Keynote Address

'We are glad to be in Incredible India'

Keynote speaker: Kathleen Taylor,
president and COO, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

Excerpts

We are glad to be in Incredible India. The country has a long and illustrious tradition of luxury hospitality. The country's business and tourism economy is very robust, but that alone didn't dictate development plans for the country. Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, a Canadian company, was founded by Isadore Sharp in Toronto in 1961. He had no grand vision or plan then, but had an overwhelming desire to finish one hotel at a time, building each hotel as the best that can be.

In the early 1970s as we moved outside Canada, we were like very small fish in the sea. We needed to create an edge despite our small size and lack of geographic reach. The idea at that time was truly daunting in application. We needed to create a physical asset of tremendous quality that above all met all the needs of a frequent business traveller. We developed innovative ways to intuitively recognise and provide them with what they needed when they needed. We were the first company to offer express laundry, complimentary overnight shoeshine, 24-hour room service and other amenities.

At the Four Seasons, we also believe that guest satisfaction is inextricably linked to employee satisfaction and that a guest focus cannot exist without an employee focus. In this business, it is often the frontline employee, often the lowest paid, who has the highest impact on the satisfaction of the guest. For our company to grow, it was critical for management and the employees to share the same purpose, same goals and same means.

Thus we developed a company credo which would become the guiding principal for the corporate office. To support growth, the power of treating people with dignity and respect is the golden rule. It is essential to treat others the way you want to be treated - to walk the talk. We offer complimentary stays at Four Season properties to employees. The credo - happy employees make for happy guests. This formula has worked for us over and over again. We have a whole new generation of culture carriers to take the company's values forward. The strong sense of loyalty that our employees feel for the business has a direct impact on it.

We have the highest RevPar among our comparable competitors, and relatively low employee turnover as compared to the industry. In Mumbai itself we received 34,000 employee applications. We conducted 15,000 interviews and eventually hired 450 employees, and we are overwhelmed with the quality of employees.

Today, we have a presence of 76 hotels in 31 countries. In India, we are developing hotels in Gurgaon, Hyderabad and a destination resort in Kerala, and are looking for other business and leisure opportunities. Today, the demand for a 24/7 lifestyle has become global. Time saving and value creating services are integral to us. We look forward to developing partnerships and projects in India and south Asia and retaining, developing and promoting employees.