LEADERSHIP – Articles

It is not always easy to be truly objective about oneself. When discussing career development programs, AETHOS often talks about the importance of a personal board of advisors – individuals who know the person in question from different walks of life. They can speak to professional as well as personal strengths or challenges. Besides mentorship programs, organisations can, however, also support their employees through other means.

The current economic and geo-political context is putting refreshed strain on the sentiment across many markets. The question now more frequently being raised by functional leaders is, “How do we as an organisation ensure to keep our workforce that we have so painstakingly rebuilt just months ago? And, “How do we foster loyalty when financial resources are being squeezed?” [...] Psychometrics can be applied to assess cultural fit, to spot development potential for executives, or to identify areas in which an individual is likely to be able to significantly drive performance. Looking at them through the lens of wanting to drive loyalty, the answers for the following five questions should be found [...]

Hospitality organizations cannot afford to drop the ball on sustainability. Clearly, they have done well in handling the immediate urgencies that have come out of the crisis, while addressing some fundamental sustainability practices and programs. Yet, there are seemingly more resources wished for, and required, to better engrain and align sustainable thinking within the organization and to proactively build sustainable skills. This is not only a question for a company’s HR executives: the onus is on an organization’s leadership team. Specifically, the leadership team must ensure that HR is not bogged down by the tactical implications and roll-out of initiatives that help ‘keep the head above water’ during a crisis. On the other hand, HR should continue to push for the necessary resources, and commitment, to embed sustainability. Whilst the financial and economic implications of the recent past are very real, so are those of the failure to address sustainability.

Focusing too much on overcoming a crisis, to returning to normality, runs the risk of losing sight of what the realities are. Do we not always have to somehow overcome one crisis after another? Do we not always have to fight for talent, to overcome an economic crisis, or to review operating costs because of raising food prices, rents, etc.? Do we not have to deal with either the consequences of entering or exiting a political union, a labour union, or some other type of interest groups? Are there not always, somewhere on the globe, some sort of conversations about protectionism as it relates to the local labour market — followed by talks about the need to open up the market to attract and retain people from elsewhere?

Post-pandemics leaders must ensure that their organizations stay intimately connected to a higher purpose and value system that reframes “loss, frustration, isolation, and adversity” as an opportunity to appreciate and model “gratitude, fortitude, humility, and service.”

Accepting that the enchantment economy is on the horizon, leaders moving forward must have the proper mindsets and ambitions to meet the evolving expectations of customers and employees. We are researching this important issue in more depth so that detailed guidance on creating and sustaining enchanted marketplaces and workspaces will be available to seasoned and new leaders alike.

Psychology says that decision-making is complicated by a “speed-accuracy” trade-off. This issue becomes more salient as the post-pandemic “rebound and recovery” period approaches. Many organizations will need to increase their talent bench-strength quickly to meet pent-up demand. New psychometric research and AI-technologies confront the traditional trade-off by facilitating more efficient and effective hiring decisions than ever possible before.

curiosity about the ‘hot functions’ is keeping both organisational leadership teams as well as individual executives preoccupied. How can one best reshuffle or complement one’s existing leadership team? Are there specific experiences or skills which could further enhance one’s own executive profile – and thus one’s ‘marketability’?

With local and regional lockdowns still in place, Romain and I caught up over a cup of coffee, using one of the now omnipresent video chat platforms which have, throughout the past 12 months, proven so helpful in maintaining ‘face-to-face’ contact and a sense of normality [...]. We started talking about sentiment amongst the hotel investment community, about the role of human capital and talent in the acquisition due diligence process and about prospects for 2021 and beyond.

Social and economic disruptions often shift people’s behaviours ― sometimes in small ways, other times more seismic. On this point, AETHOS conducted a ‘COVID Gap’ analysis for the C-suite within hospitality organisations at the end of last year. Yet, our ongoing interactions with industry investors and operators reveal that the pandemic has affected considerably more than an organisation’s senior leadership teams. Industry feedback consistently indicated that last year’s disruption clearly had a lasting impact throughout the organisational chart. We therefore examined empirical data to clarify the nature and extent of these apparent cultural shifts to organisations.

We are frequently asked by leaders in our industry what roles are ‘hot’ and where are we seeing movement? That curiosity is reflective of our highly competitive sector, one where individuals are eager to further their professional development but also an industry where scarcity of talent remains an issue – and the pandemic, perhaps counter-intuitively, will probably exaggerate this even further. Of course, one cannot deny that at present there is a larger than usual talent pool for employees to pick and choose from. However, the pandemic has also caused some considerable ‘talent haemorrhaging’, with executives having taken the decision to re-orient their career or to leave the sector for good. On top of that we have already witnessed well-capitalised industry players starting to ‘snap up’ talent so that they are ahead of the curve when it comes to driving and shaping the recovery.

