The Conversation IRISH EYES... WHEN
Ireland and hospitality are synonymous, so it’s no surprise that one native is making headway at Jury’s Inn. Gillian Upton speaks to the group's CEO, John Brennan
JOHN Brennan knows a thing or two about deluxe hotels, despite him being CEO of the 32-strong, three-star Jury’s Inn group. This softly spoken Irishman cut his teeth in the elegant surroundings of Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, where he spent some 23 years travelling the world for them. He began as a management trainee at London’s Hyde Park Corner property, rising to become one of the company’s youngest general managers at 34. Then began various foreign postings, in Asia for seven years, on to the US for another seven years, then back to Ireland to the post of general manager for the Dublin hotel before making the shift from operations to multi-unit responsibility as regional vice president for Europe. In 2007 he was then faced with a dilemma: to
base himself in Toronto for Four Seasons or to stay in Ireland and head up the 100 hotels belonging to Jury’s parent company, the investment company, Quinlan Private. Quinlan – now renamed Avestus Capital Partners – manages property assets worth 8.5billion euros, of which 38 per cent is hotels. “It was an easy choice,” he recalls. “I got married, plus it was a great opportunity for mid-market hotels. I was eager to expand beyond the luxury sector and also to get into the financials of hotels, investments and acquisitions,” he explains. Moreover, the Four Seasons role would have meant extensive travelling to China, India and the Middle East, whereas with the Quinlan role, at least his wife is based in Ireland and his travels are more regional and generally leave his weekends free. Brennan believes that moving from luxury accommodation to the mid-market sector is not such a quantum leap. Initially on joining, his role was a non-exec director of Avestus Capital, a major European real estate private equity company, responsible for all the hotels the company owns on behalf of its investors. He then presided over a diversified European portfolio including, ironically, three Four Season hotels (in Milan, Prague and Budapest) and 42 Marriotts, plus Jurys Inn. Brennan's remit today is full-time CEO at Jurys Inn, but he does manage to squeeze in
ongoing consultancy services to Avestus in the management of its hotel portfolio, playing a strategic role in the evaluation of new investment opportunities. But on a day to day basis, Jurys Inn is his
main focus, in both an operational and strategic capacity, ultimately responsible for all aspects of the business, from HR to the people and product. “It’s not that different,” he explains. “Looking back to Four Seasons the similarities are to create over-riding values and culture relevant to the company, focusing on delivering, what we call, exceptional everyday city hotels. I orientate everybody around that goal. “ There are some differences between a Four Seasons and a Jury’s Inn, however, Brennan concedes: “The simplicity of the business model; we have no spas or fine dining restaurants, so we’re more focused. Plus we’re owner operated as we own or lease the hotels so we have no need to engage with a third party. We can move much more quickly and do things faster and differently.” In nitty gritty terms, however, it’s all about
people, he says. “We put people first and make sure the right people are in the right jobs. Jury’s Inn is 32-strong mid-market businesses with 32 individual GMs. The company’s success is driven by those individual GMs.” Some of those GMs must have been quaking
in their boots hearing of Brennan’s arrival. He is generous in his response: “No, they welcomed me. I’m a hotelier, my father was a hotelier and the guys appreciate that.” Some GMs didn’t cut it though and have disappeared since Brennan’s arrival – only five, mind you, as the calibre of GMs he inherited was generally good. Some 80 per cent come from within the company and have grown up with Jury’s Inn. “I’m looking for entrepreneurial, innovative people with a strong sense of achieving results,” he explains. Other changes at Jury’s have to been to focus
more sharply on training, including a leadership programme to enrich GMs' training. Brennan prides himself on the increasing levels of customer satisfaction, up from 78 per cent in 2008 to 84 per cent currently. He also happily
18 I THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE
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