Genckul adds: “We are very proud because globally we have been ranked very high, and if we talk about the geographies of which I’m in charge, we received the highest hospitality company rank two years in a row in the UAE, and we won the number one place in Saudi Arabia two years in a row, which is a great recognition of what we have put in place.”
Engagement is what results in all these awards, and Genckul says that Hilton works towards this. “Engagement is not something that happens when you tell people to please be engaged. Engagement is self-driven. How do we create engagement? It is created by providing team members a purpose in what they’re doing — if they don’t believe in it or see beyond what they are physically doing, it’s difficult to create this. Our training programmes don’t only train on technical aspects, but also help our team members to understand that beyond the physical job, what’s the purpose behind everything, how are they contributing to the larger purpose?”
One of the company’s training opportunities include the Hilton Worldwide University, which offers more than 2,500 learning programmes for team members. These programmes are delivered in a variety of ways, including e-learning, webinars, eBooks and articles, classroom training, on-the-job experiences, social learning, iPads, and apps.
While all these global initiatives are carried out, Hilton also has local tailored programmes for this region. In Saudi Arabia specifically, Hilton has the Mudeer Al Mustaqbal (Manager of the Future — MOF) programme to train and develop Saudi nationals in F&B, front office, and housekeeping managerial roles over a two-year period; whilst offering various job skills programmes for local team members to improve their on-the-job skills set on an on-going basis.
Genckul, who has previously lived in Saudi Arabia, is enthusiastic about this. “When I worked there so many years ago, we probably had four to five Saudi team members. Today more than one-third of our workforce are Saudi nationals; that’s around 35% of our workforce. And around one-third of the local workforce is female.” He adds that this took time and happened with a lot of support from the Saudi Arabian government as well.
Another localised version of a global initiative is its partnership with the International Youth Foundation (IYF) and the King Khalid Foundation, for the Passport to Success initiative for Saudi Arabia. The programme is aimed at engaging and developing Saudi youth for future careers. Passport to Success is a global life skills initiative developed by IYF, which focuses its training on four core areas, including all-round personal development, problem solving skills, healthy lifestyle advice, and work place success.
Gender diversity is also a focus. Genckul says: “It’s a business imperative for us. We believe in diversity and inclusion from every angle.” Hilton has been organising Women in Leadership conferences across the Middle East & Africa, with the most recent one in March 2017 in South Africa. The next one is set to take place in Dubai on September 11 at the Waldorf Astoria Dubai Palm Jumeirah.
All of this contributes to a happier workforce, and one that is growing. Across the Middle East, Africa & Turkey, Genckul oversees a team of approximately 20,000 to 23,000 team members. And Hilton’s pipeline is ever-expanding. He adds: “It’s such a large pipeline that this number [of team members] is probably going to double in the next four to five years. It’s so difficult to be precise but it will create opportunities for people.”
He concludes: “It’s important to understand what appeals to people today in terms of what they expect from life and work, and how as an organisation you can deliver this. As an organisation you’re not there just to create jobs. You want to create opportunities for people so they can find a purpose in what they want to do.”
| Advertisement |