BERLIN — Although both Federico Gonzalez Tejera of Radisson Hotel Group and Elie Maalouf of IHG Hotels & Resorts have been with their respective companies for a significant period of time, the two hotel executives have been in charge of leading significant changes of late.
Speaking at the recent International Hospitality Investment Forum, Gonzalez Tejera said the key to managing changes at his company has been clear and honest communication. Some of his major changes include the offloading of its U.S.-based business to Choice Hotels International and his assumption of the chief executive role with Louvre Hotels Group while maintaining his role as chief executive and executive vice chairman with Radisson.
"I've learned from many people that I've worked for in the past, but I think the most important [lesson] is when you try to do something with honesty, with good intentions and the intention to serve and do something good for the future, things work," he said.
He said over his time as a leader, the theme of honesty keeps coming back up, especially during periods of transformation and significant change. He said that ethos becomes even more important when dealing with groups of people from different cultural backgrounds who might have differing expectations.
"I think you need to be, in advance, very clear that there are cultural differences. .... We've been upfront in recognizing that to avoid misunderstandings," he said.
Maalouf, meanwhile, has been with IHG for nearly a decade but in the last year has taken over as CEO. He said that transition has been a chance to get a new perspective on the company and get more hands-on.
"I'm not new to the business, but what I did first thing, which many of you do when you take over opportunities, is really go out and see it," he said. "I've always felt we had an incredible trajectory ahead of us. All of the data will tell you so ... but until you go out and see it for yourself in your own markets with your own people, it doesn't feel the same."
He said despite the company's eight-decade history, he thinks there remains significant growth opportunities, driven by moving into new markets and deploying new technology.
"We've done a lot over the last 10 years to position this company in a very successful place," he said. "We've broadened the portfolio. We've entered new markets. We've put in place some foundational technology enterprise systems. That puts us in a place to take the next step."
He said recognizing how the larger macro-environment has shifted in recent years and being proactive is an opportunity for businesses like his and others across the industry. One big example of this is hotels' collective rising profile for real estate investors.
"Real estate allocators in total want to allocate 8% to 10% of their total assets to real estate between equities and bonds," he said. "That used to be mostly office and retail, then industrial, then apartments, and hotels were last. Well, hotels are actually among their top priorities today. So, yes, the cost of capital may be higher, but there's a lot of equity interested to go into a performing asset class."