Profile Leader

LEADING LADIES

Some seriously dynamic women in hospitality are scaling heights, travelling miles and joyfully leading from the front. Meet GMs Amanda Hyndman in Washington DC and Wendy Morris in Siem Reap. They’ve got what it takes.

Amanda Hyndman (nee Scott) has been General Manager of the Mandarin Oriental Washington D.C. since October 2009. The hotel, which fuses ‘East and East Coast’ comprises 400 rooms and suites, and is walking distance from Capitol Hill and other stately monuments in arguably the world’s most powerful city.

My first hospitality job was washing up in a chain of cafes during the weekends to pay for a French exchange school trip. Not only did I love it, but I worked out that I could get promoted fast because washing up would lead to clearing tables and so on. I remember taking my Mum to meet the Personnel Manager who suggested I study Hotel & Catering Management at university.

Which I did, but for me, passion, hard work and getting on with people are still more important than a degree. Notwithstanding, I learnt a lot from my time at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, albeit not in the traditional sense, but through involvement in student politics. I also worked virtually full time in various bars and restaurants, even organising fellow students to do the catering for outside events.

Making things happen

After graduation, I joined the graduate training scheme at The Copthorne Hotel in Glasgow, where I hatched the ambition to become the company’s first female General Manager before I turned thirty. Which I did, at twenty-eight.

My first GM job was at the four-star Copthorne Aberdeen. It had only eighty-nine rooms so after a few years I wanted a bigger challenge and moved back to Glasgow, where I’d done my stint as a room maid just a few years earlier.

Next, I wanted London experience. People said ‘you don’t have London experience’ yet they promoted me to the four-star deluxe Millennium Knightsbridge. The next logical step seemed to be five-star property, and again people said ‘you don’t have five-star experience’ but I was given an opportunity at Le Meridien Waldorf. Then, after over five challenging years, I knew I wanted international experience. While a number of hotel companies said ‘but you don’t have international experience’, Mandarin Oriental took me on at the 886-room, seven-restaurant Excelsior in Hong Kong. Now here I am, working for the first time in the USA.

A GM in different worlds

Obviously there are differences working as a General Manager in the UK, Asia, or the USA, but the commonalities are far more important. Whether Millennium, Meridien or Mandarin, we are all in the hospitality business, in the business of making money, and to be successful we need to deliver great service. That means having happy, motivated people. So we need to hire the right ones, develop them in line with the needs of the business, listen to and nurture them.

In London, part of the challenge was encouraging people to see the hospitality industry as a first-choice career. I enjoyed working with the charitable foundation, Springboard UK, which offered ‘taster days’ to students so they could experience the fun and diversity of working in a hotel. They also targeted parents and teachers as influencers.

In Hong Kong, I learned that the values of family and responsibility are so much part of the culture. My colleagues at the Excelsior were incredibly loyal and hard working and often saw a job as being for life. Their willingness to serve with such grace and dignity was absolutely awe-inspiring, but so was their stoicism during difficult times. They had lived through horrors such as SARS and the last Asian crisis. Last year, during a particularly tough period, my colleagues accepted the inevitable need to ‘hunker down’. They even offered to take unpaid leave rather than let a single colleague lose their job. No one did.

As a GM, I had many happy experiences in Hong Kong, from dotting the eye of the Lion during Chinese New Year and accompanying the God of Wealth around the offices to ensure the revenues came in the next year, to having to move my bed because the Feng Shui Master said it was pointing in the wrong direction.

In the USA there are different challenges, and it’s still early days. We have a very diverse workforce with over fifty-eight different nationalities in one hotel. Even a football result can alter the team dynamic! I have kicked off a series of communication initiatives and initiated regular meetings, not just to pass on information and get everyone’s input to our 2010 strategy, but most importantly to provide opportunities for our colleagues’ achievements and contribution to the business to be recognised.

What it takes

I have no idea what qualities have made me successful except loving what I do and having a strong sense of self-belief. You also have to be prepared for adversity: ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.’

I asked my Mum what she thought had helped me get to where I am, and she said it’s because wherever I go, I get involved and learn about the place. This is true. Thinking back to Aberdeen, I became involved in the local community as a Director of the Chamber of Commerce, as an Ambassador with Scottish Enterprise for Investors in People and through Aberdeenshire Council with overseas trade initiatives to Houston and Stavanger because of the oil industry. I discovered almost coincidentally that giving back to the community not only raised my profile but more importantly, increased our opportunities to do business.

In Glasgow, I continued my involvement with the Chamber of Commerce, and when I moved to London, I chaired Springboard’s London fundraising activities and became a member of both Reunion des Gastronomes and the Master Innholders. The latter gave me the chance to organise their annual General Managers Conference attended by over 300 GMs across the UK. To think when I first arrived, I thought London’s five-star GMs could be a scary bunch!

In Hong Kong I used to get up at 6am just to walk to see where I would end up – wet markets, local parks with octogenarians doing tai chi, the harbour, local dai pai dongs and the back of Happy Valley and the Hong Kong Stadium. Then at weekends I used to take my Executive Team out hiking all over Hong Kong Island to places where they had never even been despite being native Hong Kongers. I also travelled to China for both business and pleasure.

D.C. is a whole new adventure – I have got as far as Mount Vernon, Monticello, Shenandoah and Great Falls but there is plenty more of Virginia and Maryland to explore.

Women rising

I absolutely believe that people should be appointed and promoted on the basis of their ability. I would like to think this was true in my case. In fact, it was always men who gave me an opportunity, but that was because there were no senior women around in their position.

