00:01I didn't even know if I was going to like Las Vegas. It was a job that was
00:05larger than I had ever taken in my career. If I hadn't have been my most
00:09authentic self, I wouldn't be here today.
00:19I'm Shannon McCallum and I'm the Vice President of Hotel Operations at Resorts
00:24World Las Vegas. Today I'm going to teach you about the important aspects of being
00:28successful in hospitality. My role here is to oversee all aspects of hotel
00:34operations, which includes the arrival experience for our guests, their stay
00:38experience, activities like the spa and the pool, in addition reservations,
00:42concierge, so it is quite far-reaching. I stumbled on hospitality by accident. I
00:48was 14 working at a resort and I was working at an event where there were
00:54international guests from around the world. I looked around and I thought, wow, and I
00:58realized that the opportunity to have unique experiences really comes with a
01:03career in hospitality. I knew that this was the path that I wanted to take. There are
01:08many different characteristics or attributes that you need to have in
01:12order to be successful in the hospitality industry. Number one, have a passion for
01:17working with people because you will be surrounded by people every single day and
01:22not every day is an easy day. So it's important that you love what you do. Good
01:27morning, gentlemen. How are you this morning? Number two, taking risks. Often it's so
01:33easy to stay in a role that we're familiar with. It's really important to continue to
01:38stretch yourself in areas where you don't feel comfortable. Some of my greatest
01:42opportunities came my way by stepping outside of my comfort zone. I was recruited
01:48online for an opportunity in Las Vegas. I didn't even know if I was going to like
01:53Las Vegas in a job that was larger than I had ever taken in my career. And that
01:58opportunity changed my life. Number three, collaboration and communication. It's
02:04critical in hospitality that you understand how to collaborate with others
02:09because no one person can take care of all of the needs of the guest. Because our
02:13guest experience is a 24-hour experience. Communication can come in many different
02:19formats. One could be touching base with people in person because it's really
02:23important to connect with others and to build those relationships. It's truly very
02:27important to check back with people to see if they have any questions because
02:30there could be teams of people that are depending on the information from you to be
02:35successful in creating an experience for your guests. Number four, you've got to be
02:41flexible. Hospitality is an ever-changing environment and you have to be flexible
02:46in order to be successful. I'm just in the middle of filming right now.
02:50There's always so much to do and competing interests when we're working.
02:54I can have meetings back to back all day on my calendar but then perhaps we have a big
02:58bus that comes in and there's a rush in the lobby and the lobby needs help. If you're
03:03structured and you want to just follow the schedule that you have, you may miss out on
03:07really taking care of the most important tasks for your day. No day is the same as the next and
03:13that is what I enjoy the most. Number five, there is always things that you can be learning.
03:19Perhaps if you're experiencing a plateau and what you're doing, look at someone else who's in
03:25another role in your company to find out about what they're doing and what their skill set is.
03:30Hotels are like little cities. There is a role for everyone in this industry and really the sky's the
03:36limit. It is about keeping yourself challenged and taking those next steps. That is how you grow.
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