Serving Up a Career in Hospitality

The hospitality industry promises a career full of surprises, as Justin Lee, Hotel Manager of JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur, tells Cheong Wai Quan.

Dressed smartly in a pink shirt with a matching tie of a darker shade and sleek cuff links, Justin Lee is the epitome of refinement – just like the JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur, where he is the Hotel Manager.

Yet, his foray into the industry was far from glamorous. He started as a steward in the first McDonald’s outlet in Seremban, a day after he finished his SPM examination in 1987.

The long hours and low pay were ‘nutty’, he recalls, but he absolutely loved it. And he learned his first important lesson – if you want to do a job, do it with pride. More importantly, he learned hospitality is his business.

Serving with Pride and Passion

Having risen from steward to area consultant for McDonald’s and then becoming a lecturer at McDonald’s University in Illinois, US, Justin believes that pride, passion and drive are the foundation stones for a successful and rewarding career in the hospitality industry.

“Doing a job with pride is extremely important. I’ve always applied this to everything I do – whether it was washing out grease at McDonald’s or recruiting 1,000 associates for a hotel opening,” Justin says.

It is passion for the job that gets this veteran of the industry up on his feet in the morning, ready and eager to meet people and friends at work. And it is the fuel that drives him to take on seemingly insurmountable challenges at work.

Challenges like getting the Makkah Royal Clock Tower, a Fairmont Hotel in Mecca, operational-ready with 4,200 associates. “I had to do everything, from due diligence to interviews and hiring.

“I had three teams helping me and we took about nine months to get to our critical staffing target of 3,000, which was crucial for the opening. We ended up with a diverse pool of people from 60 nationalities. It was really quite an experience.”

Another story Justin likes to share about passion and drive involves a Bangladeshi student he hired as a parttime staff during Ramadan. Although the molecular engineering student could barely speak English, he diligently learned the language and went on to impress the General Manager, his team and guests.

“He is the best server I have had in this hotel because he is so passionate,” Justin says with pride. “He always has a smile on his face and wows guests every time. We have received so many letters of praise and commendation for him.

“He embodies the JW Marriott commitment, which requires each employee to provide an environment of simple elegance where guests feel welcome, comfortable and free to be themselves.”

The Winning Recipe

For Justin, finding the right talents to work in JW Marriott is a precise art – just like cooking gourmet cuisine for its fine dining outlets like Shook! and Shanghai.

“We don’t limit ourselves to hospitality students because this industry is fluid and flexible enough to accommodate anyone.”

He relates how he offered the position of cafeteria cook in The Ritz-Carlton Dubai to a Pakistani surgeon who could not find work as a doctor due to discrimination. “He turned out to be a very talented cook. The employees’ satisfaction score of cafeteria food in the hotel shot up from 35 percent to 95 percent.”

Another example of talent prevailing over academic qualifications is a former biochemistry student who was trained by Justin – that person is now Assistant HR Director for The Ritz-Carlton Washington DC.

Justin’s advice to students and graduates is to be openminded about the limitless opportunities in the hospitality industry. “Don’t be confined to food and beverage, or public relations and communications.”

He adds that the desire and willingness to learn are also crucial if one wants to progress. Even in his present position and armed with a degree in Psychology & Hospitality, a post-graduate qualification and a string of professional accreditations, Justin humbly admits he is still learning how to run a hotel.

“Hospitality is a tough business,” he says. “It may be glamorous because you get to meet royalty and celebrities, but it is also very demanding.”

Carving Out a Hospitality Career

Justin is passionate about spreading the word about the hospitality community, and sharing with students the rewards and enjoyment of a career in the industry.

He is fully committed to giving students the real experience of a hospitality career. For example, he has tasked a team of firstyear Hotel Management & Hospitality Diploma students from YTL International College of Hotel Management to transform a function room in the JW Marriott into a five-star hotel for a cook-off. The students will then invite family and friends to dine for free, while they play chefs, sous chefs and waiting staff.

“Such events are win-win activities for the students, lecturers, hospitality colleges and the hotel as the students will gain experience, while the hotel is able to identify talents for future recruitment,” he explains.

“Talents who join JW Marriott are expected to orchestrate a personalised experience, with attention to even the smallest details, to impart a sense of harmony and wellness, and beautifully deliver lasting memories.”

At JW Marriott, fresh hires are put through a rigorous Passport to Success programme to groom them for success in the job and in the industry. After a six-month training period, these associates are evaluated and their skills gaps identified. They are then sent for further training according to their needs.

How do Justin and his team find the right talents among the many candidates they meet?

“We use a series of structured questions to trigger certain responses and nuances. These questions are benchmarked against industry standards to help us identify talents who can fit into the JW Marriott culture.

“One of the exciting things about this industry is that it provides constant development to associates so they can achieve greater success,” he enthuses. “Many staff in JW Marriott are living examples of this commitment. Associates are trained through in-house training programmes, external exposure and overseas postings to hotels within the Marriott Group.”

The World is Your Oasis

Justin’s career is testament to the opportunities one can find in the hospitality industry. He has worked in 19 cities in Asia, the Middle East and Africa for such renowned properties as Renaissance Kuala Lumpur Hotel, The Ritz-Carlton Kuala Lumpur and Dubai, and JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur.

And, of course, there is the 900-room and 900-serviced apartment Makkah Royal Clock Tower. “It is an honour to have been part of this project, especially since as a non-Muslim I had to be granted permission by the King of Saudi Arabia to enter Mecca and work on the project.”

“Hospitality is a very hopeful industry. Let me share Tin Tin Mya’s story with you. She is a political science graduate from Myanmar. When she arrived in Dubai, she could not speak a word of English, and even with classes, could barely string a grammatically correct sentence together. I hired her as a HR coordinator and, today, she is HR Director in The Ritz-Carlton Dubai. In fact, she took over my role!”

Any talent can achieve success in the hospitality industry as long as the person has pride, passion and drive, puts his or her heart and soul into the work – and never stops learning. And that’s the secret to success from a top-notch name in the hospitality industry.