The General Manager of ARTIC group talks teamwork, accolades and the future of hospitality.

Please give our readers a little background on ARTIC, the company’s history and what it does.
Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company (ARTIC) is one of the leading hospitality investment companies in Qatar and the region with operations spread across Europe, the United States and MENA region. The company was established in 2003 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Al Faisal Holding, and its current diversified portfolio comprises over 35 hotels, more than 1,500 branded residences and multiple shopping centres with total assets valued at USD5bn. In addition, ARTIC also owns and operates, The Modern Central Laundry in Doha, a state-of-the-art industrial laundry service facility.

How does your current role differ from what you have done previously as a hotel GM?
In my previous roles as a hotel or cluster General Manager as well as Regional General Manager, the work, approach and focus was more on the day-to-day aspects of the operation, while, at my current role, I more assist each hotels GM and their respective teams on the different projects they are having, as well as assisting them on the different initiatives to always elevate the services and products.
Another very important aspect is the communication and coordination with the different operators and their regional brands` teams as well as the different stakeholders for the smooth implementation of all these new projects and initiatives.

You look after a wide range of different properties. How do you differentiate and separate them while ensuring each receives optimum care and attention?
Our wide portfolio comprises carefully chosen operators, which represent different brands that specifically embrace each of these hotels specificities, characteristics and ‘soul’, hence, it is important to create and keep the right synergies within each hotel in order to always remain relevant in terms of services and products to ultimately and continuously exceed guests’ expectations.

You’ve won various awards throughout your career. Which are most proud of?
My past awards in my previous postings, whether in Qatar or as a regional head in the MENA region or in Southeast Asia in Indonesia, are the fruit of a lot of hard work, innovation, creativity and teamwork and it is actually a recognition to the entire hotel team’s dedication that they strove to always excel and provide the finest level of services to our guests.
One award I am particularly proud of is the Mustang Award, that I received while posted in Indonesia, as this coveted award recognises young general managers who have excelled under extreme circumstances.
On a personal level, awards are a great recognition to the entire team indeed but, once celebrated, I always look forward and strive to steer our teams to the next achievement so as to always remain, as a team/hotel/brand etc, relevant, hungry to learn and grow and to stay innovative, while pushing the boundaries to create the next benchmark in the industry.

As well as Qatar, you are currently working in the Saudi market which is experiencing huge growth. What are your predictions for the short- and medium-term prospects in these two regional powerhouses?
Qatar, especially in the past 10 years or so, has experienced phenomenal growth especially in the hospitality industry culminating with successfully hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup event at the end of last year, which put the entire region on the global map. Saudi Arabia – or the sleeping giant, as I liked to call it in the past – used to have a lot of restrictions. However, with its new vision and development goals and with the numerous projects in the pipeline, it will undoubtedly be experiencing exponential growth, especially in the hospitality sector. It will also become a centre for major global events such as football, golf, F1, tennis, boxing, E-sports and gaming and, in fact, sports events in general as well as concerts etc, hence, becoming a catalyst and benefiting the entire region positioning it as a major worldwide tourist hub. ✤