The restaurant industry has been hit especially hard by COVID. Layoffs, closures, a shift to delivery and outdoor dining, as well as mergers and acquisitions have dominated the news this past year. Many executives and even board directors have taken pay cuts during this health crisis. We also have seen restaurant boards in the news over the last several months. For example, in March 2021, Mellody Hobson will become the first African American Chairwoman of the Board of a Fortune 500 company – Starbuck – which is long overdue.

Das vergangene Jahr 2020 hat vielen soliden Firmen den Boden unter den Fuessen weggerissen. Allerdings gibt es auch Unternehmen, die 2020 schwarze Zahlen geschrieben haben – teils aufgrund der Geschaeftmodelle, teils wegen der Agilitaet und Kreativitaet von Fuehrungspersoenlichkeiten und Managementteams. Diese Agilitaet beizubehalten bleibt daher sehr wichtig. Der Jahresbeginn ist ein guter Zeitpunkt, um das alte Jahr Revue passieren zu lassen und vom Erlebten zu lernen. Wir raten Unternehmen und Fuehrungskraeften immer dazu sich die folgenden drei Fragen zu stellen: 1. Was muessen wir weiterhin so machen wie gehabt? 2. Womit muessen wir anfangen, um ein positives Momentum zu gewinnen? 3. Womit sollten wir aufhoeren, um negative Konsequenzen zu vermeiden?

“I recognise,” Susan said, “one has to grasp opportunities when they present themselves.” The year 2021 is one such instance – “for HR professionals, it provides the chance to really leave a lasting positive impact on the way hospitality organisations are facing the uphill struggle, but also the opportunities that present themselves after a year of destruction to build back better”.

The Annual Hotel Conference was held October 8th – in line with the overarching theme of ‘re-shaping’, ‘re-generating, and ‘re-inventing’, delegates were able to participate in an interactive roundtable discussion focused on professional development opportunities. The conversation centred around identifying and securing one’s next career step.

"... it is difficult to imagine anything people will crave or need psychologically more than a healthy dose of enchantment following weeks of monotony, restlessness, and anxiety that accompany COVID-19 quarantines." But what exactly are the core elements of enchanting experiences? Many people have talked around this question, but few research studies have actually delved into the nature and relevance of enchantment as a psychological construct or consumer motivator. Perhaps the closest guiding principle used by the tourism-hospitality industry has been the notion of the ‘experience economy.’ This reflects the philosophy that businesses compete in today’s market by offering increasingly memorable experiences versus strictly focusing on the quality of products or services. Moreover, some research has modeled the ‘ideal’ features of such ‘memorable experiences.’ Namely, the trend over the past decade or so has been for consumers to seek experiences grounded in (i) aesthetics, (ii) authenticity, (iii) education, (iv) entertainment, (v) escapism, (vi) newness, and (vii) a sense of transformation.

‘Mental wellness’ is a broad topic that involves our emotional, psychological, and social functioning. In what is a reflection of the fast-paced and high-pressure environments that we nowadays live in, it has increasingly topped the management agenda of many boards and HR executives across the globe. In a high-touch and hugely interdependent business environment such as the hospitality industry, many executives had already voiced concerns about losing their ‘equilibrium’ before the current COVID-19 crisis.

As an evaluator of leadership capability, I have been asked what it takes to lead in a time of crisis, such as COVID-19. My answer has been simple, “you must be equal parts realist, pragmatist and optimist. This mixture of archetypes is essential in dealing with the fast moving and unknown outcomes of a crisis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has now become the most disruptive event in our lifetime. Understandably, virtually all organizations are bogged down in “immediate” decision-making. It is all tactical right now, because there is no place to run and no place to hide; there is no safe haven. But once the immediate circumstances settle, will your organization be hard-wired for panic or innovation?

People say every generation has its defining moments; often shared experiences which forge a common mentality, attitudes and character traits. Perhaps 2020 represents that turning point for the future generation of business leaders as Covid-19, however awful it is, has helped all of us to remember that we should be putting the interests of the ‘greater good’ first.

Investors, and the world in general, are rightfully nervous. However, in this instance, and unlike in past (economic or political) crises, central banks are unlikely to be able to help businesses – this is a consumer confidence and demand issue. When looking at the C-suite of hotel companies, there should therefore be some comfort in the fact that these are experienced and tried-and-tested CEOs.

The ‘up-and-comers’ are advised not only to be independent thinkers but to be more mindful as well. ‘Mindful’ is being used here with the intent to be aware of one’s own bad habits – or to make sure not to develop them in the first place.

