Business Leaders interview: Rodolfo Garcia Gandara

Tell us a little about yourself and your company.

I am Rodolfo, proudly born in the north of Mexico, I am 50 years old and have been in the hotel and tourism industry for 30 years, mainly in Mexico and the United States.

What motivates you in your work and what do you find most satisfying about being a business leader?

To be able to leave, at least a little bit of teaching and advice for the younger generations that are looking to develop in the hotel industry. 

How did you develop your leadership skills and how would you define your leadership style?

I am from the generation of the change from manual to digital, from the quantum leap of the internet, all my development has been based on work and learning from everything and everyone, a spark of knowledge in my mind is gasoline to generate new ideas in my head.

Innovation is crucial in a sector as diverse as ours. How do you anticipate trends and incorporate them into your global strategy?

Learning from new generations, pushing knowledge tools in my area, developing new talents, knowing the tools at hand especially now with AI starting to be used in our sector.

What do you consider to be the key components of an effective business operational development?

Simple and standardized processes, if it works don't change it.

How do you approach identifying areas of improvement within a company's operations?

By knowing the root operating standards. 

Where do you think the most promising investments should be focused and/or made?

In developing more skilled minds to grow and grow a company.

What is/are your greatest professional achievement(s)?

Being involved in the development of different hotel chains and brands in Mexico and the United States, mainly with Hilton hotel.

Do you have examples where your leadership has made a difference? If so, what were they? 

In most of my professional challenges I have made a positive difference, at times in the commercial area, or in the development of strategies, but the most important has been the internal growth of my colleagues.

What is the most important leadership lesson you have learned?

That your leadership is not executed from above but with your feet firmly on the ground.

How did you identify and take advantage of opportunities to advance your career?

By learning what others were not learning and specializing in key areas of the company.

Have you achieved everything you wanted in your career so far? 

Almost all of them, one of the most important not yet, which would be to have my own consulting firm.

How important is personal development to your success and how do you approach it?

It is 50% of the process, the other 50% in my opinion is talent and work.

How do you prioritize tasks when everything seems like a priority to you?

I start with those that are vital to sustain the operation and revenue generation.

What has been the most difficult decision you have made as a leader?

Facing the COVID 19 pandemic and seeing many talented people with super developed skills leave.

What metrics do you use to measure your own performance?

I regularly use the ones that the brands I have worked with have or managerial performance evaluations. 

What does success mean to you as a business leader?

That everything works as it should, that the quality and service is superior and that our guests not only receive a service but that we can create an experience for them.