Interview with a CEO - service, passion and sustaining the future

PE: What makes running a hotel group exciting?  

KH: Variety. There is a huge variety in the people that I meet. It’s fascinating to spend time with different customers, staff, suppliers and peers, each with their own stories and experiences.

There is also a wide variety in the day-to-day work, from sorting out menus, fabric choices and spreadsheets to constantly moving to meet customer expectations in our accommodation and food offering.

Balancing the commercial needs of the company with a sustainability ethos is also part of the challenge, which, in many ways, is exciting if not sometimes daunting.  

PE: How important is good leadership to your hotels? What are the hallmarks of good leadership?  

 KH: Good leadership is vital. It is about clearing the way so that there are no obstacles to our people achieving great things and removing the endless hoops that hold people back from bringing their best.

Creating an environment where people are willing to say when they’ve made a mistake and to treat it as a way to learn and improve is part of good leadership. We all make a few mistakes, being able to learn from them is what matters the most. 

Being service-orientated is a hallmark. Wanting to help people, whether customers, coworkers, suppliers - anyone really - is a good starting point. At the heart of it all is an ecosystem of really great relationships.

Leadership is all about creating good relationships and seeing ourselves as part of an ecosystem, a community, one that isn’t just limited to Guernsey.

Maintaining healthy relationships, especially when others don’t agree with an idea or decision, is worth the effort. Being able to hold the tension, knowing when to intervene and knowing when to keep the peace, is good leadership, too.  

PE: What is the best advice that you’ve received?  

KH: There are two that come quickly to mind. The first was from my father, who referenced the “7 fat years and 7 lean years” from the biblical story of Joseph and the technicolour dreamcoat.

His point was that business is cyclical and that it is wise to save a little in the good times and to stay confident in the harder times. 

The second is from Thumper Rabbit (from the Disney film, Bambi); “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.”

PE: What are your personal values and how are these reflected in the hotels?  

KH: Care - taking care of people - is a core value, alongside family values. Taking care of our guests is important. This means we care about our connections with them, remembering their experiences, preferences and family situations.

We care about our staff, being flexible when we can and reinvesting in their accommodation. The idea of stewardship is part of this. We have a portfolio of established properties and it is up to us to take care of these buildings well. That means continuous investment.

Good stewardship also means caring for our environment, doing what we can for the planet and the long term. This is one of the major benefits of being a family-owned business - we are committed to being a healthy and positive part of the ecosystem for the long term. We are not bounded by the short termism that seems pervasive in many businesses. 

PE: What are the most pressing challenges that you face? What personal qualities will you need to draw on to address them?  

KH: Travel reliability in Guernsey is a present challenge, one that is affecting the reputation of the island. We hope that this will be resolved in time for next year’s season.

In the meantime we’re working extra hard to deal with the impact of frequent disruption to reservations and guest happiness. I think the island sometimes downplays itself. Guernsey has a lot to offer and we can be more positive about ourselves.   

Sustainability is also a challenge, the outlook for the world is scary.

Leading the business to be a positive contributor to the planet really does matter to me.

This is a challenge not just for how we operate but, as the climate changes, there will be an impact on food and travel trends. There could be some opportunities, such as helping to show that a change in taste can be a surprisingly positive experience.  

The qualities I think we all will need to draw on are: 

•  Resilience - not giving up too quickly and trying different approaches to problems. 

• Listening - actively listening to customers, staff and the community. 

• Curiosity to explore new ideas - choosing an open mind and not getting too fixated on a course of action. I can find that challenging at times!