Martin Rinck has enjoyed a stellar career, working all over the world with such iconic brands as IHG, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Mövenpick. He is currently President of Hilton Worldwide in Asia Pacific and I had the chance to spend some time with him recently to ask him a few questions about the industry and his career.
What do you think are the most exciting opportunities for the hospitality industry currently?
Ours is such a dynamic industry, and there are so many opportunities at the moment. Definitely one of the most exciting is happening within my region, and this is the absolute explosion of the Chinese market, especially outbound. It is estimated that 100 million Chinese travelled overseas in 2013, with this number expected to grow to 200 million by 2020.
What this means for us is that we must take the initiative to learn what is important to Chinese travellers and adapt our offering in ways that will satisfy their needs while remaining true to our brand identity.
As an example of what can be done, in 2011 Hilton launched "Hilton Huanying" ("Hilton Welcome") with a total of 50 participating hotels in the most desirable international destinations for the Chinese traveller. As part of this program, specific facilities are offered such as ensuring that Mandarin speaking Front Office staff are employed, breakfast items suitable to the Chinese palate are available on the buffet and tea making facilities and slippers are available in the guest rooms. As a result of this by 2013 the percentage of Chinese guests in these hotels doubled, and the number of participating hotels has grown to more than 80…..and will go on growing.
From a destination perspective China also continues to develop providing diverse and exciting opportunities. And elsewhere in my region Myanmar, as a more immature frontier for example, offers wonderful prospects albeit on a different scale to those that exist in China. Looking outside of Asia Pacific there will be accelerated growth in places like Turkey, Russia and South America – all of these regions present the industry with exciting new markets to tap into and to learn from.
And, of course, you can't talk about opportunities without looking to technology and social media. It is now estimated that 90% of travellers research their itinerary in some way through the internet or social media prior to booking…..which they are also doing increasingly through their tablet, phablet or other mobile device. This means we need to ensure that we are facilitating this type of activity to capture as much of the market as possible.
Other industries are increasingly looking to the hospitality industry to learn from our approach to such things as the creation of service experiences. How can we make sure that we are also learning from the experience of other industries?
It is important to seek out best practice, wherever that may come from. We can learn from so many other aspects of the business world. But without a doubt one of the best things that we can do…..and I make a policy of doing…..is to not just recruit from within, but also from outside the industry.
A number of our functional departments – Finance, Sales & Marketing and Human Resources for example – can benefit from the expertise of people who do not necessarily come directly from the hotel world. This can help ensure a true diversity of experience, particularly at a leadership level.
It goes without saying, of course, that this will succeed only if you have an open mind, and a positive attitude to change, that will allow you to capitalise on the wealth of experience that can be brought to the business.
What are the things about this industry that you most love?
Without question…..the people!
I love that I have the opportunity to help build careers and work with dynamic teams. I also really value the diversity of the people who work in the hotel world – there is ethnic diversity, gender diversity…..even age diversity. I appreciate enormously the variety and depth of experience that my colleagues bring to the table, and also the new perspectives of the Gen Y or Millennial generation. There is so much that I learn on a daily basis from the people I work with.
Speaking of learning, what are some of the lessons you have learnt – or advice you have been given – that have assisted you in your hospitality career?
It's hard to summarise because there are so many. One of my first GM's did reinforce the importance of having passion for what you do. This industry can be very demanding, which means it can feel like hard work unless you have that passion in your belly to sustain you.
It is also important to focus on the job at hand. Sometimes we can be so concentrated on the next task or the next career step that we can overlook the importance of the here and now. I also believe that it's essential to have a broad base of experience……there is not just one avenue for a successful career in our industry.
Finally, I suppose one of the most important lessons I was taught early on through my role models was how important it is to stay true to yourself. No matter what you have achieved, or where you are going in your career, you must not lose sight of where you come from. Humility is a quality I have learnt to admire.
What keeps you motivated?
Like I've already said, the sense of excitement I feel for the industry and its people is incredibly important to me. Apart from that – and my family of course – I like the sense of accomplishment that I get from achieving my goals. I am competitive by nature, and I like to succeed, but I also derive enormous pleasure from helping others succeed.
This question possibly also takes me back to the first question you asked…..the opportunities I have been, and continue to be, presented with will keep motivating me for a long time to come!
Timothy Millett's training roles have seen him deliver programs across Australia, Asia, Europe, Africa and America ensuring cultural sensitivity as well as a broad base of experience in lecturing, teaching and training.
A graduate of the Ecole Hôtelière de Lausanne, Switzerland, his hospitality career spans management and director positions in Front Office, Guest Relations, Public Relations, Food & Beverage and Training with organisations including the Regent of Melbourne, The Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Mövenpick Gastronomy. He was also a founding staff member of the internationally renowned Blue Mountains International Hotel Management School in Australia.
Tim is currently the Director of Training and Development at iperform, an organisation that specialises in Sales and Service, Leadership and Effective Personal Organisation programs.
