Interview with Andrej Sovrovic

CLUSTER GENERAL MANAGER IHG (CROWNE PLAZA, INDIGO AND INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL LJUBLJANA)

Recently Miloš Duletić from The Collection had the pleasure to meet Mr Andrej Sovrović, to discuss the IHG ethos and plans for the future.

How did it all begin?

We could talk about it in terms of geography. It is a journey that began in Belgrade, and ended there, via London and Moscow. It was the most logical one for me, and it was there that I received a solid formal education and exceptional work experience. After all, Belgrade is my stronghold and that is a place where everything converges in the end. I began working for Delta Holding there, in a variety of subsidiaries and positions. I am still part of the company today, and I am thank ful for the inestimable value that the people I had the good fortune to work with and with whom I have developed my professional experience shared with me.

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How and why did you transition from a very different business envi ronment to managing a hotel?

Something always needs to “happen”, and in this case, the company president suggested that I try my hand at the hotel business. My longterm thought that this was something I wanted to pursue moving ahead and where I could make my contribution was amplified by this. I consid er myself fortunate to have entered the hotel business in the year when it returned to its previous level, and I know that we can only improve in the years ahead. I believe that in order to achieve good results, you need to continuously change things up. I always strived to innovate, do things in a different way, and always broaden my experiences. One great oppor tunity for that is running a hotel business. I enjoy being here right now.

Can you introduce yourself in the way you want the readers to get to know you?

I am constantly seeking out additional knowledge. I try to learn a lot. I don't accept anything as a given, automatically and by default. In prac tice, this means that I tend to analyse things: I consider each process or specific segment, analyse it with my colleagues, and then decide. To gether we examine whether or not that choice was good. I think I have the courage to make decisions that I believe are best for the hotel, but I am willing to go back and re-evaluate those decisions to see how they affected things.

I aspire to be perceived as approachable, honest and open to hear ing different ideas and perspectives. Similar to a team captain who must take the lead while having full trust in his teammates. For me, the most important aspect of any business, especially the hotel industry, is the people.

What have you learned most in the past year since working in the hospitality sector?

This business is quite specific. Your social skills must be fully devel oped in order to be able to respond effectively to all circumstances that emerge on a regular basis. Its uniqueness comes from the vast number of people of various profiles that you see on the same day, ranging from employees to managers to important partners to clients from quite var ied industries. In order to accomplish all of this, you must have a strong ability to concentrate and the willingness to transform yourself ener getically, intellectually, based on the topics and interests you are dealing with, while retaining your character traits, your core identity. Because I am fully aware that hotel management is a people's industry, I always try to be true to who I am, with my own character and values, but with the flexibility to adjust as best I can to individual situations and the person alities of the people I interact with.

HOTEL INDIGO BELGRADE

From your perspective, how do you see the prospects for the recovery of MICE and business travel?

According to the research conducted in the hotel sector, the MICE business segment is the slowest to recover. Weekend travel and individu al arrivals have returned to the pre-pandemic levels, while the dynamics of MICE travel and business-related travel in general are lagging. We are aware that there is an increased willingness and desire among people to travel, but, unfortunately, there is also an oncoming dread of a new eco nomic crisis where businesses are resorting to new means of cost saving, which could undoubtedly have a detrimental impact on MICE. When this puzzle is put together, the conclusion indicates that there will be work, but not enough to satisfy all hotels in all cities and in the manner we desire. Belgrade is certainly at an advantage because it has good entry parameters: the distinctiveness of the offer, good capacities and good service, along with Air Serbia updated fleet, brand-new, state-of-the-art airport, and extensive flight network, all together open up the possibility of favourably positioning Belgrade as a destination that customers will choose for their stay. Due to this, the gap between European cities and Belgrade has been significantly narrowed, making this the opportune time to acquire the largest possible portion of the European MICE tour ism with competitive rates and exceptional service. Crowne Plaza is a serious player in this game, but the most opportunity is offered by the reconstruction of the Sava Centre.

If there is a formula for creating loyal customers, can you share yours?

