Manish Dayya
Manish Dayya is General Manager at Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach
Ranjan was the General Manager of The Raintree Hotel, Chennai in 2010 when we did this interview.
Tell us about your journey. how did it all start?
My sister (Ms. Neeta Sen - GM, Cidade de Goa) who is senior to me in age as well as in the profession was the first one to take up a career in hospitality field and there on I was too inspired by this industry and took chose this profession and was one of the best decisions ever made by me.
I think it is a profession that is most sought today and gives you an opportunity not only to serve but also experience Hospitality in your personal lives.
I started my career 13 back in 1997 once I passed out from IHMCT & AN, Goa with La Paz Gardens as Management Trainee a 3 star hotel in Goa and there on, I had the opportunity to work with the Marriott Hotels in Goa (belonged to the same group as La Paz Gardens) as well as Mumbai and also worked with The Taj Hotels as well as The Lemon Tree Hotel Company in various capacities.
I am now associated with The Raintree Hotels (A Unit of Ceebros Hotels Pvt. Ltd.)
•CEEBROS stands for innovation, concrete success, and a relentless devotion to customer satisfaction.
•Over 3500 customers have made ceebros one of the most trusted & reputed names in the industry.
In 30 years many aspects of CEEBROS business have changed, but two things have remained constant, its dedication to service excellence and its commitment to providing quality, affordability, and value to generations.
* “We at the Raintree, Eco-sensitive business class hotels, dedicate ourselves to environmental improvements that foster a sustainable future and lead to social and economic improvement in the community where we live and transact our business”
What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?
Well passion, hard work, and dedication are all that it takes to succeed in this industry like any other.
What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring?
Attitude - if you have the right attitude you are in the right industry.
What according to you can trainees do while they are training at hotels to make it a win-win for them & the hotel/unit?
I think Trainees are the best thing to happen to both the industry as well as the trainee. it is good for the organization as they are young, ready to learn and highly motivated.
At the same time for the Trainee, it is the best opportunity to understand the industry and his/her first stepping stone in the real world. It is the best time for them to explore understand and learn. Learning is what Trainees can do while Training and If they LEARN they are giving the best back to the hotel/unit and the industry.
Tell us a little about your average day
Well, my day starts a little early though with the first step into the hotel, I go to the Cafeteria have some breakfast with the team and start the day there on. I go the departments and then go on the floors from the Topmost floor to basement each day. I meet with the team members and greet them.
Then I go the restaurant and meet guest while having breakfast, I then visit the banquet floor and meet up with the coordinator and thank them for choosing us and wish them a great day ahead. Once in the office, i have the reports ready to be seen which included Financial, competition figures, guest feedback and any follow-ups to be caught on plus screen through the Manager on Duty report, sales report and Security report.
I then have a morning meeting to catch up at 9.30 am with the Heads of the Departments in the hotel. Post this if any appointments scheduled need to be met.
All follow up and approvals from the Directors take the rest of the morning time. Lunch typically happens with any guests visiting the hotel as well as meet up with the guests at the Restaurants in the Hotel.
Post lunch is the time to meet the candidates for any recruitment and then 3.30 pm onwards is the time to meet the finance department and check on a day to day requirements and any special sanctions, purchases required that need approval or any meets. Evening 7 pm I do a hotel round again and check the exterior as well as be in the lobby to meet guests coming back from hard days work and do a little PR followed by a round in the restaurants and then to the Banquets for any events/weddings/cocktail dinners happening and meet the hosts.
Then come back to the office and write to all guest who shared their feedback at the time of check out the previous day either to thank them for an excellent feedback or the write back to the guest who shared some grievance or did not have the very best experience as desired and also write to them about the action taken based on the feedback shared.
Then I close for the day to start a new day freshly again!!
How do keep abreast of all that is happening in hospitality?
Well yes we do subscribe to the industry related magazines and get them on a monthly basis which keeps me abreast with the hospitality industry.
Also, we do our weekly sales meet with the team to understand how the week has been and what is happening the coming week and month ahead.