Most industry leaders have established relationships with a mentor or a very select group of personal advisors for whom they can call upon for thoughts, advice, or direction as it relates to their career. AETHOS has often highlighted the importance of such ‘personal boards of advisors’. For new entrants to the industry, though, it is often difficult to know who to choose as a mentor or role model. It is no surprise, then, that during last year’s “Young Hoteliers Summit”, which annually gathers more than 200 students from hospitality universities in over 20 countries, this issue was raised the most in the one-on-one discussions.

Most industry leaders have established relationships with a mentor or a very select group of personal advisors for whom they can call upon for thoughts, advice, or direction as it relates to their career. AETHOS has often highlighted the importance of such ‘personal boards of advisors’. For new entrants to the industry, though, it is often difficult to know who to choose as a mentor or role model. It is no surprise, then, that during last year’s “Young Hoteliers Summit”, which annually gathers more than 200 students from hospitality universities in over 20 countries, this issue was raised the most in the one-on-one discussions.

What does the future leader look like? In a business environment growing more complex and ambiguous almost by the minute, leaders will need skills that allow them to navigate quickly and well across multiple information and decision-making streams. As a general rule of thumb, here are some 'top tips':

In 2013, some colleagues and I published a research study in the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly concerning the lack of advancement of women into the C-Suite in the hospitality industry. Our work was borne out of a curiosity about the reported career obstacles that modern female executives faced. In the present era of “Me Too,” it seems appropriate to revisit that research to shine a light again upon the issues that might hold women back, as well as to re-examine the ways business leaders can help women to navigate those obstacles successfully.

We are approaching year end and organisations will have set their strategies for 2020. In the travel and tourism sector, chances are that executives and senior leaders will have spent a significant amount of time talking about talent, or the lack therefore. The cruise sector, in particular, is facing an unprecedented challenge – to deliver on the set goals and expansion plans knowing that, at present, they do not have near enough staff to execute against the growth strategy

Findings published by the Harvard Business Review, built on research by the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI), put the hospitality industry at the bottom of 22 surveyed sectors as it relates to ‘digital advancement’. This last spot is shared with, among others, the mining industry. This is not good news for the hospitality sector – and its executives are aware of it.

Regardless of where we are in the hotel cycle, the importance of high-performing asset management is critical to the success of any hotel owner. Over the last 20 years I have had the pleasure to work closely with this community assisting clients, such as public REITS and private equity groups, recruit high-performing executives, allowing owners to maximize value for their hotel property and/or portfolio. My thoughts regarding some important human capital misconceptions in the world of asset management will hopefully help shape the future for 1) hotel owners to attract and retain top talent and 2) for asset management executives thinking about charting their future career path.

The US Army War College introduced the term VUCA during the Cold War ― a time when the world was facing especially high levels of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. Since being introduced, this framework has become a trendy acronym that strategic business leaders regularly use to assess the suitability of their environment or market for launching new products, entering new markets, and embarking on other key initiatives. It allows them to pinpoint where the four challenges in their respective business are situated or skewed, as well as how to create appropriate responses.

"People are the product if the hospitality industry" – this most certainly holds true for the cruise sector. Without the continuity of the talent bench-strength cruise companies would be unable to execute on their ambitious growth plans. As the fight for talent has continued and intensified throughout the last few years, cruise companies have started to embrace an approach which can be coined as "future-casting" – in other words, rather than focusing on proven track record and/or domain knowledge, they have moved away from assessing task competencies. This shift in their recruitment efforts has enabled them to identify people with potential who are adaptable, inquisitive and knowledge-thirsty and who perform well in high-pressure work environments such as the cruise industry.

At present, business podcasts, industry articles and news bulletins are all about ‘sustainability’. The fact that the topic has established itself as a regular head-line feature across different media outlets is very commendable; yet, conversations appear to be somewhat one-sided. We read about initiatives to ensure economic benefits trickle down to communities which are otherwise left behind, to reduce pollution levels and/or to safeguard the environment. In short, most news coverage is about ‘pre-packaged solutions’ – but jumping to solutions will never get rid of the underlying cause of a problem. Should the conversation therefore be more multi-faceted and deeper?

One of the biggest pitfalls for organisations is to spend money and set up an AI infrastructure but not be able to use the outputs or insights gained – based on either incorrect avenues pursued that yield in irrelevant or difficult-to-use data points or based on a lack of in-house skills to “make sense” of the AI outputs. Understanding how “digitally mature” an organisation is and how ready its employees and executives are to implement “data science” should, consequently, be one of the first assessments one undertakes when looking at applying AI within an organisation.

In the end, leadership is as much art as it is science. Constant practice is necessary to keep your leadership capabilities sharp and relevant. Success in leadership today requires thoughtfulness, caring and compassion. Poor leaders may win occasionally, but never in the end. Take a tip from The Dalai Lama, and become the best leader you can possibly be.

