Hearing the call of the heart

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Radisson SAS Residence Dubai Marina's new general manager Cornelia Erhardt explains her strategy for Rezidor's first residential property in the UAE: working with heart and mind.

What prompted you to make the move to Radisson SAS Dubai Marina?

I've been with Rezidor for 30 years now; I moved here from a Rezidor property in Lithuania.

I made the move because I was attracted to the area, to the lifestyle and to the possibilities and opportunities to move forward. Also it was a dream of mine to work in the Middle East; it's great to face challenges different from those in Europe.

Is it a challenge being the first female GM for Rezidor in the region?

Maybe it's a little bit too early to say; but I was received very nicely and professionally, and I don't think that I had any feelings that I was not welcome or of people making my life difficult.

It was actually the opposite: I got lots of support. I was introduced to the culture, which is very important. I was also introduced to Dubai, and also of course to all the difficulties I might face.

Supply is increasing, so we are looking at different challenges now from four or five years ago. And with the help of my team I don't think I'll have any problems. Plus I have very nice colleagues in Dubai working for Radisson SAS.

Also as a female general manager I always say we are the best, because we work with heart and mind. And think that's what we need here; I think people of all levels need to be respected. And I think it's time we had a female GM!

The hotel's residential tower is scheduled to open on May 1; what initiatives are you planning to implement?

For me as a general manager, it is extremely important that I give the residence a face. This is a very well-known project for Rezidor, so it has to have a quality performance which is different from their other hotels.

We'll concentrate very much on service, very personalised service. We are going out with the message that people are taken care of in details. When our clients visit us they have to leave at the end with the feeling that they were in a home away from home.

So for us it is very important that this message goes out.

What is your target clientele for the new residential tower, and how will you market it to this sector?

We are of course going for our usual corporate, business client, but we will encourage leisure customers as well. This will hopefully happen during the summer months, when we'll have the GCC market visiting Dubai for shopping and so on, and my guess is that it will be very profitable.

Regarding marketing, first of all the apartments in the tower are exquisitely designed by an Italian designer. We're also located in a good area, within easy reach of both corporate and leisure facilities, so I think it's a very attractive option.

What do you think will be the main challenge, working here?

First of all - I don't want to say it's ‘the' challenge, but in a way it is - just opening; getting the hotel up and running. And you know in Dubai it's booming at the moment so everyone's very busy; lots of hotels are going to open over the next year.

But my concern at the moment is that we reach the opening date; that is the big challenge at this point, as we have been slightly delayed. Then again in Dubai, you are lucky if you're only delayed by two or three months!

What are your plans and ambitions for the future?

I'd like to see our new tower become the best residence in Dubai, of course! But at the same time, for me personally, my ambition is that every guest who leaves the residence is a return guest.

I want to concentrate on repeat business; I want people to come back when they return to Dubai.

I want them leaving talking about the experience, the hospitality, the service, the staff attitude - talking about Rezidor. And everything we implement will be seen in other properties around the world. That is our aim and our goal.

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