Robert Whitfield, GM of Four Seasons Hualalai, generously agreed to be interviewed while I was on a visit and site inspection of the resort. For prior posts on Four Seasons Hualalai, please see:
Four Seasons Resort Hualalai Review: Best Luxury Hotel in Hawaii
‘ULU Ocean Grill Review and Four Seasons Hualalai Dining
Four Seasons Hualalai Activities
How Did You Get Started with Four Seasons and in Hospitality?
I grew up in a resort town in the South of England (Brighton) and did part-time jobs such as banquets, tending bar, and dishwashing. My family and I visited Europe quite a lot, and later, I had the chance to come to the U.S. We did a big road trip, when my dad moved a Lincoln Continental from Maine to Miami. Those early hospitality jobs and travel experiences are some of the reasons why I gravitated toward this business.
I worked in London about 10 years, starting with InterContinental Hyde Park Corner, did an internship then worked worked full-time after graduation. I also worked at Grosvenor House Hotel and at Dukes London, where I really enjoyed that more personal connection with a smaller group of employees and guests.
Later, I had an opportunity to move to St. Lucia, to a small privately owned resort. Then, with Four Seasons expanding into the Caribbean, I was given the chance to join the Four Seasons in Nevis as Resort Manager, and ended up serving as General Manager there for 5 years. That was my introduction to the Four Seasons, and I greatly enjoyed that experience.
From Nevis, I moved with my family to the Four Seasons East Palo Alto, partly for school reasons; our oldest daughter would be entering middle school soon. We had initially planned to be there for some time, but then the Hualalai opportunity came up, and we couldn't say no to it!
What Attracted You to the Four Seasons Hualalai and Hawaii?
On a personal level, I've always enjoyed Hawaii's people, culture, and the pristine nature of the environment. Then from a practical and professional perspective, Hawaii has solid infrastructure, things work–you typically don't have to worry about power outages and the like.
On a professional level, I also felt that there were things I could do to improve the guest experience at Hualalai. We're always striving to surprise and delight, and asking how can we tune into their unique needs and experiences? In my role, the working relationship with the development company and hotel owners is critical to creating guest magic, and fortunately we've built a strong partnership.
What Makes the Four Seasons Hualalai Unique?
A consistently high level of service and genuine warmth from our staff is key. I was chatting to guests at breakfast the other day, and one couple said it’s like coming home: they named several employees they feel they have a personal connection with.
Another couple was here with their daughter who had just graduated high school and had offered her the chance to go anywhere as a graduation present. She chose Hualalai, because of all the great memories she had coming here as a child.
What is Your Mix of New and Repeat Guests, and Whom Does Hualalai Particularly Appeal to?
35% of individual travelers have been here before. Particularly in summer, we see many return guests. Many of our guests are families: Hualalai offers a family vacation with zero compromises: kids can enjoy the kids club, while parents (and childless couples) have an adults only pool with swim up bar, as well as many other pools, activities and dining options to choose from. Most of our guests tend to be Americans, Australians, British and Europeans, although we do have a small but very loyal group of repeat Japanese customers.
What are the Biggest Challenges of Operating Hualalai? What Was it Like Planning for and Recovering from the Tsunami?
We're fortunate that we have a good recipe here: a beautiful location, well appointed resort, great brand, and low employee turnover. When I joined, many areas of the overall guest experience were already very strong, although there were areas of development, in food and beverage in particular, to improve the guest experience.
Part of it is just the way the way the industry has evolved. When I first came, the dining service was overly formal. Guests coming to Hualalai don't necessarily want that level of formality or white tablecloth experience, but they do want stellar food. We eased up on the formality and focused on sourcing more of our ingredients from local producers.
In terms of the tsunami and hurricane season, every year we prepare for hurricanes, and make sure we run through our drills and have our supplies. Tsunamis aren’t seasonal, but we do prepare for them and for emergency evacuation.
There was a tsunami in 2010 that forced an evacuation–fortunately there was no damage that time. Literally 13 months later had enormous tsunami. I had just gotten home when the warning came. We had everyone out in very short time, and locked down and secured the hotel. The tsunami warning was at 7pm, and we had everyone out by 10pm.
No one wants the challenge of a tsunami or other emergency, but at least in our case, it really brought out the best in people. Our staff made the clubhouse as comfortable as possible for guests, with mattresses and pool towels, and as all of us were helping guests to be comfortable, we wondered what this great smell was. It turned out that one of our chefs had managed to bake cookies, and presently a server came out with a batch of fresh baked cookies and milk for guests.
The following morning, everyone pitched in to start clearing away debris from the common areas and pools–it was a major cleanup operation. We had a bucket brigade removing sand and putting it back on the beach.
There have been and continue to be extraordianary opportunities to work together as a team, at the Four Seasons Hualalai.
Related Posts
Four Seasons Resort Hualalai Review: Best Luxury Hotel in Hawaii
‘ULU Ocean Grill Review and Four Seasons Hualalai Dining
Interview with Mark Swinton, General Manager of Amanjiwo
Four Seasons Preferred Partner Benefits
Need Award Booking Help? Our fee is as low as $75 per ticket if you book your hotel through us.
If you enjoyed this, join 150,000+ readers: please follow TravelSort on Twitter or like us on Facebook to be alerted to new posts.
Become a TravelSort Client and Book 5-Star Hotels with Virtuoso or Four Seasons Preferred Partner Amenities!