True servant leaders will pause and then decide on a course of action geared by wanting to achieve best outcomes for the greater good of their teams and their perspective company. So, the real million-dollar question that the up-and-coming talent out there should ask itself is: “What impact will this action or response have on my team or company culture?”

Google ‘cruise industry’ and ‘sustainability’ and you will get approximately 100,000 hits. Those search results focus mostly on the three key pillars of sustainability: (1) economic, (2) environmental and (3) social. Here, we are suggesting that a fourth dimension should be added; namely, labour.

Taking the opportunity to sit down and ‘talk shop’ with Marloes Knippenberg, CEO of Kerten Hospitality, AETHOS explored some key leadership questions. If the hospitality industry is continuously redefining itself, as well as the boundaries of the areas in which it operates, does the same hold true for leaders and their management styles?

One wonders [...] if the days of the expatriate are numbered and if those entering the business 10, 20 years from now will have the same options open to them. My visit to Singapore also took in the HICAP Update conference. During the ‘Investment Outlook’ panel, when asked to name his number one cost-saving measure in relation to his firm’s hotel portfolio, one of the region’s leading investors half-jokingly replied, “Get rid of the expats.” While this raised a chuckle from the audience (at least 50% expats themselves), there is some seriousness in his statement that reflects an increasing move to localise many management positions in the hotel sector. The fact is that foreign executives are expensive when compared to local hires, often requiring significant additional cost above base pay in terms of allowances and benefits, such as housing, schooling, relocation, insurances, etc. With labour costs typically being one of the heaviest line items on a P&L, it is no wonder that hotel owners are keen to lessen their dependency on imported expertise.

AETHOS conducted a recent study of the leadership teams at some of the UK’s prevalent fast-casual and casual dining restaurant operators. The study indicates what many have pointed out for a while now – spearheading a restaurant company is a very ‘hot seat’ indeed.

Results from a recent gender diversity study I conducted for the lodging industry indicate that of the 238 board seats available among the 28 U.S. lodging companies, only 51 were occupied by women (21%), a woefully low number. If we live in a world where women account for 80% of consumer spending and a multitude of credible studies point to a correlation between greater gender diversity and strong board performance, it is certainly time for us to address this issue head on. I have personally facilitated countless client board meetings and can say with unwavering confidence that gender diversity within the boardroom leads to first-rate ideation and collaboration. Here are some of my thoughts to stimulate change within the lodging industry.

February saw, for the first time, the Global Restaurant Investment Forum (GRIF) come to Europe. [...] Taking the opportunity to be together in one spot, AETHOS caught up with Monique Borst over a cup of coffee in Amsterdam. Monique is a seasoned industry expert and can draw on more than 20 years of experience in food service and food retail. She has worked with world-recognised brands such as Harrods, Sodexo and the Compass Group, and has held commercial as well as board-level functions. Nowadays, Monique uses her corporate and start-up experience to help restaurant entrepreneurs kick-start and/or expand their business.

Turnover of Chief Executives at the world’s 50 largest hotel groups remained flat for 2018, with new faces appearing at the head of four companies, the same number as for the prior year. Changes in CEO positions were seen at G6 Hospitality, Extended Stay, Millennium & Copthorne and B&B Hotels. Of these, three were planned moves. Jennifer Fox’s three-month stint at Millennium & Copthorne, though, can only be assumed to have been anything but planned. A sector turnover rate of 8% is well under the average for the general industry and speaks to a current period of leadership stability that has run since we last saw a spike of 14% in 2015.

Hoteliers have historically considered the Food & Beverage (F&B) department as a loss leader, a ‘must-have’ to appease paying hotel guests. To put it bluntly, money was to be made on the rooms side of the business. Yet, times and attitudes have changed. Clients have become more discerning and thirstier for authentic and local experiences to tease their taste buds whilst hoteliers have recognised that their in-house F&B offering can be a point of differentiation.

We are in week eight of the new year and it is fair to say that 2019 is well and truly underway. But ask yourself this, does the same hold true for your own new year’s resolutions…? Chances are that the answer to this question is a resounding “no”. As part of our personal brand building and professional visibility leadership series, we have therefore decided to inspire hospitality executives and to provide them with the one new year’s resolution which should be easy to live up to – and, if pursued rigorously, it can proof powerful in helping executives to enhance their own personal brand.

As part of our investigative C-Suite miniseries, which takes a closer look at and profiles the key senior leadership functions at hospitality companies around the globe, AETHOS now attempts to paint a clearer picture of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) role and the leaders who define it. Thus far, we have profiled the changing roles, competency sets and backgrounds of the Chief Commercial Officer, the Chief Human Resources Officer and the Chief Information Officer. Arguably, the CMO is another important piece of the puzzle – not yet completing, but certainly providing a much more comprehensive picture of the management teams of hospitality organisations around the globe.

