We believe that improved gender equality at executive level and flexibility is the key…
GLOBAL HOSPITALITY LEADERS LAUNCH 2021 COALITION TO IMPROVE GENDER EQUALITY AT HIGHEST INDUSTRY LEVELS
Some of the world’s leading hoteliers and hospitality academics have joined forces to launch a pioneering initiative that aims to accelerate the path to improved gender equality in higher level positions across the industry, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 5.
HoteliersGuild’s LeadingHôtelières Chapter is founded by CEO and President of the prestigious HoteliersGuild community, Frank M Pfaller, and co-founded by Lindsey Ueberroth, CEO at Preferred Hotels & Resorts. “When we looked at our HoteliersGuild Membership Roster, we realised that we had far too few ladies in leadership positions. Reaching out initially to Lindsey, Xenia and Sowon, we were thrilled to realise their enthusiasm to join our cause to ‘making a change’ ”, Pfaller says.
Considerate Group Founding Partner, Xenia zu Hohenlohe, leads as Chairwoman for the inaugural year and is joined by co-chair Associate Professor of Management at the leading Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) university, Dr Sowon Kim Crettex.
The team has enlisted support from the likes of Grand Hotel Tremezzo owner and CEO, Valentina de Santis, Rosewood Hotel Group Vice President of Global Residential Development, Irene Hoek, Director of Red Carnation Hotels, Vicki Tollman, Eva Malmström-Shivdasani of SONEVA, and Director of Spa at Four Seasons Hong Kong, Dr Tania Bardhan, among others, who will all take on vital roles in addressing gender balances at a systemic level, from research, to design, to networking, with communication coordinated by Maria Pajares, MD of Mason Rose.
Quoting Xenia zu Hohenlohe, “Gender equality is a key part of the UN’s Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and any business serious about future proofing itself will need to address this issue. We have an incredible collection of women with highly professional profiles paired with great brainpower in this group, all driven by the motivation to ensure the female Hotelier of the future will be able to finally have the same opportunities for career development as their male peers. I am delighted to be Co-chairing this chapter with the wonderful Sowon Kim and we hope to be able to make a real difference with this work.”
Ueberroth said: “I’m happy to see more women CEOs in hospitality, but we are still a far cry from where I hope we can be in terms of representation. The biggest challenges for women looking to achieve top leadership roles were the need to travel, relocate and dedicate long hours. In the past, once having children and raising a family came into the equation, many women were forced to make a choice, and those challenges were hard to overcome. “Given the innovations in technology and a more open attitude towards flexible working hours and “home offices,” many of these hurdles seem alleviated.”
LeadingHôtelières aims to promote gender equality by providing research, guidance, mentorship and training through a powerful network of contacts in the industry.
The focus of 2021 is specifically geared towards flexible working structures. Heading the research arm of the initiative, Prof Dr Kim said: “We are currently working on a conceptual model to test whether the outcome of our goal, to improve gender equality among directorial and operational roles in the hospitality industry through updated flexible working schemes, actually works for our hotelier partners. We aim to discover how best to collect data on this topic and share these findings in a meaningful, productive way.”
In closing, Frank M. Pfaller adds, that “Building a bridge between academics and hands-on hospitality leaders is important to us. We are delighted that such renowned expert as Sue Harmsworth, founding owner of ESPA, Prof. Dr. Henri Kuokkanen, Vice Dean of IPB Institut Paul Bocuse and , Prof. Dr. Willy Legrand, IUBH are supporting our cause as members of the Advisory Board.”
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“ As highly skilled professionals, we are proud to be hospitalitarian’s. We are a global family, united in our deep belief that hospitality connects people, creates memories, and inspires guests to embrace adventures and pursue unique, memorable experience.
We are committed to creating a powerful sense of community to fuel a global network of friends and colleagues that will last lifetimes.A community that shares knowledge and celebrates one another.
With mutual respect for every person, we embrace diversity, equality and inclusion, and believe that travel manifests humanity’s most powerful form of understanding and acceptance, helping people look beyond barriers that are physical or implied.
We engage, educate & empower our people, creating opportunities for future generation of leaders.
We strive to delight and are resilient, dynamic, and determined in light of every challenge and opportunity.
