Ricky is a fantastic wealth of knowledge when it comes to the hotel and hospitality industry. Serving as COO for one of Marriott International’s top hotel management companies, Ricky has led the charge in creating new experiences that challenge what people expect from limited-service hotels. His activity in the industry also keeps him at the forefront of what’s happening now and what’s happening next. We dive into that knowledge and have a lot of fun doing it in this week’s episode.
- Extended stay and select service brands are in their portfolio
- Trial and error and understanding the consumer more makes execution a lot easier
- You could have the best brand, the best food, the best offering but you still have to make the consumer happy
- Having the right conversation with a potential employee about what their career goals are is essential to hiring the right people. Having this conversation makes for more meaningful employment.
- Understanding how people’s lives have changed and understanding what they need form an employer helps put them in a better position.
- Multiplying Company Culture
- How can you disseminate the culture from a central source?
- By multiplying culture, there’s room for bad apples
- This is where consistency really comes in
- If you pick the right talent, they can understand what the end goals are quicker
- Future for PeachState
- Growth in different markets where they feel they can execute
- Old Fashioned w/ toasted pecans and anything savory on the menu. Loves bar fries.
QUOTES
- “Hospitality evolves every single day” -Ricky
- “Creating an offering where the locals like it and the locals want to be a part of it is very important versus just the guest…. What is the other offering that people in the area want to be around” -Ricky
- “Good F&B is fun” -Ricky
- “We need to start taking F&B much more seriously as ownership groups and hospitality management companies” -Joseph
- “You’ve got to understand the guest, if you don;t understand the guest, you can’t offer what they’re looking for” – Ricky
- “The basis of a great hotel experience is rooted in service” – Joseph
- “Authenticity is key” -Ricky
- “Hospitality talent will always come to hospitality” – Ricky
- That’s just the hallmark of a great leader, someone who is not afraid and not hesitant to roll up their sleeves, get dirty” -Joseph
- “If we start with the why and end with the why, the how becomes so much easier” -Ricky