The tech era has highlighted the importance of data mining and data wrangling and has made these processes critical when it comes to decision-making and even tactical execution. It is easy to assume that evidenced-based insights and models would only apply to business metrics and issues, but the burgeoning science of Human Resources shows that “big” data can help in “big” ways to positively impact people metrics and issues. The use of legally defensible psychometric assessments in hiring and succession planning offer clear examples of this.

Whether we are talking about a nation, a corporation or a small start-up, if the elected leadership is not challenged or upheld to its formal duties, infrastructural aspects may either start to derail or fractures appear which are fed by a growing disgruntlement with certain behaviour or decision-making. It is easy to find the fault in the person at the helm of a nation or an organisation, to brandish this particular individual as the “trouble-maker” or to call for new leadership to step in on the basis that the incumbent has not fulfilled their promises. But we are forgetting that there is a “collective responsibility.” As we are seeing in the current political landscape, leadership is in fact quite often following through with what they set out to do in the first place. We have just not fully listened or considered the consequences of what has been suggested as the course of action; nor has leadership clearly pointed it out to us. Thus, there appears to prevail a culture defined by superficial and oft meaningless conversations. Yes, of course there are also voices of concern or, at times, a challenge – yet, it seems that at the first hurdle, people are simply giving up.

We have previously explored the fundamental association between relatability and professional visibility. Subsequently, we have further defined that concept of professional visibility and segmented it into three components: credibility, confidence and charisma. Here, we examine the notion of ‘engaged leadership.’

Over the last several years, the function of the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) has become increasingly important to the success of almost every type of organization. Yet, despite its importance, it is still rare for hospitality firms to provide a board seat for this vital function. Consequently, the public profile of CTOs is often limited. So, what are the building blocks that form the profile of a successful CTO? And, what are the character traits that hiring committees should be looking for in a CTO?

To leverage technology to its greatest potential in the hospitality sector will require thought leaders who are open to seeing it from a different point of view - ask any hospitality executive about technology and their thoughts are likely to jump to distribution, sales and marketing, automation and organizational effectiveness. Our sector has done well in using technology to improve processes and to achieve greater efficiencies. In short, we have succeeded in effectively applying technology for, predominantly, transactional purposes. But there is so much more that could be done.

Common sense dictates that the more information people have the more informed decisions they will make. This reasoning works flawlessly with problems or issues that are composed of well-defined “cause-and-effect” relationships. Of course, business in the real-world does not get done in sterile environments but instead takes place in dirty test tubes. Here, critical information in an equation is neither always known nor can be properly measured.

AETHOS recently “picked-the-brain” of Josh Lesnick, President & CEO of Associated Luxury Hotels – the parent company of Associated Luxury Hotels International (ALHI) and Worldhotels. Both are leading global hospitality services organizations that specialize in luxury-level and upper-upscale independently owned or operated hotels and resorts around the world. Associated Luxury defines success as enabling their member hotels to maintain an independent identity while competing effectively with the world’s biggest hospitality chains.

Technology-enabled interaction has become a “must,” not a “nice to have,” and guests expect to be engaged and recognized at an ever more personalized level—it is no longer just a marketing gimmick. However, sitting down for a conversation with Klaus Kohlmayr, chief evangelist at IDeaS Revenue Solutions, he confirmed that the sector is playing catch-up. We agreed, gutsy leadership is needed to bring the technology departments at hotel organizations worldwide into the 21st century. More importantly, we agreed that the root of the problem lies in out-of-date software, systems and infrastructure. Too many hotel operators are running on archaic platforms and trying to compete with a horse-drawn carriage in a Formula 1 race.

Last month, we investigated what it takes to be visible in the professional market place and concluded with the suggestion that “visibility” is only worth something if it is tied to “relatability”. In this article, we stipulate that the former and the latter should be complemented by “executive presence”. Google “executive presence” and you’ll be “inundated” with 163 million hits. You’re bound to learn useful tips if you can somehow sift through this avalanche of material to find the tried and true nuggets of wisdom. Or, you could take the Dale Carnegie’s course on public speaking or immerse yourself in leadership books that aim to describe and nurture executive presence reportedly from academic perspectives.

