Hospitality Leaders - Interviews with hotel, event, and food service experts

On this episode of the Hospitality Leaders podcast, host Chris Cano welcomes Jelle Vandenbroucke, General Manager at JW Marriott Houston Downtown, to talk about his career path and his philosophy on leadership development of his managers and staff.

Born in Belgium, Jelle took an early interest in cooking, and enrolled in culinary school at the age of 15. After graduation, he worked in several kitchens in the US, UK, Dubai, and France, all in a luxury setting. Always wanting to grow, he explored other areas, like banquet service and management, which led to his current GM position at JW Marriott.

Jelle wants to see everyone that’s working for him thrive and advance in their career. Leadership development can start very early in someone’s career. If someone wants to work in accounting but they aren’t quite experienced enough, he will put them in a position to work toward their leadership goal.

He also believes in a work/life balance, something that hasn’t always been embraced in the hospitality industry. He insists that his managers and staff take sufficient time off to be with their families and unwind. He says that balance makes them all better leaders.

Resources:

Jelle Vandenbroucke

JW Marriott

Chris Cano

Upshift

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On this episode of the Hospitality Leaders podcast, host Chris Cano welcomes Chef Scott Craig, Director of Culinary Operations, Myers Park Country Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Chef Scott talks about his background, which didn’t include culinary school. He caught the cooking bug while studying for a psychology degree in college at Virginia Tech, and he began his career as an apprentice at the Baltimore Country Club.

Chef Scott has always seen value in culinary competitions, and he credits those challenges as being an integral part of his training and education. He recently won a gold medal at the Culinary Olympics, which he displays in his office to inspire young chefs coming into the industry. He thinks the culture of competition drives his team to be the best they can be.

Building a supportive culture is important to Chef Scott. He believes in a culture of fostering growth and providing advancement opportunities to everyone. He and his team deliberately use the term “family,” because that is the kind of closeness they feel with each other. It is a culture of joy and optimism.

He also talks about his involvement in the Southeast Emergency Response Network, which is an organization that feeds people during times of disaster or emergency. His goal is to grow the network throughout the Southeast United States.

He enjoys photography, and he has some beautiful shots of his food on his Instagram page. Check it out.

Resources:

Chef Scott Craig
chefscottcraig

Myers Park Country Club

Chris Cano

Upshift

If you enjoyed today’s show, please leave a 5-Star review. For more information and links to all of the resources mentioned in today’s episode, visit HospitalityLeaderspodcast.com.

Welcome to the Hospitality Leaders podcast with host Chris Cano. Each episode of the podcast will feature insightful conversations with leaders in the hospitality, event, and food service industries.

Chris has spent more than 20 years in the hospitality industry, and almost every leader he has met has told him at some point that they “could write a book” on the bizarre encounters they’ve had with guests or team members. Those books never seem to materialize. Instead, books on the industry written by industry leaders focus on ways to improve customer service, build great places to work, or lead under pressure.

The Hospitality Leaders podcast aims to focus on those topics in conversation form. The global pandemic had a devastating effect on the industry and, by proxy, adjacent industries. Leaders are facing the challenge of rebuilding the industry in areas such as customer service, financials, and handling labor.

Stay in tune with the state of the industry today and into the future with the Hospitality Leaders podcast. Subscribe, and never miss an episode.

The Hospitality Leaders podcast is powered by Upshift, connecting businesses with W2 employees in real time for both short-term shifts and Upshift to Hire positions.

Resources:
Chris Cano
Upshift

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