As highly skilled professionals, we are proud to be hospitalitarian’s. “
Brenda Collin
Chairlady | HoteliersGuild LeadingHôtelières Chapter
Executive Vice President Europe | Preferred Hotels & Resorts
The HoteliersGuild LeadingHôtelières Chapter and EHL proudly present their first joint industry report
This landmark study which gathered data from our global hospitality leaders is both, groundbreaking and eye-opening. Commitments to actions are expected from all of us!
Endorsements and calls-to-action from industry leaders
Prof. Dr. Willy Legrand | International University of Applied Sciences
The global pandemic has reshuffled the cards on how individuals wish to spent their time at work; a clear shift is taking place towards greater self-determination where flexibility takes center stage. But what does it mean for the hospitality sector which is traditionally bound to schedules and shifts? An outstanding research conducted by EHL Hospitality Business School and the HoteliersGuild LeadingHôtelières on work and labor flexibility with clear practical recommendations for hospitality professionals”
Prof. Dr. Ksenia Kirillova | Institut Paul Bocuse
Thank you so much for sharing! The report is a scientific examination of work and labor flexibility in the hotel industry (the first of its kind, to my knowledge). I found it insightful that, contrary to common beliefs, flexibility is not solely a “women issue,” it is a standard expectation of the modern hospitality workforce, regardless of gender. I am happy to see that HoteliersGuild members can now benefit from this knowledge.
Anne Arrowsmith | General Manager | 137 Pillars Hotels
As a relatively small entity, 137 Pillars House Chiang Mai harbors large ambitions when it comes to the welfare of people. We understand that excellence is always a work in progress and can not be mandated but needs instead to be nurtured. Due care, consideration and collaboration amongst the team is essential to providing the requisite care and consideration to guests. They go hand in hand and like kindness, you need to experience it in order to fully understand how to dispense it.
Our management team is 60% female, 40% male with 60% of us having children and almost all being intimately involved in the care of parents or siblings ( culturally common in Asia). As an urban resort, we are a rarity in offering staff accommodation and expanded this benefit to colleagues with small children during covid when hardships in hospitality were magnified.
Opening our minds to new approaches of work and play is an important part of our Welfare Committee's mandate and one we are very much open to learning and sharing best practices.
Thank you Frank and LeadingHôtelières for inspiring us to do more!
Henri Kuokkanen, Vice Dean Institut Paul Bocuse and Chairman of The HoteliersGuild Academy of Hospitality Arts
The hospitality industry was among those hit hardest by the global pandemic, and it now faces difficult questions related to attracting and retaining talent. In a cutting-edge research conducted jointly by EHL Business School and Hoteliersguild LeadingHotelieres, the authors analyze the role of flexibility in the industry and offer their recommendations for managers to benefit from.
Prof. Dr. Burkhard von Freyberg, Munich University of Applied Sciences
The study by EHL and Hoteliers Guild focuses on one of the most important critical success factors in HR management in the hotel industry. For some time now, we have been recognizing an individualization in our society. This must be taken into account. Many people no longer want to be pressed into a rigid corset. Dealing with flexible work structures is overdue in our industry. If intelligent models are found here, this can make an important contribution to finding and retaining future new employees. I personally find the key findings and recommendations very valuable. They can be the basis for hoteliers to identify the next steps and implement the appropriate structures in the company
The International Hospitality Institute
“My team and I at the International Hospitality Institute are excited about the study on work flexibility just released by the Hoteliers Guild and the EHL Hospitality Business School. This landmark study which gathered data from employees in over 70 hotels worldwide is timely in the post-pandemic hospitality industry. The study will benefit hospitality practitioners and the academe alike.
I encourage my fellow hospitality leaders worldwide to review and adopt some of the key recommendations from the study.
The closing message from the study is one that will resonate with many in our industry: “Work flexibility will enable hotels to attract and retain talent, in particular the younger generation, and enable women to pursue their careers and advance into leadership roles while having the choice to have a family too.”
Kudos to the Hoteliers Guild’s LeadingHôtelières chapter and the EHL Hospitality Business School for making such a significant contribution to the academic literature on hospitality. Thank you to my colleague, Frank M. Pfaller, Founder of Hoteliers Guild, for championing the project.”
Dr. Jeffrey O | President & CEO