“Loyalty is a two-way street” is my favourite quote in both life and business. You must first show someone your loyalty before asking for it. To begin earning the other party’s trust, you must first have trust in them yourself, communicate openly about all the challenges, and always be honest with them about your ability to meet their requirements and when you are unable to do so. When you do that, along with providing a high-quality product and service, you may retain the customer and es tablish a long-lasting positive relationship. There are no challenges that cannot be resolved by normal interpersonal interactions.

Can you share what you believe is key to running a successful hotel today?

The staff is absolutely the key to a hotel's success. It is crucial that you have good closest associates, that you share the same vision, that you know the direction in which you want to move and what you strive to accomplish. The guiding principle of our business is a fluid system, where agents are given freedom in their work, but also great responsibil ity. They have the opportunity to voice their opinions, offer their ideas, and be informed about the reasoning behind decisions and proposals that are accepted or rejected. This ensures the necessary synergy from the hotel director to the operational departments by providing a chain of highly qualified personnel. The advantage of having a sizable number of long-tenured team members who live and grow with the hotel and are committed to that vision is shared by all the hotels in the Delta hotel portfolio. When you work with such a team, then you have a prerequi site for customer satisfaction. You have a winning formula when your business is willing to continually invest in a better product and better service.

CROWNE PLAZA, BELGRADE

How did you approach identifying, developing and motivating talent?

Due to high entry barriers and the perception that it is not a particu larly appealing field of employment following the crisis, the hotel indus try has been much weaker in recent years. It is up to us to demonstrate the perspective and potential of the hospitality sector. It is not easy to answer this question verbally, because it is more feeling-based. Either you recognise it when you see it or you don’t. Let's make a comparison: a coach evaluates an athlete in the same way. Talent is an inexplicable phenomenon. Although you have a sense that it exists, you can never be certain that it will always produce the outcomes you hope for from that talent. This is where your participation in the process becomes nec essary. You must invest in people, and particularly in talents. One of the most well-known world leaders explained it in a simple way. When asked why he invests so much in talents when they may ultimately leave, he asked what an alternative to that should be, “not to invest in people and have them remain as they are?” To be present on the market, selection must be continually improved. Finally, you must dedicate yourself to each indi vidual and work to develop them as people since you cannot realistically expect that every talent would develop into a top manager or leader. The effectiveness of that approach is largely dependent on the time and effort you put into fostering pro spective future associates.

INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL LJUBLJANA

What book, podcast or media source have you've read/lis tened to recently that has inspired you?

I am glad that now I can say, without falling into a cliché, that traveling is my passion. Since a big portion of my job now involves travel, I undoubtedly obtain inspiration and gather ideas for potential future projects when traveling in addition to the fact that I genuinely like it and fulfil my personal sources of happiness. Sports are undoubtedly a part of my personal interests as they play a significant role in my life, and I can say that I follow practically every sport. I've been listening to audio content lately, such as podcasts. Agelast and Pojačalo are two of them that I regularly listen to. I also listen to some individual podcasts, usually local ones, that attract me because of the topic or because the author is someone I want to hear. There isn't much time to sit down, pick up a book, and unwind while reading it, no matter how much I'd like to due to the pace of life, the volume of varied responsibilities, or all of them combined. Even then, the subject is frequently somehow related to work. So perhaps a true example of that I’ve just said is "The Art of Winning," a book I recently read by Nike founder Phil Knight. It is a human story combined with business narrative that serves as a practical lesson about the many challenges we face as we work toward success. It is a journey without clearly defined solutions; they might or might not materialise and there is definitely no magic wand.

A personal message for 2023 and beyond

Don't be fearful of having a goal. Often, people are afraid to define their goals. I admit that there have been times when I have acted similar ly myself and have been reluctant to express some of my own ambitions and aspirations. Believe in yourself and keep in mind that different paths can lead us to our goals. They may be quick and direct, winding, predict able, or entirely surprising. It is important for you to be aware that there is always a way and to exercise patience throughout the process. And you will undoubtedly get there.