INTERVIEW: The Oberoi Dubai GM Karim Bizid

The Oberoi Dubai has only been open two months, but general manager Karim Bizid tells Louise Oakley how he believes he will achieve his goal of running the most luxurious hotel in Dubai

Karim Bizid has one very clear vision for The Oberoi, Dubai: to become the most luxurious hotel in the Middle East and Dubai. It’s a bold assertion, but having spent 24 hours at the hotel in mid-July, just a month after it opened, I found a surprising number of elements that bring substance to the claim.

The product, created by Oberoi’s in-house design team with many details dictated by P.R.S Oberoi and owner Sheikh Meher Al Aujan themselves, has several unique features.

Rooms have clear, as yet unobstructed views of Burj Khalifa; the main restaurant, spa and gym are 24-hour facilities; and the precious top floor, normally reserved for presidential suites, is dedicated instead to the business centre and meeting rooms — intended to offer added value to corporate clients.

The hotel is elevated with a ramp up to the entrance, intended to give a palatial feel — part of the Oberoi legacy. Restaurants look over a central courtyard, rooms have extravagant four-metre high ceilings, natural light is abundant and no white light is used anywhere in the hotel, and the signature Oberoi scent permeates the hotel through burners on every floor.

The Oberoi offers 24-hour butler service, rare in Dubai but nothing new; it was the way that staff genuinely listened and interacted so personably with guests that was impressive. I made the mistake of telling a little white lie while touring the recreation area – that it was a shame I’d forgotten my gym kit.

I had no intention at all of doing a workout, but an hour later, was presented with full kit and trainers, magically in my size. I had some toiletries that were running low; these were replenished with my own brand.

Little touches that made a big difference. True, the hotel was very quiet and I was clearly being given the VIP treatment, but the sentiment was evident and it was one of the most personalised hotel experiences I have had.

Bizid admits that striving for consistency where such service is concerned will be critical to the hotel’s success.

“I guess what Dubai has been struggling to achieve is a consistent good standard; it has been sometimes good, sometimes bad. Here we will do our utmost, we will work hard as a team to achieve the consistent excellent standard, consistently exceeding guest expectation, consistently providing that wow factor and to make the guest feel home away from home,” he says.

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New Entrant
Like many hoteliers in Dubai, Tunisian-born Bizid comes from the Jumeirah stable, having worked his way up the ranks at Jumeirah Emirates Towers and then opening The Meydan for Jumeirah.

He’s been in Dubai for close to 20 years and now clearly relishes his role heading up a new brand in the emirate, where he is determined to make an impact with both the corporate market and the Dubai community.

“I can’t recall any five-star luxurious hotel locating on the top, high end of the building business centre and meeting rooms. They would normally use it for the largest suite, presidential or panoramic.

We wanted to give added value to the corporate clients and business partners and we have raised them on the 26th floor. The executive boardrooms have a private balcony, ceiling-to-floor windows and are all equipped with latest technology,” he says.

“We are definitely a corporate hotel and if I follow the Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing statistics, Europe and UK remain strong leading destinations inbound for us as well as the GCC so we have set our standard and set our niches there, without neglecting Asia and South America which are increasingly a very strong path year on year.

“We have offices in London and one in New York and while we have several international sales offices in both Singapore and Germany, the UK and US are strong markets for us. However, KSA, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman are not to be neglected; they are the second strongest market here and that’s where we have concentrated our efforts.”

The Oberoi, Dubai is also planning to call upon the group’s strong ties with established corporate clients such as Standard Chartered, Ernst & Young and Emirates Airline.

“We are going to these groups and tying up with them for the Oberoi brand. We have our offices, which have been operating for years, and we are building on that strength and presence to create success here for the Dubai property,” asserts Bizid.

Working with the local travel trade is also important, with partnerships already secured with the likes of Arabian Adventures, Alpha Tours, Arab Link, Orient Tours, Travco and Dnata.
“They are definitely building 30% of our business so we cannot neglect them. They are extremely strong in the region,” says Bizid.

When it comes to appealing to the Dubai resident base, Bizid hopes the F&B will become a real draw. The signature Indian restaurant, Ananta, has been created by master chef Rais Ahmed, who has worked with Oberoi for 42 years and the group’s new talent, chef de cuisine Saneesh Varguese, who is keen to get his name out in the market.

