
Presented during the 17th Worldwide Hospitality Awards ceremony, the award for Best Iconic Employee was attributed to a hotel property staff member who has left a mark on their profession and hotel through the exemplariness of their career, customer recognition and the quality of services.
Pierre Ferchaud received the award fro Best Iconic Employee at the 17th ceremony at the Worldwide Hospitality Awards 2016, organized November 14 at the InterContinental Paris Le Grand. the award was presented by Wolfgang Neumann, President of the ceremony and of Rezidor Hotel Group, as well as by Vanguelis Panayotis, President, MKG Consulting. He also receieved a team shirt from the former professional soccer player Nicolas Dieuze, sponsor of the association 'Un maillot pour la vie' that benefits patients at childrens' hospitals.
Pierre Ferchaud is one of those hotel industry professionals who have led a long career with a natural elegance and an efficiency that has rarely fallen short of expectations. An emblematic figure in the profession for more than 40 years, an expert in the luxury hotels segment, his management style combines great professionalism with a sense of detail and attentiveness. He leads his staff like a "unifying father" and stimulates them to express their talents. His success is due to a philosophy of moving that he has practiced for several year: convictions, ambitions, confidence and respect.
A graduate of Strasbourg Hotel School, Pierre Ferchaud began his illustrious career in the hospitality industry at some of Europe's finest hotels, including London Grosvenor House Hotel, the Trust House Forte hotel group, Hotel Meurice in Paris, the Hotel Palace in Madrid and the Paris Grand Hotel Intercontinental. He grew in terms of assurance and responsibilities in terms of both function and operations, so that the group Marriott International could profit by taking over management of Prince de Galles hotel in Paris in 1983.
In 1994, the German group Oetker, owner of the Bristol in Paris, made him President and General Manager of its Flagship. Together with staff he made it one of the palaces with the strongest international recognition. He stayed 17 years and left in 2010 to give a boost to Fouquet's Barrière, the crown jewel of the Barrière group. . During this time he participated in writing the specifications that lead to the birth of "Palace" as a label for exceptional 5-star hotels. In 2014, he joined the Métropole de Monaco for his last operational position as general manager. In 2016, he decided to stay in the Principality where he is COO of the Yacht Club of Monaco.
(see dossier)
Pierre Ferchaud named iconic employee #WHA16 pic.twitter.com/bjUvleTvvd
— Hospitality Awards (@whawards) 14 novembre 2016
Two other finalists were runners up for the Iconic Employee Award. After 45 years in the hotel industry, Anton Wüstefeld is now General Manager at the InterCityHotel Frankfurt Airport. He developed his experience by gradually climbing the group's ladder starting in the kitchen at the Hotel Steigenberger Frankfurter Hof. After studying Business Administration at the Heidelberg School of Hotel Management, he joined Deutsche Hospitality before becoming the Director of Sales. Then he rose to the head of the airport property. Under his management the property was gutted ambitiously rebranded, rising from two to four stars. In 2013, he became Vice-president Frankfurt Hotel Alliance. (see dossier)
After 40 years in hotel sector, Gary Ellis is now General Manager of the Radisson Blu hotel in Bamako, where the tragic terrorist attack took place on November 20, 2015 and twenty people lost their lives. Despite this terrible context and two military coups, he succeeded in reopening the renovated property's doors less than a month after the attack, just as he had promised his teams. The hotel's capacity grew from 70 to 190 rooms. On the occasion of the reopeneing. Decorated with the medal of the Officier de l'Ordre National du Mérite du Mali by the President of Mali, Gary Ellis was recently named General Manager Nofa Resort Riyadh, a future property of the Rezidor Hotel Group in Saudi Arabia. (see dossier)
Quentin Gilbert, Operations Manager at Campanile de Roissy age 31, also participated in the competition. This citizen of the world developed his career at Louvre Hotels Group thanks to his unwavering commitment, and results in terms of both customer satisfaction and sales results. (see dossier)