Exclusive Interview | Vikas Ahluwalia, General Manager & National Head, Zone by The Park Hotels
/“What is the one app / tech solution you would love to see?
On the lighter side, an app which will help in identifying a discount seeker or a guest who complains a lot.”
Tell us about your journey. How did it all start?
Like any youngster 30 years back I was confused regarding the career options, but always knew that I wanted to travel. So I explored career options as a pilot and a marine engineer and realized that the aptitude needed is different.
So the next option was to join cruise ships and travel. I had a few extended family members who were marine engineers and chefs, so I took baby steps towards becoming a chef but love for the kitchen did not last long and I realized I was more of a front of the house person.
I have had the privilege of being part of various pre opeing teams at different level of my career and that has been quite enriching. During my tenure in Jaipur I was instrumental in opening one of the first Pubs in Rajasthan – Geoffrey’s and was contributing a weekly article for the Hindustan Times, Jaipur Supplement on cocktails and mocktails.
My stint in Sri Lanka helped me look at Work Life balance and delegation in a different way. In my current role I get to travel , interact with different people and turn someones dream project into reality, this is something very satisfying and enriching.
What do you think it takes to succeed in this industry?
Hospitality industry is like any other career where hard work , dedication and focus are the keys to success.
In case you enjoy what you are doing then this is the place to be in as you are exposed to the best the life has to offer – food , travel , experiences, and interactions with people from all walks of life.
During my career I have had the privilege of meeting and interacting with Real and Reel Life Heros. So of the high points being meeting Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and getting a Thank You Letter from Mr Barack Obama straight from the White House.
Share with us 5 skills that you think will be critical for a hospitality career in the future.
Inter- personal skills , adaptability, and love for your work are critical for the business apart from hard work, dedication, and focus.
The new, young traveler wants experiences and insta-ready content. What do you have in store for them?
The Zone philosophy of guest services and experiences are structured around the 5 Zone Social Avatars:
Foodie
Shutterbug
Adventurer
Networker
Party Animal
The spectrum helps you curate and recommends experiences based on what keeps it social for the guest in our city. It is often how the guest feels on a particular day that determines what they want to see, eat or visit.
Launching something new is both an exciting opportunity and a responsibility. Share with us a deep dive into your process for these new launches.
Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels Limited has been in the hospitality business for more than half a century having opened the first hotel in 1967 –THE Park Kolkata with the brand promise – Anything but Ordinary and Vison- Leadership Through Differentiation.
So this was very much part and parcel of the DNA for Zone by THE Park hotels. When we launch the brand we looked at gaps in the market , changing needs of travelers, operating challenges.
As we are growing we see opportunities coming our way for managing existing assets and looking at this opportunity we launched Zone Connect , during Covid. We are happy to see the growth over the past 2.5 years where by we currently have 10 operational and under development hotels.
What does the future look like? For the industry, you, your project / initiative.
When you drive on a road you do come across some bumps , that is what has happened to hospitality in the past few years , but we do believe that the future is great.
We have seen growth in our portfolio, . in the industry and this will continue. We at Zone by The Park Hotels are in a very exciting phase where by we are entering new markets and un explored destinations – Port Blair, Neil Island, Gopalpur to name a few.
I personally believe this is an industry, which is there to last as people love to eat, drink, travel, and experience new things. We in the hospitality industry are there to take care of their needs.
What are the attributes you look for while selecting or hiring?
We look at the right attitude and a smile, if these are in place, skills can be enhanced.
What is your favourite interview question & why?
“Why are you into hospitality? Was it the glamour or the money?”
As a lot of people used to be attracted to hotels initially due to the glamour of 5star hotels and realizing the hard work / long hours involved.
Describe an ideal hospitality professional
Very difficult to define an ideal hospitality professional , how ever the key traits being - Passionate about the job, good communication skills, focused, analytical, and eye for detail.
Making a vision into a reality can be very daunting. We would love a deep dive into your process for all your initiatives.
Once the vision is clear one needs to be focused and work towards achieving the goal . As we work towards the goal , it is good to retrospect what has happened and take feedback from the stake holders to meet and exceed their expectations.
Share some of your secrets in keeping an engaged, safe and happy team.
As a team, we are more like an extended family. We do interact on a regular basis , have our difference of opinion and then discuss to get on to an agreeable solution.
This helps in building trust and bonding, which helps in creating long term relationships.
Share with us some new learnings from this project for you, personally.
My current role has extensive travel and takes me to a lot of interesting places. One of the biggest reiteration is that “ Seeing is Believing “ , what you read and hear may not always be correct
What does not exist in the world, but you would like it to?
Honesty
How do you think AI will impact our industry?
Technology helps us to improve our processes and efficiency . With AI we will be able to offer better guest experiences by anticipating there needs and help us to improve efficiency for cost management by controlling wastage.
What is the one app / tech solution you would love to see?
On the lighter side, an app which will help in identifying a discount seeker or a guest who complains a lot.