Following our announcement last month, as part of a new “pulse” leadership mini-series, AETHOS is taking a closer look at ‘executive presence’. The purpose – to draw each and every reader’s attention to its own level of self-awareness and for everyone to critically ask themselves: “What are the competency sets which help me stand out from the crowd?” and “Which attitudes and personal habits should I hone to elevate my profile in the industry?” To kick-off this series, AETHOS investigates what it takes to be visible in the professional market place and suggests that ‘visibility’ is only worth something if it is tied to ‘relatability.’ If people cannot connect with you, or have difficulty in ‘reading you,’ you will not be able to leverage any professional visibility that you might have.

All companies have pain points during growth or stabilization phases, so leaders face two critical questions: Where are they, and how can we ease them? There is now an evidence-based model to help business leaders confront these issues more efficiently and effectively. It starts with understanding the “joints” in a company’s anatomy — joints being areas where strategic and tactical components in an organization intersect and are thereby particularly vulnerable to friction or bottlenecks.

Welcome to the ‘urban, global jungle’ better known as ‘today’s job market’. Whether you’re new to the workforce or a developing leader eager to climb the corporate ladder, you’ve probably been told or read somewhere that ‘survival of the fittest’ in this jungle means being career-focused and fixated on gaining an edge, discovering your metaphorical hedgehog, carving a competitive advantage, or establishing a personal brand.

Following a breakfast meeting with a senior executive from the UK restaurant industry, my attention was drawn to the fact that a small number of Food & Beverage businesses has started to hire marketers for their most senior human resource roles. Although this is not yet an overwhelming trend in hospitality, I wondered whether this approach made sense from a competency perspective. And, if so, would others follow suit? Could this be such a “butterfly moment” – one that defines roles to come as well as HR and talent management best practices for the greater hospitality industry?

Over the years spent collaborating on in-depth studies of hospitality leadership — including over 100 analytical interviews and assessment tests — my interest and co-research in the “anatomy” of leadership and the interplay of nature versus nurture has led to several studies published in the North American Journal of Psychology and the Cornell Hospitality Quarterly. Our work in this area has consistently found that leadership is more a mental state than a professional role or pursuit. The human brain has evolved over tens of thousands of years into an approximately-three-pound organic computer whose sole task is to make things more certain.

The rights words spoken at the right time can move mountains. Public speaking is an art and skill that can determine business success or failure. However, many studies show that it is often one of people’s greatest fears and sources of anxiety. Executive coaches and seminars can help leaders become more effective public speakers, but much of the anxiety can be reduced by simply being more organized and prepared. The four tactics below will make you feel more in control and better positioned to make a positive and lasting impact on your audience.

Being a CEO in the restaurant industry is tough work; and short lived for many. Nearly 20% of the CEOs in our annual study of pay-for-performance resigned, retired or were pushed out. It would stand to reason that deficient performance would precipitate a CEO’s ouster, but was that really the case?

A “leap year” happens every four years -- an extra day is added to the calendar to align it with the solar year. And in the span of just four years, it could be said that Preferred Hotels & Resorts has achieved many big leaps due to the strategic and cultural vision of its relatively new CEO, Lindsey Ueberroth. Since joining the company in 2004, Lindsey has helped solidify the position of Preferred Hotels & Resorts as an iconic global hospitality brand, a preferred partner for independent hotels and resorts, and a trusted resource for travellers seeking an authentic, independent luxury hotel experience. Today, Preferred Hotels & Resorts represents more than 650 independent hotels, resorts, residences, and small hotel groups across 85 countries.

Leaders have the responsibility of holding team members (direct reports or even peers) accountable for their actions and commitments. It’s often simple in principle but difficult in practice because doing this means leaders must be ready, willing and able to handle conflict. Sadly, many managers avoid any manner of unpleasantness because they value being liked more than being respected, or they overlook bad behaviour when offenders deliver financial results or meet other critical targets. Both approaches do a disservice to team members who should be benefiting from proactive mentorship and honest, constructive performance feedback. Five tactics make handling conflict easier for all.

Behind every failed leader is an excuse. In our experience studying and working with global leadership in the hospitality industry, successful leaders consistently tell us in one way or another that excuses were for “losers” whereas “winners” find solutions to tough challenges, or at least look at failed initiatives with a winning attitude and use the situation to adopt key learnings to apply to future scenarios.

It’s not speculation, opinion or assumption…. the fact is that the common mantra of “Hire for attitude, train for skill” is a misguided perspective on hiring, promotion or performance. Many so-called attitudes, motivational or temperament factors are in fact learnable skills themselves. Research consistently reveals that personality tests are poor predictors of workplace performance, whereas measures of General Mental Ability (reasoning, planning, abstract thinking, comprehending complex ideas and learning quickly) and role-specific skills are stronger and more consistent predictors of performance. Think about it, cognitive and emotional intelligence underpin ability and speed to new learn things, as well as capacity to adapt to new circumstances and handle stress. Personality factors, on the other hand, have been shown by independent research to be an inconsistent predictor of professional performance. It seems counterintuitive, but personality factors per se do not drive success in the workplace.

