2020 General Manager Finalist Interview, featuring Michael Schmitt

Michael Schmitt is the General Manager of Waldorf Astoria Chengdu and a General Manager finalist of Stelliers 2020. Discovering early on that he was a people-person, Schmitt knew that he wanted to lead a career working with and around people. Hospitality fulfilled his passion and ambition and continues to take him places. Learn more about Schmitt’s journey and how his positivity and decisiveness have led his team to certainty during this challenging time. 

1. Describe your childhood and upbringing. Where and when did your initial interest in hospitality begin? 

I have always enjoyed being around people, so much so that I had to really think hard about what kind of career would make sure that I was always working with people. When I reached the end of my A-levels, I decided to start preparing for business school. During this time, an opportunity arose to pursue a degree at the Steigenberger hotel school, and consequently I decided to give it a try. 

At the hotel school, I learned about hospitality and its diverse offerings, from how the industry catered to various high profile and exclusive events to most importantly, how it is all about people. I loved the idea of meeting new people, moving to different countries and learning about new cultures. Following my graduation, I started my first role at a small hotel located along the East sea coast in Germany. During Christmas, I enjoyed serving my family and other guests at the hotel. 

Since then, I’ve moved to the UK, China, Singapore, Australia and Thailand. While working in Singapore, I pursued an MBA at the University of Birmingham. My career with Hilton has been a blessing and I feel very fortunate to grow with a company that truly looks after their own.

2. Was there a particular key turning point in your career that contributed to your success today? 

For me, there wasn’t a particular turning point. I fell in love with hospitality and knew that it was what I wanted to do in life. With Hilton, I’ve had the pleasure to live and work in six different countries so far. In every hotel, I have learned new skills and know-how about managing a hotel. From Hilton via Conrad to Waldorf Astoria – I am pleased to continue my growth within the Hilton Group and move onto managing a luxury hotel of their most legendary hotel brand. 

Throughout my career, I’ve had great mentors and owners who have shared their wisdom with me. Working with them is all about transparency, trust, delivery and understanding their priorities. Some are more revenue-oriented, others value brand positioning and guest service delivery. It is about finding the right balance between satisfying the different stakeholders’ motivations and moving the hotel forward. If the views from all stakeholders can be aligned, then we can establish a clear strategy for the team and managers to follow and execute. 

3. COVID 19 has been (and still is) an immense challenge for the hospitality sector, can you share how you decided to lead your team and the property through this period? 

The Waldorf Astoria Chengdu had an amazing 2019 and truly positioned itself as one of the leading luxury hotels in Chengdu. Throughout the year, we worked on our culture, mission and values. We introduced recognition programs like the “Chief Recognition Officer Program”, where I would recognize one team member every day for doing a great job. In mid-January of this year, we expected an amazing year ahead. Little did we know that by the end of the month, the world would turn upside down. For me, having a vibrant culture is the most important aspect of a healthy organization. I am glad that we had invested in building a strong foundation in 2019, which has contributed to guiding us through the challenging times. 

Once the pandemic hit, we had to react quickly to the rapid drop in occupancy rate. In all the things we did to confront the challenges, I am especially grateful for our hardworking team members and leaders, Hilton corporate office and owners. Leadership is easy when everything is well and KPIs are easy to reach, but when the storm hits and the ship shakes, you as the captain have to stay calm and collected in order to ride the storm. 

As few leaders on the team have experienced a similar situation in the past (SARS was far less severe), we had to learn quickly, adapt to the new situation, put plans together and then meticulously execute these. The clear plans instilled confidence in the team members and guided them during this time. I always feel that if we plan and communicate clearly and early, then everything will work like a Swiss clock. 

4. The hospitality industry has an interesting road ahead, what do you think the next few years hold for the sector and its recovery? 

2019 was an amazing year for global tourism and the growth of China. Even in early January of this year, nobody could have expected such a severe outcome that shook the world to its core. Now, for everyone working in China, we have witnessed tremendous progress and recovery of hotels and cities. In the rest of the world, however, COVID-19 is still on the rise and it is clear that the pandemic is far from over.  

While it is encouraging to see that travel has rebounded in stages around the world, there is still considerable uncertainty and anxiety. During this time, hotels that can act swiftly against the rising challenges will win the customers’ trust and long-term business. Hilton, for example, reacted quickly towards customers’ health concerns and implemented “CleanStay” and “EventReady by CleanStay” programs. If customers can feel safe and have peace-of-mind while staying at a trusted property, they will travel again and with more frequency. 

Looking ahead, I believe travel will not return to normal levels for another 1 – 1.5 years or so. Even with a vaccine, uncertainty and anxiety surrounding the vaccine’s efficacy may continue to deter some people from travelling again with the same frequency as before, particularly internationally. However, as we have witnessed in China, domestic travel has risen while international travel continues to remain low in levels. I foresee this trend to continue into the next year until borders start to open up again. 

With that said, I believe tourism is an unstoppable force and it will rise again, stronger than ever. People inherently want to travel and explore the world, create new experiences and heighten their sense of fulfilment. The golden age for hospitality will return and we will, in Conrad Hilton’s words, “fill the earth with the light and warmth of hospitality” once again. 

5. What is the motto that you live by? 

For most of my life, I have followed my late grandma’s motto: “above the cloud is always sunshine.” Life has its highs and lows, the challenges are never easy to overcome, but your state of mind and how you choose to move forward is how you persevere. 

Worrying about things out of your control is a waste of time. Tackling the challenges head-on and prioritizing what is important will lead you on the right path. With that said, the explanation of my above motto is: today there might be rain, but tomorrow the sun may peek through the clouds, and the day after there will be sunshine. The clouds will disperse, they always do. 

6. If you could invite anyone over for dinner, who would it be? 

There are many people I would love to have dinner with, starting with my beautiful wife and two amazing sons. They’ve been in Australia since early February of this year and I have not seen them since then, so it would be my first choice to reunite with my family. There is nothing more special than enjoying dinner with them and hearing about their day. 

If I could choose another “date”, I would invite the late Nelson Mandela over for dinner. For all the astonishing things he had endured and achieved in his time, for making the world a better place and for his gentle and kind character, it would be an honor to spend time with him. He once said, “it always seems impossible until it is done.” I often use the same phrase to motivate and encourage my team to push further and tackle challenges with positivity and action. Nelson Mandela has inspired me to believe that we can achieve tremendous results if we take action.