Latest news with #serviceexcellence
Travel Daily News
19-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Daily News
St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort appoints New Director of Engineering
Samir Bautista joins The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort as Director of Engineering, bringing 15+ years of luxury hospitality operations and project expertise. MIAMI, FL – The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort announce the appointment of Samir Bautista as Director of Engineering. With over 15 years of experience in the luxury hospitality sector, Bautista brings deep operational expertise, strategic project leadership and a commitment to service excellence to his new role at one of South Florida's most iconic oceanfront destinations. Bautista's career includes engineering leadership roles with renowned brands such as Hilton/Conrad, Kimpton, Trump Hotels, and most recently, AKA Hotels & Residences, where he oversaw engineering operations across multiple properties in Florida. His expertise spans capital project management, preventative maintenance, energy optimization and long-term asset planning, which are critical areas as The St. Regis Bal Harbour continues to elevate its guest experience and residential offerings. In 2022, Bautista was honored with the prestigious Engineering Manager of the Year award by The Greater Miami & The Beaches Hotel Association, recognizing his outstanding leadership, technical acumen and impact on sustainability initiatives within the region's hotel community. As Director of Engineering, Bautista will oversee all aspects of engineering operations for both the resort and its residential towers. His leadership will be instrumental in managing infrastructure enhancements, maintaining brand standards and executing innovation-driven maintenance programs to ensure operational excellence across the property. A proud father of three, Bautista is equally dedicated to his role as a family man and Formula 1 enthusiast, often found cheering from the sidelines of soccer games and dance recitals when not on property. The St. Regis Bal Harbour welcomes Bautista as a key addition to its executive leadership team and looks forward to the continued innovation and excellence he brings to 'The Best Address.'
Travel Daily News
16-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Montage Healdsburg appoints John Wielenberg as Hotel Manager
Montage Healdsburg appoints John Wielenberg as hotel manager, bringing 15+ years of luxury hospitality experience and operational expertise to Sonoma resort. HEALDSBURG, CALIF. – Montage Healdsburg announce the appointment of John Wielenberg as hotel manager, overseeing daily operations for the resort's 258-acre retreat in Sonoma wine country. With more than 15 years of experience in luxury hospitality and a strong foundation in food and beverage operations, Wielenberg brings a collaborative leadership style and a deep commitment to service excellence. Wielenberg joined Montage International in 2023 as hotel manager at Pendry West Hollywood, where he led key departments including rooms, security and Spa Pendry, while also supporting the success of the hotel's award-winning culinary concepts helmed by Chef Wolfgang Puck. Previously, he held leadership roles at renowned properties across the U.S. and Europe, including The Ritz-Carlton, Wolfsburg, Half Moon Bay, and Los Angeles & JW Marriott L.A. LIVE, where he oversaw operations for 10 distinct dining venues. In 2020, Wielenberg played a pivotal role in steering The West Hollywood EDITION through the pandemic as executive assistant manager, setting new benchmarks in financial performance, guest satisfaction and employee engagement during a challenging time for the industry. A native of Bösel, Germany, Wielenberg launched his hospitality career in a family-owned restaurant, where he gained early exposure to service and culinary excellence, laying the groundwork for impactful operational leadership. Montage Healdsburg is located on 258-acres in the heart of California's world-renowned Sonoma wine country. Built within the constraints of the natural landscape, the transformative hideaway offers 130 bungalow-style guest rooms and suites and 40 privately owned Montage Residences settled among oak trees and vine-covered hills with a contemporary aesthetic. The resort features three dining outlets including signature restaurant, Hazel Hill; an 11,500-sq. ft. Spa Montage with zero-edge pool overlooking the resort's own 15.5 acres of vineyards; and Montage's signature children's program, Paintbox. Montage Healdsburg is a member of Preferred Hotels & Resorts' worldwide collection.
