With over three decades of experience in international hotel operations and leadership in the hospitality industry, Andreas Wissdorf, multi-property general manager for Marriott International in Kuwait, is a seasoned professional. We discover more about Wissdorf and how he plans to navigate the future of The Marriott Executive Apartments Kuwait City.
How is your hotel catering to the new age guest?
The Marriott Executive Apartments Kuwait City opened earlier this year and features the latest guest-enabling technologies. Guests can book on their smartphone using the Marriott Bonvoy APP, communicate preferences and check-in via a chat function. An electronic key card is also activated for seamless check-in. The hotel provides ample power supply for charging multiple devices, as travelers typically carry more than devices simultaneously. In-room smart TVs with bluetooth connectivity and high-speed internet access are also available for guests’ convenience.
What differentiates your hotel from others?
Marriott Executive Apartments is a young brand catering to travelers seeking a home-away-from-home experience. The hotel offers fully equipped, serviced rooms with kitchens, washing machines and other amenities. Guests can make their own meals or order food for private dining, in addition to traditional room service or restaurant dining. However, many hotels have fallen behind in technology provisions, as modern guests have access to the latest technology at home and work. Investing in technological advancements can lead to frustration for modern guests.
Which hotel trends are the ones to watch out for this year?
Enhancing technological advancements in the travel sector in conjunction with more sustainable hotel operations, sustainability is not a new trend, but it is becoming increasingly important to customers, which is adding pressure on hotels to adopt sustainable practices.
How do you envision hotels of the future?
Hotels of the future will bear a striking resemblance to their present counterparts with one notable distinction: the integration of technology. Interestingly, the fundamental aspects of hotels have remained relatively unchanged over the past century. They provided a comfortable, clean and safe room and a range of amenities based on location. In fact, it is the same today with the exception of the technology surrounding planning and travel, as well as enabling the stay. Nowadays, everything can be achieved with a few clicks on our personal devices. This includes making the reservation and receiving your personal electronic key on the same device to making stay-related requests virtually and in real-time. I believe the core concept will remain the same for a long time, a clean room, everything in working order, efficient and friendly hospitality, etc. What will continue to change is the pressure to keep up and adapt to technological advances that customers constantly adopt in their day-to-day life.
Finally, hotels will have to continue to provide guests with memorable and authentic experiences by delivering personalized and tailored services.
How would you describe a day in your life as a general manager?
The diversity of our daily tasks is what makes our role as general managers so interesting and rewarding. A typical day begins with reviewing the previous day’s reports and then preparing for the day ahead. This is facilitated by the daily morning briefing with the department heads. The remainder of the day will be spent in meetings on business matters such as sales meetings, budget meetings or project meetings, in addition to interacting with stakeholders in the hotel. Stakeholders include hotel guests, hotel employees, and on certain occasions the owner or members of the owner’s company. In addition, there are occasional meetings with head office team members. Since I oversee five properties, I get to meet up with the hotel teams frequently, even though modern communication technology has made it easier to stay in touch, which is essential to success
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