“From the Laundry Room to the Board Room!”
Chief Executive Officer, North & Central America, Accor (retired)
Forward
Who would have thought that two junior accounting clerks working in Food and Beverage Control (a department that doesn’t even exist anymore) would be writing a book—and a Foreword for said book? Yet, here we are, with career paths that intersected through CP Hotels and Fairmont Hotels over the last forty years. David excelled in his lane and developed expertise as a leader in hotel finance and accounting, while I continued to chart my path in Sales and Marketing. Fast forward to 2007 and I had just finished my MBA when I had an opportunity to change career paths from Fairmont’s Global Vice President of Sales and Distribution to the dark side, as the Regional Vice President and General Manager. As I have said many times when I talk about my career path, I don’t think . . . No, let me correct that, I know I would not have been as successful without an incredible team. There are many people I worked with whom I could mention, but the one who was the most impactful and who definitely stands out above the crowd was my Regional Director of Finance, David Lund.
Why? Two reasons. First and foremost, David is highly intelligent, helpful and a very patient person. He is so passionate and knowledgeable about finance and accounting, and the hotel business in general. And two, something I will always admire David for and which is somewhat rare in the hotel business: David has always had a balanced approach to life. He structured his time so he would be at work when he needed to be and not be there when he did not need to be. This seems like such a simple concept, but it’s often difficult to manage in hospitality, and it reflects David’s deep awareness of the moving parts of the hotel business.
You might think I simply did a quick summary review of The Prosperous Hotelier in order to write this Foreword for an old friend and colleague. But you would be incorrect—I read it cover to cover. I kept two viewpoints in mind as I green-highlighted my way through the chapters: that of an experienced leader who has been in the business for a long time, and that of myself, way back at the beginning of my hotel career beginning the journey that had me growing up in this industry.
My first takeaway from The Prosperous Hotelier relates to the two prevalent aspects at play through every chapter of the book: David’s passion for the potential of a hotel’s performance, and his undeniable depth of knowledge and expertise regarding hotel financial leadership. When you consider the depth of interconnectivity related to a hotel’s financial workings you see that the whole is more than the sum of its parts. David helps us see this interconnectedness. This is demonstrated by the comprehensive nature of the book, which moves well beyond the areas traditionally covered by a Director of Finance to scope out what every leader in a hotel should hold themselves accountable to regarding financial and accounting matters. David and I agree that to truly succeed in the hospitality business you need to not only understand the financial fundamentals but—and even more importantly—to understand and apply financial leadership. Both of these themes are palpable through the entire book and it makes you want to read more; he pulls you into the realm of financial leadership—which, by the way, is saying a lot given that it is usually a fairly dry topic.
My second takeaway from this book is around the perspective of new leaders. There is no doubt in my mind that it would have been a significant advantage to have read this book when I was starting out. There are so many pearls of wisdom, so many detailed explanations on procedures and concepts, and so many questions answered that you would either not know to ask or be afraid to ask. And it isn’t a boring textbook! It is all written in an easy to comprehend manner.
Usually during training your direct boss or peer walks you through your various job tasks: forecasting, scheduling, RPI, and so on. This book will fast-track your training by augmenting it with the explanations as to why each element of the training is important and how it fits together within the structure of the hotel. It reminds me of our days at The Fairmont Royal York when David held training sessions for the new leaders. There was typically a turning point, a moment of comprehension, when you saw that these new leaders understood the why behind their everyday tasks. For every new supervisor (and some experienced department heads) The Prosperous Hotelier will be the hotel bible on financial leadership. It will help anyone in the hotel industry better understand all of the pieces that make up the hotel financial leadership puzzle.
To sum it all up (pun intended), I feel strongly that this book should be read by a majority of leaders in our industry. It is a type of self-help book for new and seasoned leaders alike. This book will provide guidance and broader understanding to all leaders – from the General Manager all the way to the first time supervisor in the hotel bar/restaurant. (Incidentally, in Chapter 46 David talks about the General Managers who he felt did not have the financial acumen needed. For the record, I was one of his many General Managers over the years, whom he rightly calls to the carpet!)
A final thought: one of the often-cited comments from female leaders is that they are not strong in finance. This book is for you, too. It is a chapter-by-chapter, self-guided tour through the landscape of financial leadership. If you are in the hotel business and buy into the philosophy of developing your leaders and sharing information across all levels of the leadership group, then financial leadership is a concept that will build strong teamwork, likely create more time for leaders to focus on the guest—and most certainly drive profit.
Happy reading.
Heather McCrory
Chief Executive Officer, North & Central America, Accor (retired)
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