Thomas Schmelter: A Visionary Leader in the Hospitality Sector

Thomas Schmelter

Effective leadership has certain universal characteristics. Ideally, it is intentional and focused, optimizing the overall performance of one’s team while creating a positive and engaging work environment. IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City as their Area General Manager, Thomas Schmelter is a principle-led leader with a purpose, governed by trust, transparency, accountability, courage, and respect.

Born to parents who ran restaurants and hotels in Germany, Thomas had early exposure to the hospitality industry which turned into appreciation and then the industry of choice for a profession.

Over the past 30 years, he had the privilege to work across Europe, Southeast Asia, Southwest Asia, and the Middle East, in fascinating countries and cities like Vietnam, Bangkok, and now Dubai. It allowed him to experience different cultures, get acquainted with their history, as well as learn about people. This is what hospitality is all about, feels Thomas, dealing with people.

His ultimate goal has always been to become a General Manager in an international, luxury hotel. Being aspirational, Thomas was fortunate to be given regional responsibilities to manage multiple hotels and brands on both hotel and corporate levels. In his current role, he oversees the operations of 4 hotels with over 1,600 rooms at the Dubai Festival City cluster, respectively InterContinental Dubai Festival City, InterContinental Residence Suites Dubai Festival City, Crowne Plaza Dubai Festival City, and Holiday Inn & Suites Dubai Festival City. This dynamic cluster also boasts 16 renowned restaurants and bars, 2 spas, a 10,000-square meter state-of-the-art Event Centre, and the 7,000-square meter Festival Arena.

As a leader, he maintains healthy relationships that are fit for purpose and critical for a high-performance team where everyone has a role to play. Ultimately, his take on leadership is walking the line, stepping forward, making a difference, and taking the lead and the heat every day.

An Expansive Portfolio

The expansive portfolio of IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City offers luxury travel like no other, boasting elegantly appointed guest rooms and suites, diverse culinary offerings, bespoke spa treatments, and excellent leisure facilities, including their iconic ‘Infinity Pool’ – a glass-bottom pool suspended over the hotel’s fourth floor with astonishing views, and the Planet Trekkers kids club designed to inspire creativity and curiosity in a safe environment. For ultimate convenience and entertainment, Dubai Festival City Mall is directly accessible featuring hundreds of world-class brands, a cinema, and the record-breaking IMAGINE – water, laser and fire spectacle. With their three distinct hotel brands, they can cater to a variety of budgets, ideally situated within 10 minutes of city attractions as well as the vibrant Downtown Dubai.

Thomas highlights the importance of an extensive gastronomic offering. Being a gastronomy enthusiast himself, Thomas is passionate about keeping on top of trends. From a celebrity-chef-led restaurant to curated regional dining experiences, IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City offer an extensive selection of world-class dining experiences. Three Michelin-starred chef, Pierre Gagnaire is at the helm of Pierre’s TT, serving up French delicacies. Karam Al Bahr features exquisite Lebanese dishes at InterContinental, and Belgian Café is another highlight at Crowne Plaza Dubai Festival City, embracing the essence of Brussels, with further options adding unique flavors to the collection, and making them a truly diverse culinary destination.

“Our state-of-the-art Conference Centre boasting pre-function areas with floor-to-ceiling windows, two splendid ballrooms, a variety of breakout rooms, and picturesque outdoor venues, makes us the ideal choice for business and corporate travelers. Our lush lawns and waterfront promenade with the city’s stunning skyline are the ideal backdrop for fairy-tale weddings. A special highlight is our Festival Bay helipad surrounded by shimmering waters and magical sunsets, a favorite destination wedding spot in the city,” shares Thomas.

And it is not all. Festival Arena by InterContinental is the ultimate venue for premium events. Set amongst the tranquil landscape of Dubai Festival City with seamless accessibility from major roads, it offers the perfect venue space that may be personalized and branded for any event, regardless of size or complexity. IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City is truly unique.

Leveraging Technology for Better Services

Technology is a powerful tool that IHG uses to not only improve efficiency within its practices and operations but also to better the customer experience. At IHG, they continuously gather insights from consumers, which enables them to research, develop, pilot, and launch new ways of engaging with guests across their Guest Journey. One of these tools is IHG Concerto™ which is designed to enhance usability, guest satisfaction, and loyalty for hotels by improving aspects such as arrival preparation, check-in, loyalty tracking, enrolment, RFP, sales lead management, and table reservations. On the guest-facing side, the IHG Hotels and Rewards mobile application optimizes multiple processes and regroups all necessary information to better the customer experience even before they step foot in the hotel.

Encouraging Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are the main pillars of IHG Hotels and Resorts’ vision and strategy. The cluster has over 1200 colleagues from 58 countries. Besides, the cluster has ongoing initiatives to increase the ratio of female colleagues as part of its gender balance efforts. 25% of senior management roles are held by female colleagues in the cluster, showing significant growth in comparison to the previous years. Showcasing the significance of DE&I, a council has been established for the Dubai Festival City cluster, where Thomas is the chair together with the Cluster Director of Human Resources, Chantal Kramer. 