“Chef Rais is an Indian gentlemen who has worked at Oberoi Mena House, in Cairo, so his secret and talent is he managed to give and change the Indian food being served to the taste and the needs of the GCC customer. No other group has done that. He speaks perfect Arabic.

He is a unique colleague,” says Bizid. “So The Oberoi’s success in F&B [will be down to] its people, listening to the customer and giving them what they want —simplicity, simplicity, simplicity.”

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The Dharma
Success will also, of course, eventually be down to the team, of which around 35% have an Oberoi background. The hotel currently has 18 butlers, designed to act as a “concierge dedicated for your room” on a 24-hour basis.

“The strategy was to focus first on India,” says Bizid of the recruitment process. “We have a dedicated hotel school [the Oberoi Centre for Learning and Development in Delhi] and then our task was to bring a lot of experienced colleagues from India’s Oberoi properties.

We interviewed a lot of colleagues from different hotels around the world and we set certain criteria and we tried to move the maximum number of colleagues with Oberoi experience, Oberoi DNA, those who have lived and experienced and believed the company philosophy.

“The second strategy was to recruit colleagues who speak the language of this part of the world. One of the main markets for us is the GCC. We had to bring in Arabic speaking colleagues.

For this we went to Egypt, Tunisia, North Africa. We believe also in the UAE and the young generation. So we have set internally a target to hire UAE nationals and to develop them in the hotel industry.

I think it is part of our CSR initiatives and beliefs and I can say we have hired few a local colleagues and they are fully integrated into the teams. We have 335 team members at the moment and the target is 500. The remaining colleagues have already been recruited and they are right now in India getting cross exposure and cross training,” he says.

Recognised number 13 out of the 100 Best companies to work for in India 2013, Oberoi offers a range of training programmes, including a three year Systematic Training and Education Programme for students aged 18-years and two-year postgraduate diplomas in Guest Service Management, Housekeeping Management and Kitchen Management.

It also has a range of short company manuals designed to keep the Oberoi culture, including the Oberoi Dharma, outlining the colleagues “fundamental code of conduct”. The company also focuses on staff empowerment, with employees given an allocation of AED 5000 per month to spend on guests — explaining the appearance of my gym kit and toiletries.

“How you spend it I don’t want to know, but spend it wisely to make that wow affect,” says Bizid.

“The Dharma book is a specific book written by the colleagues of the Oberoi on how we should behave towards our guests and how we should behave towards our owners and colleagues. Every colleague has a copy of this,” says Bizid. “That’s what keeps the strength of the Oberoi.

“The mission and vision for our property here again it is done by the colleagues,” he says, referring to the vision to be the “most award winning, luxury lifestyle city hotel in the MENA” and the mission to create the “finest experiences for guests” through personalized service.

“And that’s why the colleagues really believe in it and why they smile and why they stand up for you and they remember your name. It’s coming from them. We guide them; we are not imposing it to them. We need to involve all the colleagues to achieve success and excellence of service,” concludes Bizid.

F&B at The Oberoi
Ananta: Signature Indian restaurant on the lobby level featuring three contemporary tandoors, a grill, a roomali roti maker and a tawa for a range of sautéing styles in an open-kitchen setting. The restaurant focuses on North Indian delicacies, seats 45 and is open for dinner only.

Nine7One: Headed by chef Vishal Khuble, this restaurant offers food from nice countries, 24-hours, seven days a week at one destination. Breakfast and lunch features a buffet and a la carte menu for the main course, while dinner is a la carte only. There is a separate children’s menu too. Indoor and outdoor seating comprises 100 covers.

Umai: This pan Asian restaurant blends Japanese, Chinese and Thai cuisine from speciality chefs, including a licensed Fugu chef to prepare Japan’s poisonous blowfish. Live tepanyaki, sushi, sashimi and noodle pulling stations allow a fully interactive dining experience at this 50-cover outlet.

Lobby Lounge: Again offering a 24-hour menu, this light airy lounge will also be the setting for The Oberoi Dubai’s Afternoon Tea and feature an evening pianist.

Lobby Bar: A small cigar bar, this outlet promises molecular cocktail techniques and a menu including Arabic mezze.

Still to come: Friday brunch in Nine7One, a shisha deck overlooking the pool and a roof-top bar on the 27th floor with views of Burj Khalifa.