Ep. 29: Doing well by doing good, with Bashar Wali.
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Alright, the much anticipated part two of my interview with Bashar Wali is here!
Last week, we set the stage, we talked about COVID-19 as an accelerator for change within the hospitality industry, Bashar shared his own experiences having stayed in 205 hotels and counting, and what he’s realized: a lot of independent hotel experiences aren’t very independent after all.
The ways we market hotels, the ways we train employees, and the ways we interact with guests, are predictable, identical even. From words that are so overused they’ve been rendered meaningless, to copycat design elements, and checklist service that does not equate to hospitality. If part one is a state of the industry report, part two is the action plan. Be sure to listen to the first half if you haven’t already.
On today’s episode, we're diving into what Bashar Wali's building, conscious capitalism, and the giveashitability factor. We’re getting the scoop on This Assembly, Practice Hospitality, and Bashar’s vision for the future. Part one aired November 10, 2020.
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I really appreciate Bashar’s vision for the future. It’s not just aspirational, he’s sharing many tangible ways to put into practice what he’s preaching. I can’t help but think of Arab hospitality, and how that comes through in the wealth of ideas Bashar shares openly with our industry. His ideas are plentiful, he’s inviting our industry to join him in making hospitality more human-centered. It’s up to us to build on these ideas to make the industry better.
My key takeaways :
When we talk about community partnership, think about the guests and the locals in our neighborhood, but don’t forget about your vendors, and most importantly, your own staff. Look at the back of house employees with fresh eyes—all that they’re contributing to make your hotel run—what can you give them in return that goes beyond health benefits? By helping one single employee, you create a ripple effect for their family, and you create immeasurable change in your own backyard.
Bashar talked about conscious capitalism. Sustainability to him, is table stakes, but for Bashar it’s about the why and it’s about doing well by doing good. You bring the back of the house to the front of the house, you create opportunities for guests to engage too, and you create this sort of healthy ecosystem that really hasn’t existed to date. The byproduct of this work is that’s also a feel good effort that can be marketed. Turns out, it’s a good PR move too. This is conscious capitalism at work. It’s not winner takes all, it’s a win-win.
I think one of the most remarkable things about this conversation is that it’s not just big ideas. Bashar’s putting this into practice—in fact, Practice Hospitality is his newest venture, and I’m guessing its a chance to do exactly that: come up with a proof of concept, maybe two or three, and see what happens from there. Change is coming to our industry, and the future’s bright.
As always, keep sharing your stories.
Links mentioned in this episode:
This Assembly website
Practice Hospitality website
Bashar Wali on Instagram
Bashar Wali on Linkedin
