Ankit Gupta, the India CEO of hospitality technology platform Oyo, and Mandar Vaidya, the head of Oyo’s European operations, will both be moving on from the company.
25.08.2023 - 14:28 / skift.com / Edward Russell / Sean Oneill / Peden Doma Bhutia / Matthew Parsons
Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, December 16, and we are headed back from a successful Skift Forum in Dubai. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
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Travel companies are still struggling to fill labor shortages that have plagued the industry since the start of the pandemic. But executives speaking at the inaugural Skift Global Forum East in Dubai on Thursday believe those companies can attract qualified employees by emphasizing their sustainability efforts, reports Asia Editor Peden Doma Bhutia.
Margaux Constantin, partner at consulting firm McKinsey and Company, said, in discussion with Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill, hotels highlighting their green practices may appeal more to job seekers than travelers largely unwilling to pay extra for sustainability. Constantin noted that 60 percent of workers look at sustainability practices when selecting an employer.
Meanwhile, Jeff Strachan, director of the Dubai College of Tourism, said travel brands need to develop strategies to attract and train the right talent. He stated that workers may struggle to provide effective customer service in locations they’re unfamiliar with, a problem that Constantin highlighted. She noted less than 1 percent of Emiratis work in the travel and hospitality industry.
We now take a look at Aisha Al Mansoori, Etihad Airways’ first-ever female pilot. She was promoted to captain earlier this year, another significant milestone for one of the few high-ranking female executives at Etihad and in the airline industry, reports Edward Russell, editor at Airline Weekly, a Skift brand.
Al Mansoori said, in discussion with Asia Editor Bhutia at Skift Global Forum East in Dubai on Thursday, that she’s faced the same challenges as male pilots, including long work hours and night flights. While Russell writes her rise to captain is remarkable considering, among other factors, she’s working in a male-dominated aviation field, Al Mansoori said she’s received enormous support from both colleagues and her family. Her brother is a helicopter pilot and her sister became the United Arab Emirates’ first female fighter pilot.
Etihad’s executive team included only one woman as of June this year. The Dubai-based carrier has committed to ensuring that 25 percent of its leadership is female as part of an initiative by the International Air Transport Association.
Finally, hotels have generally sought to attract remote workers ever since the start of the pandemic. But Alastair Thomann, CEO of boutique brands Freehand Hotels and Generator, is not looking to lure members of the growing segment – so called digital nomads, reports Corporate Travel Editor Matthew Parsons
Ankit Gupta, the India CEO of hospitality technology platform Oyo, and Mandar Vaidya, the head of Oyo’s European operations, will both be moving on from the company.
In the second quarter of 2023, the Middle East’s hotel construction pipeline has seen significant growth, marking its highest project count since the first quarter of 2020, according to Lodging Econometric’s Middle East Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report.
Can hotels exert more influence in policy-making? Where will future development growth come from? Is generative AI relevant to the hotel sector? These and other subjects will be top of mind for us as we interview top bosses at Hilton, Hyatt, Accor, and other hotel leaders on-stage at the Skift Global Forum in New York on September 26-28.
Jongyoon Kim, the CEO of South Korea-based superapp Yanolja, sees Tesla as the metaphor for its company highlighting how the electronic vehicle company has been rethinking the entire value chain.
Silkhaus, a United Arab Emirates-based platform for short-term rentals, announced on Tuesday that it has raised $7.75 million in a seed funding round.
Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, November 23. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
Not all hotels should pursue remote workers, a hotel group CEO has suggested, because they mostly served their purpose during the pandemic.
Kerzner International has unveiled its new brand Siro, a set of fitness-themed lifestyle hotels. The developer said on Wednesday that it has slated to open its first property in a tower in One Za’abeel, a luxury community in Dubai, U.A.E., in the last months of 2023.
The Middle East’s almost year-long summer is its competitive advantage when attracting the European market. However, the region would do well to add more beachfront properties and curate experiences beyond its Uber-luxury eccentricities.
The Gulf region now has more than 170,000 hotel rooms under active development, which includes planning, final planning and under construction, according to research conducted at the end of September by STR, a hotel market intelligence and global benchmarking company. This active hotel development pipeline now equals 40 percent of the Gulf region’s existing hotel room inventory, a figure almost four times greater than the global average of 11 percent. The STR report estimates 135,560 existing rooms in Saudi Arabia with an active pipeline of 82,639 rooms, with total room inventory projected for 2030, at over 218,000 rooms. Similarly for the United Arab Emirates, the research currently tracks more than 202,000 existing rooms with an active pipeline of 48,910 rooms, a combined total of almost 251,000 rooms by 2030. “Interestingly, Ras Al Khaimah, is second only to Dubai, with 5,076 rooms in its pipeline, almost the same amount as Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Fujairah combined,” said Danielle Curtis, exhibition director of Arabian Travel Market. The research had been commissioned by Arabian Travel Market.
Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, December 23, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
Luxury hotel companies could flash a half-decent report card this year thanks to a post-pandemic surge in demand. But they could do better long-term if management teams sharpen their focus on opportunities to woo well-off consumers who increasingly care about experiences.