The issue of diversity, and the lack of it, has popped up frequently in recent conversations with leaders in the hospitality world to the point where it seems that if a candidate for a job is neither female nor of a minority ethnicity, then their application is at a disadvantage. Grey-haired white men continue to be the largest faction of leaders sitting around most hotel company boardroom tables. The good news is that a lot of these companies are self-aware enough to recognise that the composition of their leadership needs to better represent their customer and employee bases. In the same way that a fish rots from the head down, the thinking goes that changes at the top of the organisation will percolate down through the rest of the employee body, as staff become inspired by the leaders above them.

The hospitality industry remains one of the backbones of the economy in the Middle East, and the food and beverage (F&B) sector is certainly contributing its fair share. In the past, many regional businesses opted for an internationally recognised concept, but, nowadays, the market has matured and witnessed diversification. The UAE, in particular, has become a foodie destination in its own right and there is a notable appetite – from investors, developers and the consumers – for home-grown concepts. Not surprisingly, new outlets have sprung up (from ‘Cougley,’ to ‘Cocoville,’ to other home-grown start-ups such as Folly, Hikina, Matto Italian Restaurant, Publique or Ruya). The list is endless.

“Pay for performance” models dominate today’s compensation schemes, a fact that seems to say implicitly that outcomes are the only thing that matter. Janet Jackson summed it long ago with her popular lyrical meme, “What have you done for me lately?” But, there is also a 1970s lyric by Gordon Lightfoot that speaks to another, equally potent reality, which is “heroes often fail.” Leaders simply do not win every battle or war.

At last month’s International Hotel Investment Forum/Berlin, the event organisers arranged a panel discussion with four entrepreneurs and (co-)founders of new hotel concepts. The question up for debate: “Where is the innovation?”. [...] I caught up with Dr. Nikolai Jaeger. Nikolai is an entrepreneur and business founder, currently managing MQ Real Estate, a development company which specialises in and builds modular hotels on top of car parks, above parking lots and on top of existing buildings in European cities.

Our January article presented our nominee for “2016 Hospitality Leader of the Year,” though we clearly noted there were many worthy candidates. [...] Since the publication of this article, however, we have been asked to reveal some of the “runners-up” we deliberated. We are happy to oblige.

Wherever I go, I see signs of people wanting to hit the pause button, to take a moment to assimilate what is happening around them. [...] Wearing my hat as an organisational advisor in talent management and human resources, I have been asking myself, ‘Is hitting the pause button the right thing to do? What is needed for leadership talent in the hotel industry to adjust to and not be overwhelmed by the continuous catching up to keep up-to-date with progress?’

Corrado Accardi is one of those London entrepreneurs who took the plunge and who left a corporate career in order to become the founder of Pizza Rossa, a by-the-slice Italian eatery. I was keen to talk to him about entrepreneurship and leadership, financing a start-up and the challenges represented by changes in consumer behaviour as well as his views on industry disruptors – in particular third party delivery companies – and social media.

AETHOS Consulting Group was honoured to co-sponsor “Next, A Future Leaders Summit” together with HTL Capital Advisors as part of HotelsMegaMeet in Sydney last month. “Next” was aimed at providing rising stars of the Australian hospitality industry with an opportunity to learn from, and to interact with, leading players from the industry as well as their peers. Key takeaways of the event included:

How you feel about and treat yourself directly affects your relationships – and in the hospitality industry managing internal and external relationships is a fundamental and critical business skill. Often success in building relationships is rightfully credited to factors like a person’s level of Extroversion, Service Orientation, or Emotional Intelligence... Yet, a critical element that can be overlooked or minimized in the mix is Self-Esteem.

What do Belmond, Caesar’s Entertainment, Carlson, China Lodging, Jumeirah, Mandarin Oriental, Millennium & Copthorne, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, and Whitbread have in common? The answer is they all announced a change of CEO during the past 12 months.

How many people do you know who would tell legendary tech mogul Bill Gates, “Thanks for the many opportunities at Microsoft, but now I see my career going in a different direction”? It sounds crazy, but essentially this is what Jennifer Jobin did as part of her deliberate development as a female executive. The journey challenged her to define her priorities and personal brand, find workable ways to manage and leverage the demands of both a fulfilling career and ever-evolving personal life, and mature as a leader of people versus stagnate as a manager of things.

Determining whether an employee “can be saved” or “coached to greater success” isn’t a simple “yes or no” question. It’s an educated risk or assessment. The best guess answer is arguably grounded in the CHIC variables, which define a continuum of likely coaching success.

