The word 'talent' isn't normally associated with individuals working in the hospitality industry. However, a comprehensive analysis of the nature of talent and skill proficiency reveals that there are indeed wide-reaching implications for hotel managers. This includes how a hotelier might go about learning a task to grasping how early childhood experiences can affect a person's motivations and natural migration to one particular niche or another within hospitality. Also discussed are the relationships between talent and intuition as well as talent and supposed flashes of genius. READ MORE

As a hotelier, I attend a lot of industry conferences which afford me the benefit of experiencing many other hotels throughout the Caribbean, Europe and North America. This allows me to experience hospitality from the other side, which lends insight into hotel practices that work - and even more importantly - those to avoid at my own property. Check-in lines, for example, are something we've done away with entirely, ensuring guests are able to relax from the moment guests arrive on property. Nonetheless, I often find myself waiting in line to check-in, and recall a particular instance where the guest in front of me complained about the hotel's lax environmental policy. READ MORE

To meet the challenge of competing for clients who prefer a boutique atmosphere, larger properties must offer one-of-a-kind venues that are memorable and encourage repeat stays. Architects and designers should engage the client in an integrated design process, arriving at a "shared lifestyle vision" for the venue. Using three examples — a nightclub, a restaurant and a retail confectionery — this article demonstrates best practices for boutique-ing big properties in ways that make a powerful impact without appearing out of place in the larger context. The process is also shown to deliver sustainable designs with high ROI. READ MORE

Legendary Hospitality with a softer footprint—that's the Xanterra Parks and Resort mission statement. The Softer Footprint, the commitment to environmental stewardship is a long-standing commitment of the company, and a never-ending journey of learning. Unlike other important hospitality disciplines like food and beverage, sustainability barely was recognized fifteen years ago. It is a complex puzzle balancing efficiency, environmental regulations and the right amount of guest engagement. Projects are often piloted, analyzed for their “stickiness", modified and then with the help of employees, deployed across the company. The following two stories illustrate how Xanterra strives to deliver sustainability throughout its operations--one invisible to guests and the other targeting guest awareness and actions. READ MORE

The hospitality industry, by its nature, embraces both commerce and community. Positioning one's hotel as a valuable member of the community has many advantages. These advantages include building solidarity within a community and supporting its most valuable programs and identified needs; reinforcing the interests of team members, while building team work and leadership skills; and, also, reinforcing the organization's mission, goals and values. The best community programs result when we can endorse, whenever possible, the genuine interests of team members, while making sure that these efforts reflect the quality and value of the individual property, our organization, ownership and management. READ MORE