Page 58 - Masala E-magazine Vol 9 Issue 2 October - November 2017

Is your husband supportive of you?
I am very lucky to have an understanding husband. He used to
work in the same industry, and so he understands the demands.
We also came to a sensible agreement early on in our marriage.
Whoever earned more would lead the work and travel plans. We
agreed never to act on our egos, and obviously we have had our
ups and downs, but these few unwritten agreements between
us helped. When I initially relocated to Egypt, my husband had a
good job in India. I was struggling to look after my daughter while
overseeing a new pre-opening property at the time. We talked
about the direction we should take and he ended up moving with
me. We have never regretted that decision.

In your 23 years in the hospitality industry, you have relocated
from India to Egypt to Dubai and now Thailand. Did you ever face
any challenges in adapting to a new country?
I must say I have been very lucky. Wherever I have moved, the
transition has been absolutely great! My move to Thailand was
one of the easiest in fact. Everyone is so down to earth here. It is
great that after spending a whole day in a business suit, you can
come home, put on your shorts, T-shirt and flip flops and get away
with doing anything you want. On the contrary, adjusting to Dubai’s
culture took me a while. Dubai is a fantastic city, but everything is
about what you put out there and being seen in the right places. It
didn’t come naturally to me, which is why I found it difficult initially.
Meanwhile, many people perceive Egypt to be unsafe, particularly
for women, but I had the most amazing time there. We were there
before the revolution. It was safe, and the culture and people were
What is it like to work in a male-dominated industry? absolutely wonderful.
I have been asked this question several times, but to be honest,
I have not felt much of a difference. The hotels I have worked in You have worked for the Marriott group for the last 15 years or so.
have had a fair ratio of male to female employees. I have never felt What attracts you to stay on?
discriminated as a female. If you look across our hotel workforce, The Marriott group has a whole window of opportunities. And now
you’ll see that we have many female heads in different sections. with the acquisition of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide,
The possibility for them to climb up the corporate ladder is high. the amount of opportunities have doubled. The fact that you can
The lack of female GMs could be because of the amount of see yourself grow is an important factor. It’s a people-oriented
travelling and time required on the job. It can be challenging if you company that takes care of its people, widens one’s horizons, and
don’t have a supportive environment back home. the most amazing thing is you learn something new every day.

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