The AETHOS Hotel CEO Turnover study has been reviewing annual turnover in the sector since 2004. The study’s peer group is the world’s 50 largest hotel companies by number of rooms count as reported each year by HOTELS magazine. Companies range in size from IHG with 679,050 rooms to Okura with 23,686 rooms, some are publicly listed, others are private family owned businesses. 23% of the peer group is headquartered in Asia, 32% in Europe, and 45% in North America.

Coachability goes beyond the simple notion of training or trainability, which often involves teaching a specific set of skills in a highly structured manner. Coaching, for lack of a better term, is a more intuitive process whereby an individual “absorbs” knowledge, attitudes, and skills via guided (versus highly structured) learning and development. It’s more nuanced since it partly involves an employee’s self-directedness in identifying and seizing learnings opportunistically, as well as an employee being positively motivated to devote time to attend structured learnings too. In other words, the most effective coaching clients have the insight, awareness, and self-directedness to recognize and seize leanings wherever they reside.

CEO turnover among the world’s 50 largest hotel firms in 2013 was 10% down from a 2012 figure of 16%. Leaders who took office in 2013 were Sébastien Bazin (Accor), Lee Chee Koon (Ascott), Wolfgang Neumann (Carlson Rezidor), Frank Fiskers (Scandic), and Peter Gowers (Travelodge). New CEO arrivals always tend to prompt speculation from employees, shareholders, analysts, media, and industry colleagues as to the likely performance of the hire and of the hiring organization. Such transition events also give us a chance to take stock, look at the CEO role in the hotel world from a holistic standpoint and explore the profile of these industry titans.

There are three major shifts within the industry and the workforce as a whole that drive the growing need for transformation within the HR department and the relationship between business leadership and HR professionals. Considering each on a case by case basis, it is subsequently questioned whether there are no other talent management tools beyond the established that are worthwhile applying.

The article takes an in-depth look at how leaders must possess both creativity and problem-solving skills to excel on the job. it is argued that these skills can be taught and are not necessarily innate.

Many would argue that all CEOs are overpaid, but we disagree. Keith Kefgen reveals his findings in the latest edition of our annual review of US hotel company CEO compensation.

Newer research increasingly implicates self-imposed barriers to women’s advancement at the workplace. We argue that the “glass ceiling” is now predominantly a misnomer and that the current challenges to advancement are best characterized as an “invisible obstacle course”.

Hotel company CEO turnover has picked up in the past two years with 12% of the world’s 50 largest hotel companies in 2011 being led by a new Chief Executive. Read the findings of this biennial CEO Turnover study.

Even as key performance metrics - occupancy, ADR, RevPAR - recorded positive growth in 2011, CEO turnover increased at unusual levels. 2011 marked changes at the top spot for 1 out of every 8 publicly trading US hotel companies. The annual survey looks at why a recovering industry causes such upheaval in the executive suite.

This review of US gaming company CEOs compares 2010 compensation in relation to stock performance, EBITDA growth and market capitalization over a three year period.

The North American Journal of Psychology and AETHOS tested some of the latest thinking on what intuitions are and when they should be heeded. The study offers guidance for if and when business leaders should trust their gut decisions.

A guide for assessing your company's ethics program, or starting one.

Organization structure can affect the quality of corporate governance. Companies need to carefully analyze their strengths and weaknesses and recruit new directors that can enhance the competency of the overall board of directors.

Aethos Consulting Group recommends a separation of the roles of CEO and Chairman on a hotel company board.

Interviews with seven hospitality company CEOs at the beginning of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. These conversations reveal their advice on how to best lead a company through tough times.

Eighteen months of global recession has done nothing to dampen the spirit or enthusiasm of the industry. AETHOS checks in with five hotel company CEOs for their take on the way forward.

The expatriate general manager, with his varied management and operational experience, brings to the table a good understanding of cross cultural dynamics.

With the financial crisis and economic downturn being omnipresent in the media and people’s minds, companies seek security and stability. Does “Emotional Intelligence” help leaders to cope with such an ever changing work environment?

Three of the world’s largest hotel companies recently hired CEOs from outside the industry. Chris Mumford of HVS Executive Search considers the case for following this lead when hiring further down the organization chart.

Congratulations to Whitbread on regaining its 2009 position as the top performing hotel board of directors in Europe. Our latest European Board Study sheds insight on latest goings-on in hotel company boardrooms.

LaSalle Hotel Properties wins top spot in the 13th US hotel company board performance study.

Sunstone Hotel Investors leaps to the top in the 14th annual Top-Performing Board analysis of US public hotel companies.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts wins top spot in the 12th annual US hotel company board performance study.

AETHOS analysed over 420 top-performing CEOs from around the world to understand key competencies required to be an effective leader in the hospitality industry.