Zawya
13-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Hub71 startup Atiom launches new report revealing what GCC travelers value most in 2025 hotel stays
New hospitality service index analyzing over 20,000 verified online reviews across the GCC has revealed a shift in what guests value most post-pandemic, with staff friendliness, service quality, and personalization playing determining factors in guest satisfaction. Abu Dhabi, UAE - The Hotel Service Index: 2025 GCC Edition, released by AI-driven behavioral platform Atiom, a Hub71 startup, spotlights the region's highest-rated hotels and uncovers emerging patterns in guest expectations. The data shows that the highest-scoring hotels such as Vida Emirates Hills and Crowne Plaza Riyadh outperform competitors not just through luxury, but through repeatable service excellence, guest recognition, and personal touches. This latest edition of the Hotel Service Index found: Guest service beats reputation: Luxury hotels and legacy brand names in hospitality do not top every ranking. Instead, hotels where guest reviews called out great service rose to the top – even at lower tier hotels. Individual staff members make all the difference: In the instance of one top ranking hotel, a member of the hotel's staff was mentioned by name 14 times in sampled reviews, demonstrating just how crucial your people are to your property's success. Personal touches drive more reviews: Service excellence creates a positive experience, but personalization inspires guests to leave a review. Where guests felt personally attended to, positive reviews followed. "The hospitality industry in the GCC and wider MENA region is undergoing a major transformation, presenting a huge opportunity for hoteliers," says Kerry Healy, Chief Commercial Officer for Middle East, Africa, Turkey, and Asia-Pacific (Premium, Midscale, and Economy Brands),"With rising demand and rapidly evolving guest expectations, today's travelers are seeking highly personalized experiences tailored to their unique needs. In an increasingly competitive landscape, it's more important than ever for hotel leaders to ensure their teams are delivering consistently high service standards and deeply understand what guests expect in each market." This edition of the Hotel Service Index is the first that Atiom has created especially for the Middle East and North Africa region, and focuses on GCC countries (United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, and Bahrain). The top 10 hotels in the United Arab Emirates as revealed by Atiom's Hotel Service Index: 2025 GCC Edition are: Vida Emirates Hills Conrad Dubai Radisson Blue Hotel, Ajman Al Khoury Courtyard Hotel Vida Dubai Marina & Yacht Club Rove Trade Centre Ramada by Wyndham Downtown Dubai Kempinski The Boulevard Dubai Fujairah Rotana Resort & Spa The WB Abu Dhabi, Curio Collection by Hilton The report offers analysis of the hospitality industry's rapid growth in the region, what makes today's travelers take the initiative to leave positive reviews, and what hospitality leaders in the region can do to drive loyalty now and prepare for ever-increasing guest expectations and traveler volumes. It also offers market-specific analysis with each region's ranking to provide the actionable insights hoteliers need to move up in the rankings. Commenting on the launch of the Hotel Service Index: 2025 GCC Edition, Matthew Spriegel, CEO of Atiom, said: 'It's never been timelier for MENA's hospitality leaders to consider what drives positive guest experiences as they gear up for a record summer season and growing regional traveler volumes, with markets like the UAE and Saudi Arabia forecast to receive over 60 million combined visitors in 2025. Guest expectations are evolving faster than ever, and in order to stay ahead, hospitality professionals must have a means to identify and measure the components of what makes a truly exceptional experience. By bringing rigor to professional growth, soft skill development, and engagement, properties and their service teams can create the kind of sustainable, repeatable, guest service that drives long-term loyalty.' In 2023, the UAE alone welcomed over 28 million international visitors. The largest share of visitors came from Western Europe (19 percent), with South Asia and GCC tourists just behind (18 and 16 percent respectively), accounting for an incredible 12 percent of GDP. Greater regional numbers paint an even clearer picture of the challenge and opportunity for the GCC's hospitality industry: 2024's tourism numbers to the Middle East reached 29 percent above 2019 levels, outperforming all over regions globally. The report was built by conducting a complete analysis of publicly available reviews for hotels from the region's most popular online travel platforms. Each property's score and subsequent rank is the result of aggregating the one hundred most recent reviews of each property from TripAdvisor, Yelp, Google Maps, Expedia, and Atiom evaluated reviews for the following categories: attention to detail, butler service, customer care, customer service, exceptional service, friendly staff, guest experience, guest recognition, hospitality, housekeeping excellence, housekeeping praise, welcoming atmosphere, personal touches, personalised experience, room service excellence, service excellence, resolving service issues, service quality, special touches, staff attitude, and staff recognition. LinkedIn | X (Twitter) | Instagram | Facebook About Atiom Atiom is an AI-powered technological behavioural change platform. It was founded in Asia to help provide an all-in-one solution for the hospitality industry to boost service, employee performance, and operational efficiency. Through its AI technology, it provides a range of tools including an AI tutor, mystery shopping, bite-sized training, community forums, as well as peer-to-peer recognition. The company has offices in the UAE, Singapore, Sweden, China, and Thailand whilst its customer base stretches across 70 countries. For more information, please visit For more information, please contact: Ashley Roberts, Account Manager, Clearstory International E: ashley@
