressed and clawing their way back up? Why would you not want to get them back at a lower rate for now? After all, they are the same demographic, but with a reduced propensity to spend.

  3. “Lower rates will lead to a decline in product quality.”

    In today’s times, this is a misnomer. Without yielding on quality, hotels are now learning to trim costs more effectively. Hence, there is no need to sacrifice quality to match the drop in ARR.

  4. “If we lower rates now, it will take years to rebuild our ARR.” 

    In light of the current life-changing pandemic, this does not apply. The world economy has come apart this year. Also, people are still severely travel-restricted. As hoteliers, we must reflect this in our dynamic pricing. Concentrate on occupancy over ARR from the RevPAR perspective for the nonce and therein fill your rooms. You may subsequently pull up your rates when the pent-up demand returns. The same applies to RFP rates – hence a proactive approach to negotiated rates during tough times is the need of the hour.

Based on market conditions, airlines have always relied on massively varying rates. So why shouldn’t hotels do it too?

This article has appeared in TravelDailyMedia.com September 2020

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Have you found your Niche?

“Charles, you care for nothing but shooting dogs and rats; you will be a disgrace to not only yourself but to your family too.” This was a father’s prophecy about his son. The father wanted his son to be a doctor like him. Charles entered Edinburgh University for medicine at his father’s behest, found it unattractive, later joined Cambridge, and earned an undistinguished bachelor’s degree in theology. He had no firm idea what to do. Charles was an aimless youth at 22. He wanted to do something different. He loved flora and fauna but did not know whether that love could be transformed into a livelihood.

Captain Fitzroy on his ship HMS Beagle was looking out for a naturalist. Charles asked for his father’s permission. His father refused but with a caveat, “If you can find any man of common sense who advises you to go on the discovery, I shall give my consent.” Neither the father, nor the captain were ready to grant permission to Charles.

When Charles approached Captain Fitzroy, the physiognomist in Captain Fitzroy said, “I doubt anyone having a nose like yours can possess sufficient energy and determination for the long voyage.”

His uncle drove thirty miles to convince Charles’ father to grant him permission to undertake the assignment on HMS Beagle as a naturalist.

The Beagle Voyage which included the circumnavigation of globe would be the making of the 22 year-old Darwin. Five years of physical hardship of mental rigour imprisoned within the ship’s walls, offset by the wide-open opportunities in the Brazilian jungles and the Andes Mountains, were to Darwin an eye opener in finding his muse. It took him 22 years to publish his theory of Evolution by Natural Selection in The Origin of Species.

  1. The conventional way of selecting a profession for self or for others is primarily decided by the demand for that profession, coupled with tangibles like salary and perks. No wonder Medicine, Engineering and MBAs among others make the cut.
  2. A niche-driven approach on the other hand is decided more by finding gaps in the market and differentiating oneself from the crowd to address that gap (as discovered by Charles Darwin). Niche is defined as a comfortable or suitable position in life or employment. Alternatively, it also means a shallow recess especially in a wall to display something of value – a statue or other ornament. (please refer the image)

Is it necessary to be a school or college topper or those in the top percentile rankings to find one’s niche? Quite often the converse is true as ‘brilliant’ students have the best choices in selecting the conventional options in career and institution.

What can happen when one selects a career in a conventional way but is at the bottom of a pyramid in a specific career stream? Getting a job may look easy but one may be competing with a very large number of aspirants. For example: Rakesh had scored 100/100 in Sanskrit in SSLC. Having felt he had a flair for Sanskrit he decided to pursue his college education in that direction. He completed his BA in Sanskrit from Ruia College in Mumbai.

At this juncture he had two choices in further studies – to continue his studies in Sanskrit or look out for a qualification which is marketable in the job market. He decided to pursue a MBA in Finance instead. After spending around Rs. 8 lakhs in fees itself what can be the likely scenario when he passes out two years later?

For a person who wishes to do a M. Tech in Structural Engineering, a minimum qualification of B.E Civil is necessary. Likewise for a M.S. in surgery, a basic qualification of MBBS is mandatory. So, when a person pursues a MBA in Finance with Sanskrit as graduation the basic competency level expected of the student is that of Class 12th, as a MBA is agnostic to one’s field of graduation.

Conventional wisdom says that one has a wide range of job opportunities after doing a MBA. The opportunities are large but so is the competition. Annually about 360,000 students graduate from 4000 B-Schools of which 61% are unemployable due to skill gaps and low work experience.

Keeping those depressing numbers aside, can Rakesh compete with students from Premier Institutes or those with Engineering and Commerce backgrounds? It is not impossible, but it is a Herculean task.

What would happen if he were to pursue Sanskrit for his PG? In the absence of clear data let us assume that the number of students opting for Sanskrit may be 1% of MBA students that is around 3600. For Rakesh it would have been much easier to be in the 95th percentile after his MA and in the 99th percentile with a Ph.D. A lot of research happens in Sanskrit in US and German universities. By differentiating himself and finding a niche, Rakesh could have had a sense of purpose too.

From a financial perspective too, the cost of pursuing a MA in Sanskrit would have been at less than 10% the cost of a MBA. In case of a Ph.D. he could have explored UGC fellowships or opportunities in US or German universities where considerable research in Sanskrit is possible.

An example of a niche-based career is below: My friend Christopher Jayakaran passed PUC, third class in 1962. With hardly any worthwhile career options, his father’s friend suggested him to take up a course in Geology. He completed his M.Sc in Geology at Presidency College in Madras by topping in the University. He worked for an NGO called ‘Action for Food Production’ for 7 years and for more than 25 years in different countries in Africa which include Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Sierra Leone etc. He is an eminent Hydrogeologist and a Paleontologist. His Tamil book In Search of Ancestors which is on evolution of man based on fossil evidence has run into six editions.

