Exclusive Interview | Harkaran Singh, General Manager, Hyatt Raipur
/“At times I see guests treating a colleague in a way, which is not acceptable however when someone senior is dealing, the tone changes – Why? We should respect the Individual, not the title. ”
Editor: Tell us about your journey. How did it all start?
I originate from Chandigarh – the city beautiful. I am the first in my family to be a hotelier and began my hotel career in Chennai in front office operations. I completed my hotel and business management from D-IHM, Pune, and American Hotel & Lodging Association, Middlesex, the U.K in 2006.
After spending initial 2 years in Front Office Operations, I moved to Revenue management where I joined IDeaS Revenue Optimization – A SAS Company as a Revenue Optimization Analyst based out of their technology centre in Pune. Got an opportunity here to work on revenue analysis and data analytics for hotels worldwide.
I started my Hyatt Career in the year 2010, at the Hyatt Pune (Pre-opening) as a Revenue Manager, followed by other appointments at Hyatt Hyderabad Gachibowli, Hyatt Regency Kolkata before moving to Hyatt Raipur as General Manager in the year 2018
Editor: What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?
Well, there are various attributes but the most important is being passionate about the industry which is the key to success. Being determined and passionate and understanding that it is the long hours one will have to put in and work during holidays and festivals as hotels are the place people go to celebrate and rejuvenate, and we hoteliers need to be there for our guests extending that memorable experience.
Editor: What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring? If someone wants to work with you, what should they do?
As I mentioned being passionate about your job is what makes you succeed in our industry. Hence I look for colleagues who understand this and display being enthusiastic and passionate about hotels. We can always train our colleagues about processes and procedures but the customer centricity, the passion to work for people, the friendly personality have to come naturally.
Editor: What according to you can trainees do while they are training at hotels to make it a win-win for them & the hotel/unit?
The training period is actually a very important period for all future leaders of the hotel industry. It’s not just a tenure they need to be taking notes or be serious – it’s a time they should use to understand hotel industry operations at ground zero level, do a retrospect and self-analysis of whether they belong to the hotel industry or do they need to re-think about their decision of joining hotels. If they get to love the hotel industry during their training and wake up every day looking forward to their action-packed day at their hotels, then there is no looking back. It’s going to be a win-win for both – the hotel organization would look forward to getting passionate hoteliers in the making and an individual who gets a better understanding of hotels and the effort that goes into making a hotel organization successful.
Editor: What are some of the trends you see impacting the hospitality industry?
Our industry is an ever-changing industry and we hoteliers need to be adaptive to the change and adopt and adapt to the trends impacting guest experiences.
To elaborate a bit, at Hyatt Hotels we understand the needs of our guests and always reimagine hotel experiences in line with the ongoing trends. For example, Hyatt was amongst the first hotel chains to extend complimentary basic internet access to all our guests visiting our hotels as the internet is the basic amenity which any guest would require in today’s world. There are many examples to share however with the ongoing CV19 global pandemic, Hygiene has become the new luxury. For hotels and hospitality institutions, Hygiene and safety have always been important however with the CV19 pandemic it is at the forefront of everything we do. And how we communicate what we do to the guests will play an important role.
Editor: Tech is now an enabler for great hospitality. Can you share with us some of the techs that go into creating your guest experience?
Well, keyless entry to rooms to great e-conferencing facilities and a strong and stable Wi-fi facility is very basic in today’s world for any business hotel. With the CV19 pandemic hitting the world, contactless guest experiences in our industry are the new normal. Hence I see a great transformation with technology being a great support in us delivering guest experiences in the years to come. Guests will be able to communicate and connect instantly, hotels need to ensure they can provide feedback and services instantly.
Editor: Two things you would like to change in the industry.
I started with Front office operations and till today can see guests being hesitant in giving deposits on arrivals. There is no service or product which can be consumed first and paid for later, hence would love to have seen guests understand this and we all understood that the hotel business is a ‘Business’, a business which extends credit based on some deposit to be able to function.
Another thing is understanding that hoteliers are also people who need to be treated with respect. We are in a people’s industry – People serving People hence would wish to see everyone being humble at all times – as a guest and as a hotel employee. At times I see guests treating a colleague in a way, which is not acceptable however when someone senior is dealing, the tone changes – Why? We should respect the Individual, not the title.
Editor: What can we expect in the coming year?
Well, the coming year has a lot of re-imagined operations across our industry. I think with the CV19 pandemic, we still functioning because we learn and change the way we operate.
Travel is changing, not stopping. As I mentioned earlier, we just need to be open to change, keep learning, un-learning, and re-imagine hotel operations extending genuine hospitality and experiences to our guests and colleagues.
Technology will surely be a game-changer and add to the Luxury aspect of the hotel. It is going to be interesting times for us to adapt and get used to operating in a more flexible and tech-oriented environment.
