Jonathan Lowrey…

I entered the world of hospitality at the age of 16 and had a very clear vision of what I wanted to be – a Chef. By training and working in some very good provincial hotels in the north of the country I learnt my skills, gained my City & Guilds qualifications and got a real flavour of the service industry.

It was at the end of my apprenticeship that I decided to pursue a career in hotel management which has brought me to where I am today, I firmly believe that having these roots in the kitchen, the heart of a hotel, has helped me to build a lengthy career in the hospitality industry.

Key learnings…

As a traditional hotelier, there's nothing more important to me than taking the time to greet our guests and spend time with our employees, to really get to know & understand them.

With guests, this is a crucial investment. Getting to know their likes and dislikes will help you tailor their returning stays to create a 'coming home' feeling as well as offering an intuitive service. For example, ensuring that a guest's favourite wine is offered to them first at dinner or that they are automatically booked into their preferred room, remembering their favourite extra amenities, is the kind of instinctive treatment that guests will remember long after their stay.

It is also so important to ensure that you have regular conversations with your employees. There are many different departments that ensure a hotel is running to its highest potential and so communication between departments is key to maintaining a smooth operation. Employees need to understand how they fit into the overall business in order to have a real sense of responsibility and pride in their work. If employees feel supported, trusted and valued in their role, it will shine through in their attitude to guest service.

Looking to the future…

In today's competitive hospitality industry, keeping abreast of technology is essential. Online is constantly evolving and so it is important to be across as many channels as possible to reach both new and existing guests.

Being aware of changing traveller habits is a given, but it's how you respond to these trends that will allow you to stay ahead. The 'bleisure' market is one of the new focus areas to find growth for next year, having intuitive ways of offering excellent guest service for both business and leisure time is a must.