Determined Leader
I Wayan Sucitra has nurtured his passion for the hospitality industry since he was young, and now he’s reaping the success as the chief executive officer of The Kayon Hotels and Resorts.
He talks to Asia Dreams about his humble beginning and how to make it in the industry.
Q: Can you tell us how you first got into the hospitality industry? Has it always been your passion?
A: I started falling in love with the hospitality industry when I was in high school. I decided to take a language and culture programme in my third year, and spent around nine hours learning Japanese and 11 hours learning English every week. To practise my English, I frequently went to a famous tourist destination near my house, Gitgit Waterfall. It was so exciting to meet different people from different countries, so I could practise my English. I decided to continue my studies in hotel tourism school for two years, majoring in Room Division Management. Afterwards, I got my first job as a guest relations officer in Seminyak in 2000. After that, more opportunities came that led to who I am.
Q: Is there any upcoming project from The Kayon Hotels and Resorts that you can share with our readers?
A: First of all, we are very grateful that tourism is back. It’s not as we expected compared to 2019, but we hope that the increase of tourists visiting Bali will continue and improve by 2024. When we get a better idea of how businesses are in 2024, there will be a lot of opportunities to expand our brand. Currently, we are working on a small project at The Kayon Resort, where we plan to have an additional five or six villas. By 2024, we expect that the business is going to be better, and we are working on a plan to have another project, which will still be in Bali, but not in Ubud.
Q: How would you describe the properties of The Kayon Hotels and Resorts? Is there any common theme between all the resorts?
A: The Kayon Hotels and Resorts offers a thematic boutique experience and it is dedicated for adults only. So, our resort is a perfect destination for honeymooners or couples. Kayon in the Balinese shadow puppet show is a symbol of the universe, where you can see kindness, flawlessness and graciousness, which means everybody coming to our resort is welcome warmly and genuinely, and they will feel the true Kayon experience.
Q: What do you think is the most rewarding or memorable moment throughout your career?
A: Before joining The Kayon Hotels and Resorts, I was the director of rooms, who had the responsibility for making sure that the rooms were clean and guests were happy. One day, someone called me to join as a corporate general manager. The owners, who didn’t know me before, put so much trust in me to manage their resorts. They took risks to hire me, but thankfully, I can proved them what they were expecting of me. That’s, I could say, memorable because it’s rare to have this kind of opportunity.
Q: In your words, how would you define success?
A: Success is when I can complete my productive day while still feeling happy. As a leader, you are expected to achieve the goal or target that is assigned by your boss or superior. You have to do what you have to do, and tomorrow is another day for new targets.
Q: As a leader, what do you think is the key to successful leadership?
A: As a leader, we have to believe in determination. It means that you have to know what you have to do, where you have to go and how to do it. I emphasise these things to my team.
Q: What advice would you give someone who wants to get into the hospitality industry?
A: The first one is to learn how to smile. It is a simple thing, but smiling genuinely is not easy; not everybody can do that. To work in hospitality, you must have a passion for the field. You also have to decide what you want to do because, in the hospitality industry, you can work for hotels, restaurants, weddings or travel agents. Of course, before jumping into the hospitality industry, you need to get a great foundation by attending courses or going to a college to get some knowledge about it. The knowledge can be sharpened again when you get into the industry and gain some experience with job training. Go out and build a network where you can gain more opportunities to develop your skills or improve your career. Stay up-to-date, because evolutions happen so fast. We have to see what’s going on out there and what we can do better, as the competition is very hard now. If you are not staying up-to-date with what’s going on out there, you’re going to be left behind.
Asia Dreams Volume 49
The Kayon Hotels and Resorts
Banjar Kepitu, Tegallalang
Bali 80561, Indonesia
T: (+62) 82144331012
E: investor@thekayonhotels.com
IG: @thekayonhotels
