Local economic and social conditions tend to bring more focus to the necessity of environmentally sustainable business practices in hotels and at hotel companies.
Chief executives from BWH Hotel Group in central Europe and Italy shared how hoteliers in their countries are benefiting from implementing environmental, social and governance best practices in order to save money, maximize efficiency and benefit their employees and communities.
Sara Digiesi, CEO of BWH Hotel Group Italy, started pursuing an advanced degree in sustainability and green economic practices during the global pandemic lockdown as a way to take action when situations felt helpless.
“There was a big rock in front of me, in front of all of us, and I wanted to look over it to what would be most important when this pandemic was over,” she said. “I asked what the future would be, and I spent my attention there.”
Digiesi’s advice is to act now.
“Sustainability is always related to intergenerational relationship connections,” she said. “What we do today is in response to today’s customers, but we also must not forget the needs of tomorrow’s customers.”
She said there are three main pillars to ESG: prosperity, people and the environment. Making smart choices that address sustainability goals set out by the United Nations and other groups — while also protecting human rights, ethics and a company’s financial goals — isn’t as difficult as it may seem, she said.
On the sustainability front, Digiesi said “the properties that do the best are the ones that have invested in efficient solutions,” she said.
That might involve using solar energy, updating buildings to be more energy efficient and doing more to offset Italy’s rising energy costs.
Carmen Dücker, CEO of BWH Hotel Group Central Europe, agreed that rising energy costs and inflation are vital reminders that sustainable operating practices aren’t just a luxury but a necessity these days.
In Central Europe, the war in Ukraine has far-reaching effects particularly on energy costs, since many countries are dependent on gas from Russia.
“We’re trying to get more and more independent of that, and think of ways we can get away from gas entirely,” she said.
With inflation making everything more expensive, Dücker said hoteliers in her region have recognized the importance of relaying the value travelers get for their money.
“It’s not a call to reduce prices. It’s a call to make sure people get what they expect, and they feel secure and happy at our properties,” she said.
Always thinking about what’s best for the environment, best for guests and best for employees is the heart of ESG because those things all intersect.
“In the past, we always talked a lot about how large and global a company we are, but we discovered another strength during COVID,” Dücker said. “Coming back to ESG, we really saw how we were part of the social lives of people living in our cities and villages. That helped us build new connections, which now that we’re back to normal life, have opened up new opportunities.”
During lockdowns, Best Western hotels in central Europe opened meeting spaces to local schools, and offered food-and-beverage promotions and activities for local families. Now the company is carrying those relationships forward.
Digiesi said that in Italy, her hoteliers rallied around providing inclusive experiences for all types of guests — again addressing ESG best practices.
Digiesi prioritized conversations with various associations and groups to better understand how to improve hotel stays for guests from various underrepresented groups — including those with autism and other disabilities, as well as travelers within the LGBTQ+ community.
“For the LGBTQ+ community, we learned the effects of being welcomed and recognized and respected, and the value of that,” she said. “For families with autistic children, we learned how to better communicate with them pre-stay. We learned how to direct those families to the best times for them to check in, which rooms they could stay in with the least noise or other disruptions.
“We learned that we can’t think we know what people look for in a hotel stay or vacation, but we have to study and learn what they want, and spread those values,” she said.
Learning more about ESG practices strengthened their businesses.
“Crisis shows you that you’re much stronger than you ever thought you were, and your favor for change is stronger,” Dücker said. “I like change now better than I ever did before. It makes us all so much stronger.”