“It is of crucial importance to ensure that every colleague is given room to grow and is supported to flourish and succeed. In 2022, 197 colleagues have been laterally transferred and promoted to their next career level, and we continue this journey,” believes Thomas.

The governmental initiative to set industry standards for employability in support of people of determination in the hospitality industry is another cause close to Thomas’ heart, where he cooperates in projects along with other leading hotel brands to make a difference. Two people of determination are already part of the cluster’s workforce within the F&B department, with two more joining their housekeeping team soon.

In support of growing the talent pool for the UAE; the cluster is actively participating both in the Emirati Talent Development Programme launched by Al Futtaim and in IHG’s initiative to develop young talents, promoting Emiratisation. At present, they are ahead of the curve in attracting national talents for the hospitality industry at IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City in particular.

Within the framework of the brand’s RISE program, they also support female colleagues to rise and succeed in achieving their ambition. Thomas also serves as a mentor to upcoming RISE participants from other IHG Hotels. 

The Pandemic Effect

2020 and 2021 have been a roller coaster of unprecedented changes brought on by the pandemic. Health and safety became crucial aspects, but the hospitality, travel, and tourism sectors learned to adapt to these new circumstances and made them prepared for the ‘known unknown’. The new rules, standards, and values have and will continue to influence consumer behavior. The industry was forced to explore new markets, adopted new length-of-stay patterns, enhanced its offerings for the evolving domestic traveler, and made the team at IHG Hotels & Resorts further strengthen their already rigorous cleaning procedures. They adapted their stay experience to give guests peace of mind and help them make the most of their trip. Thomas is glad to see people reconnecting and exploring new destinations again.

Achievements Galore

Thomas is immensely proud of the collection of awards that together with his team they attained for the properties.

IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City has proudly achieved numerous awards from prestigious entities. In recognition of the hotel’s luxurious room and F&B offerings, as well as stellar service, InterContinental Dubai Festival City was awarded World’s Leading City Business Hotel 2022, Middle East’s Leading City Hotel 2022, and Dubai’s Leading City Business Hotel 2022 by World Travel Awards. Additionally, it received Trip Advisor’s Travellers’ Choice 2022 alongside its sister properties, InterContinental Residence Suites Dubai Festival City and Crowne Plaza Dubai Festival City.

InterContinental Dubai Festival City celebrated an iconic win with Pierre’s TT being awarded the two-toque status and picking up the coveted ‘Restaurant Manager of the Year Award’ at the landmark Gault & Millau UAE 2022 and 2023 Gala, two years in a row. Another privilege for Pierre’s TT is to be featured as one of the 69 restaurants in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide Dubai 2022 which represents their passion for gastronomy and excellent service. It was also awarded Middle East’s Best Fine Dining Hotel Restaurant 2022 by World Culinary Awards.

Personally, Thomas is humbled to be listed within Hotelier Middle East’s Top 100 GMs as well as having received the IHG EMEEA General Managers Owner Impact Award, World Luxury Award – Best General Manager, and PATTWA Award Best General Manager in India.

Staying Ahead

As the hospitality industry is a constantly evolving environment, adaptability, employee retention, and innovation are all essential to staying ahead of trends and accelerating growth.

The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of adapting to unforeseen circumstances, and despite the challenges, IHG was able to quickly pivot, leading to outstanding financial results. By striving to continuously improve their consumer’s experience, they can adapt to changing guest needs and better meet and exceed their expectations. Ensuring that the right people are on board is also crucial to accelerating growth as well as creating a positive work environment that solicits teamwork, and professional growth, and fosters employee engagement.

“We are privileged to be in a city that evolves at such an accelerated rate and creates the ideal economic environment with great growth opportunities. Dubai’s long-term vision and focus on tourism are the main contributors to the increasing demand we experience. The generated revenue in 2022 was above expectations for all four properties, and the same tendency continued in the first quarter of 2023,” states Thomas.

Finally, through the implementation of sustainable practices and by putting corporate social responsibility at the forefront, they are able to benefit the environment and also increase customer loyalty as consumers are increasingly conscious of the impact businesses have on society. For example, IHG Hotels at Dubai Festival City has recently completed the installation of its own automated water bottling plant reducing around 2 million single-use plastic water bottles a year. Having their plastic key cards replaced with eco-friendly, biodegradable wooden cards across the four properties helped them save a worth of 120,000 plastic cards per year. With the removal of bathroom miniatures in favor of larger-size amenities, they eliminated 620,000 miniatures annually. “Every little change you make adds up to a big difference, and we are proud to be taking these steps toward reducing our waste footprint,” explains Thomas.

Thomas concludes our interaction with a piece of advice for budding entrepreneurs. He says, “Every day is another opportunity to challenge the status quo. It is down to you and your team to decide whether to put your contribution out there or keep it to yourself. Show curiosity, and question your daily habits, tools, programs, ways of working, and thinking. To shape things dynamically, keep in mind you can’t do it alone, take your team along. Show courage and dare to take risks, this way you can constantly raise the bar. Never stop…”

Quote: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” – Nelson Mandela

Releated Post