That said, there are certainly more female GMs today. My colleague Susanne Hatje has had huge success opening both The Landmark Mandarin Oriental in Hong Kong and, more recently, the Mandarin Oriental in Boston. Then there is my dear friend Rainy Chan, who is GM of the Peninsula in Hong Kong apart from being Area Vice President for Hong Kong and Thailand. Rainy and I got on famously because we had so much in common, running big hotels. We’d meet up for a glass of wine to celebrate each other’s successes and support each other through our challenges.

A last word

My advice to women in hospitality would be ‘the sky is the limit’ but whether you are male or female, you need to be with the right organisation, one that will give you the opportunities you seek.

And if I hadn’t become an hotelier?

My husband says I would have made a good Prime Minister. In reality, I always wanted to teach. That said, I always think restaurant critics are on to a good thing...

Amanda’s tips for rising to the top

To learn more about the Mandarin Oriental Washington D.C., visit their website on www.mandarinoriental.com.

Wendy Morris is the new General Manager of the design-led boutique Hotel de la Paix, a landmark in Siem Reap, Cambodia. The hotel boasts stunning Art Deco features, spacious deluxe rooms and suites, and an award-winning spa. Its central location is ideal for exploring the UNESCO World Heritage site of Angkor Wat.

I have always loved food and the finer things in life. Top this with the desire to meet people and travel, and it’s no surprise that I entered the hospitality industry. In a way, its transient nature – one is always on the move – made it all the more attractive and appealing to me.

Before I went to the University of Surrey for my degree in Hotel & Tourism Management, I worked as a chef in bars and restaurants. The degree made a difference; I remember the year I graduated, people viewed the Four Seasons as the only place to be. So I joined the Four Seasons in London as a hotel management trainee and stayed for three years. Then I moved to South Africa to work for Southern Sun Hotels in Cape Town.

Antipodean past

I then relocated to Australia where I worked for about ten years for a superannuation company, CBus Property, which had a portfolio of wonderful boutique hotels. Since then, boutique hotels and resorts have been my niche. I became Group GM for the Harbour Rocks Hotel in Sydney, Hotel Lindrum in Melbourne and the Cumberland Lorne Resort.

When the hotels were sold a few years ago, I moved to Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef. I enjoyed it thoroughly, the experience of being the GM for one of the top resorts in the South Pacific was great for my resume, but after twelve months, it was time for something new, perhaps just a little less isolated.

I asked myself, ‘what next?’ I’d done the length and breadth of Oz. I’d always liked Southeast Asia. And serendipitiously, Liz Hartstone of Profile was there to signpost me to Siem Reap and Hotel de la Paix.

A challenge of cultures

As a GM, there really isn’t much difference whether you’re in Australia or Cambodia. You’re still managing, controlling costs, looking after your guests.

But the big distinction is in terms of the language and culture, which are truly a world apart. For example, in Cambodia like many countries in Asia, it is simply not done to show frustration or anger. If you do, people will simply shut down. By contrast, in Australia you can be very direct. Luckily, I’m a positive person and am always happy to adapt and do things with a smile.

Things balance out, however, when you realise you can be a lot more creative because of the staff ratios. We had the most wonderful Christmas tree last year and it would be impossible to imagine being able to achieve such handiwork elsewhere.

Double first

I’m the first female GM the Hotel de la Paix has had since it re-opened five years ago; I also happen to be the only female GM working in a major property in the Cambodian tourism industry today. However, I have never thought of this job in particular relation to being a woman. I think I’ve got here through hard work and integrity. Having said that, I do get the feeling that the hotel’s female staff are proud of the fact that their GM is a woman!

It’s been recognised that smaller, boutique properties should aim to nurture guests and make them feel comfortable, because that’s what they’re looking for. Realistically speaking, women are better nurturers than men, so in that sense, being a woman has helped!

What it takes

I tend not to take myself too seriously. My sense of humour makes it easy for me to get along with everyone, from room attendants to managers. But I won’t be pushed around. Being strong mentally and physically -- the fact of being healthy in mind and body -- is extremely important in this business. I also have a very strong work ethic, and as I get older, experience allows me to work smarter. Obviously, I’ve been able to develop good management skills.

Interestingly, my accountant tells me that I have good marketing skills and marketing tell me that I have good head for figures. It helps having a diverse set of skills and the ability to cut across everything. Essentially, I’m a businesswoman and in this business, you’re looking at a triangle whose three points are financial management, great service (at the high end, a real point of difference), and last but not least, staff development. If you want the business to succeed, you need to engender a harmonious work environment where everything and everyone works well together.

The place to be

Cambodia is a fashionable destination, which puts us in the spotlight. The hotel is in the shadow of Angkor Wat and close to the famous markets, and more and more people are intrigued by Khmer culture and history. In addition, the hotel’s involvement with the local people and environment through our Community Connections programme – we work with orphanages, NGOs and local aid organisations – is an extremely important part of what we do. It’s also something I very much enjoy.

This is a truly beautiful property and the staff completes it. I have been humbled and overwhelmed by the spirit of my team. Business has improved dramatically since last December, and we have a lot of bookings for the first quarter of the year. So we’re very confident, and I’ve been encouraging my friends who work in the travel industry to include a visit to Cambodia in their tours, and not just stick to Vietnam and Thailand.

A last word

I think there is a bright future for talented women in our industry, and hopefully, talented men will also choose to enter and stay in hospitality and not be tempted to go elsewhere. Young people should not be put off by perceptions of long hours and low pay at the beginning of their careers.

Perhaps I would have ended up a journalist – a foreign correspondent – had hospitality not been my chosen profession. That said, I do happen to have the best of both worlds, working every day in this business with a diverse and extraordinary community of people.

Wendy’s tips for rising to the top

To find out more about the Hotel de laPaix, visit their website on www.hoteldelapaixangkor.com