Ikuko Iijima, senior sales manager, business travel, The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre.
IKUKO IIJIMA, SENIOR SALES MANAGER, BUSINESS TRAVEL, THE RITZ-CARLTON, DUBAI INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL CENTRE
ABOUT IKUKO
Ikuko attended UCCR in Switzerland for her postgraduate diploma, where she studied hospitality management and gained a solid understanding of the hotel industry. She then began her career working in hospitality in 1999. After working with several hotels around the world including Mandarin Oriental, The Ritz Carlton Tokyo, Hotel Okura, and Emaar Hospitality Group, Ikuko rejoined The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company at The Ritz-Carlton, Dubai International Financial Centre in 2011 as a sales manager of business travel, and has since been promoted to a senior sales manager. She won “Five Star Employee of the Quarter” in 2012, an internal award bestowed upon Ritz-Carlton employees who produce great results and go above and beyond to help their colleagues and guests.
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WHY WAS SHE NOMINATED?
In March 2013 Ikuko volunteered to become the project leader for Legal Appreciation Month on behalf of the sales team. The initiative was created to target law firms, so as to increase production and revenue. Ikuko led the team to achieve outstanding results, and used her initiative to engage the law firms in a creative way, and enlisted the culinary team to create a cake for each law firm in the shape of the DIFC Gate and bearing the company’s logo, to raise awareness for the hotel. Ikuko also created a wall-chart for the sales office, with pictures of each team member, and their enrollment numbers vs. targets. She also places Rewards cards and forms on the desks of each team member each month, to provide a visual stimulus and reminder about driving enrollments.
WHAT DID HER TEAM SAY?
“Ikuko is one of the most extraordinary sales leaders I have worked with; a perfect representation of The Ritz-Carlton. Ikuko is dedicated to her job and always willing to assist. She has an amazing relationship with clients and business follows her wherever she goes. She truly cares about guests. She even came to the hotel at 5am to provide a warm welcome with the front desk team. She is highly respected by all operational leaders throughout the hotel. She is the champion to enroll new guests to our RC Reward program and we have seen great success thanks to her efforts.” Katrin Herz, hotel manager, The Ritz-Carlton, DIFC
WHAT DID HER GUESTS SAY?
“We depend on Ikuko whenever we have hotel requirements. She even provides us with leisure recommendations in Dubai and around the world. Ikuko’s work is always quick and precise. She thinks of her customer first, which is easy to express in words, but not as easy to live. Taking advantage of a rare Japanese hotelier in Dubai, we began doing business with Ikuko and immediately regretted that we had not been in contact with her earlier. Whenever there is a last minute change, she provides full support.” Ryosuke Ako, assistant GM, MENARO, Toyota Motor Corp
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