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With the extra experience he gained in the interim, he arrived
back here in April last year with a clear mission and the most important
role: GM.
The humble approach
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| One of the first
hotels built on the island |
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The hotel marked its 20th birthday last year; it was one of the
first hotels built on the island. In those years it has changed
hands a number of times, most recently in February 2006. Ownership
passed to the privately-owned Puravarna Hotels Ltd, which is to
spend more than 200 million baht on upgrading both the building
and the service offered by the hotel to a level suprassing five
stars.
"Our CEO, Steven Granville, is an example of the younger-generation
businessman: young and well educated. Because of his views, we are
running our hotel in a humble way. We work harder and talk less,"
Mr Thouvard explained, adding that the team wants its work to show
through the guests. If the guests are happy, that means staff have
done their work well. They want the "flame" to come from
guests, instead of the GM or staff having to go out and look for
it. To help achieve this, a great deal of new technology is being
introduced in order to allow staff to spend most of their time with
guests, rather than in the back office pushing paper around. Every
aspect of the hotel is also being upgraded, the most noticeable
being the purchase of S-class Mercedes-Benz and other luxury cars
for guest transport.
No one likes the word 'change'
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| The hotel marked
its 20th birthday last year |
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"No one likes change; that's human nature," Mr Thouvard
says. "Every time the hotel gets a new GM, the staff are like…well…
'What now?' I understand how they feel and I'm trying to be patient
and explain to them why we need all these changes. The needs of
our guests today are different from those of our guests 10 years
ago. And the needs of the guests then were different from those
of guests 10 years before that. We need to adjust or we may be left
behind. I tend to leave my staff to get on with their work, yet
be there when they need me - which usually means when problems arise,"
he smiled.
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| Khun Wimonrat |
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Any good hotel manager knows that his company's most important
asset is the employees. At Le Royal Meridien Phuket Yacht Club this
is very much the case, with unusually high staff loyalty. The hotel
has 220 staff, a high percentage of whom have been with the hotel
since it first opened. Khun Wimonrat, from the housekeeping department
is one example. She has been with the hotel since 1986, part of
a team that has served an astonishing 800,000 guests over the past
20 years.
The new introduction
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| Puravarna luxury
villas development |
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Besides the task of taking the hotel to higher, grander standards,
the new ownership has also brought another exciting challenge; working
side-by-side with its sister project, the Puravarna luxury villas
development, also owned by Puravarna Hotels Ltd.
It is not far away in Nai Harn but has no ocean view, so villa
owners will be able to use the hotel alongside hotel guests. "That's
another reason that staff need to be keep up with all the changes,"
Mr Thouvard explained.
Part of the community
As part of his work as GM, Mr Thouvard feels it is essential to
spend time working with and supporting local authorities in Rawai
and Nai Harn. For example, he has organized a teacher to give English
lessons to local police officers. This program started recently
and is working very well, said Mr Thouvard, adding, "If we
can help police officer to speak better English it'll be good for
everyone." Another project is now in the works. Mr Thouvard
has made an offer to the local authorities to take under his wing
poor students or teenagers who have not had the chance of a good
schooling. They will receive job training at the hotel, which should
greatly increase their chances of employment once they have completed
the course.
The fulfilment
It appears that Mr Thouvard has found his place in Thailand. When
asked what he likes most about the country, his answer is interestingly
thoughtful. "In my case it's purely my feelings about Thais.
They are well known for their hospitality. I have spent about 12
hours a day working with them, for roughly 15 years. I really like
it. I don't own property in Thailand, I don't live with a Thai partner
and I am not in a relationship with a Thai. So it's really the people
in the hotel that keep me here", he said with a wide smile.
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