Why are people in general wary of pursuing niche fields?

  1. Obsession for Security: Education is normally pursued in order to get a job. The market demand is thought of. In the post-covid world there is no security either in a job or in one’s qualifications per se.
  2. Managerial Aspirations: Indians in general prefer to have a managerial title early in their career sacrificing expertise in a specific domain.

How to find your niche?

Around 30 years back I came across an excellent concept in finding ones niche, based on cybernetic principles which was on identifying one’s core competency and focusing on a specific niche where the strength can be leveraged to maximum extent.

Werner Brandes was a German MBA Graduate who was working in a consulting firm but did not have career growth in spite of working hard in that organization for more than 10 years. He was unable to get good offers elsewhere. He was a mediocre student throughout his academic life and passed out from a tier-3 B-school.

The conventional wisdom of competing with others was not giving any results (like the example of Rakesh discussed above). His work profile was mapped for 15 different competencies. Werner was below average in all save one, which was on Industry Setup in rural areas. When Werner was pointed out that this was his niche. He asked, “How can I get a job with such a small niche?” He was advised to start his own consulting in this field and as he was in the top 5% of this ultra-specialized area of business consulting, slowly he was perceived as an expert in this field. Business started growing. Being a sunrise sector wherever the data was not available, his customers helped him in providing the necessary details.

Fascinated by this counterintuitive concept, I launched a program called Strategy for Quantum Growth. After 4-5 programs I had to withdraw as most of the participants did not want a long-term strategy but a new job which paid them 3-5K more.

One crucial difference between the conventional and the niche-based strategy is the type of growth. In case of the former it is logarithmic growth – where it is easier to get a good well-paying job immediately after graduation but after a few years the growth may taper off. In case of niche areas there is a considerable struggle initially but after a few years when the market perceives you as specialist, the growth becomes truly phenomenal. You are considered as a pioneer and get a first-mover advantage.

Christopher, Werner Brandes or Charles Darwin were not brilliant in their school days in the conventional sense but were able to find their niche. Have you found yours?

Two roads diverged in a wood and I… I took the road less travelled. – Robert Frost.

Rajan Parulekar – Director, Hospitality Paradigm

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Climate Friendly Tourism

There are a few guidelines for both the hotel industry and tourists to pivot towards, that would make tourism more resilient as well as climate friendlier. Encouraging destinations that are closer to the traveler, making stays longer and keeping profits local, are some ways to move away from the focus on volume and energy-intense products:

 

  • Increase the length of stay or the length of days in packages sold.
  • Focus on closer markets, long-haul travelers are the ones contributing to vast emissions of greenhouse gases.
  • Rethink the food that you serve, organic and regional can benefit farmers nearby.
  • Move towards a high-value model, where individuals spend more.
  • Think about what you buy: a lot of the profit is made by foreign-owned, global platforms such as AirBnB and booking.com.
  • Rethink carbon-intense travel, for example cruise holidays.

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Is your hotel following safety standards?

With people beginning to travel albeit warily, hotels needs to seriously look at whether they are following their safety standards widely marketed by them.

Trust in a brand is based on the brand history, the leaders within the brand and the competence exhibited by the brand.

Breaking this trust could be significantly dangerous and have negative implications for the brand.

‘Inside Edition’, an American TV newsmagazine distributed by CBS TV conducted a sting on a few hotels in New York recently to see how diligent they were being about cleaning during the coronavirus pandemic, and these are the stunning findings.

Using invisible spray and gel on sheets, towels and surfaces, the team checked into the same room under different names on different days to see if they had been cleaned or replaced. All three hotels that the Inside Edition team visited failed to clean and replace everything.

https://youtu.be/ltBrCJC5BNI

Makes you think, does it not? Hoteliers cannot be complacent and their leaders will need to initiate these checks and counterchecks to ensure that they are not left embarrassed as these hotels in the link were.

 

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RFP 2021

Buyers will need to address a few issues specifically related to Covid-19 in negotiations this year, including:

  • Cleanliness standards. All buyers should confirm cleanliness standards as part of the negotiation process. The enforcement of social distancing and cleanliness standards in guest rooms, meeting rooms and other common areas is paramount, and measures will need to be addressed in contracting.
  • Amenities. The need and availability of hotel amenities will be different. For example, what will free breakfast entail? Will “grab and go” replace the buffet? It may not make sense to negotiate in breakfast or even the shuttle service if buyers are not confident that the appropriate social distances measures are in place or if travelers will not be comfortable using the services.
  • Room availability and upgrades. The fact that many hotels will be operating at lower inventory levels, with many operating at 50 percent capacity, make room type negotiations more challenging for some buyers. The likelihood of securing room types beyond standard will decrease, and it will be incumbent on buyers to sharpen their pencils in to obtain upgrades for their travelers.
  • Cancellation policies. While hotels currently are offering flexibility with bookings to spur demand, they might adjust their cancellation policies down the road, given the planning and costs hotels need to apply to spacing out incoming and outgoing guests and having guests placed in every other room and other measures to manage guest flow. With inventory constraints and social distancing measures, cancelations will be more costly for hotels and they will likely need to apply more stringent penalties which could result in increased costs for buyers in the form of fees. Cancellations and penalties are a negotiable item in the RFP process, and buyers should be prepared to address them.

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