People You Should Know
Board Chairman, Convention and Visitor’s Bureau
AGE: 43 | YEARS LIVED IN MID-MISSOURI: Nine
ORIGINAL HOMETOWN: Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
JOB DESCRIPTION: I’m responsible for the overall property management of the Marriott complex.
EDUCATION: B.A. in hospitality and tourism management from Virginia Tech; B.S. in tourism operations management from César Ritz College in Le Bouveret, Switzerland
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: Chair of the Convention and Visitor’s Bureau since 2008; host property for Central Missouri Honor Flight since 2009; MU adjunct professor, hospitality management, since 2007; president of the Lodging Association from 2002 to 2005
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: Sheraton Washington D.C., rooms director and CVB board member (1992 to 1998); Silvertree Resorts (Aspen/Snowmass, Colo.), director of operations (1998 to 2001) and CVB member; H.I. Executive Center, general manager (2001 to 2005)
A COLUMBIA BUSINESSPERSON I ADMIRE AND WHY: Ron Coleman, a Realtor and hospitality professional. Ron has many great management aspects to admire, but I hold his integrity and ability to change as his highest qualities. Ron has done the right thing for his people in the hospitality business even in those times of tough decisions or when losses were called for even at his own career risk. He’s changed his career path when it called for him to move into real estate and then back to the restaurant business. He did it without hesitation and with a positive impact and results.
WHY I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT MY JOB: This is a career you can only be passionate about. Anything less than that, and you will not survive. The days are never the same, and the products are people, so the circumstances are ever-changing. Wherever I’ve been, I love building the team around me, putting the most passionate people in place, letting them go and seeing what magic they can create for our clients. I help them set a vision and then let them be themselves so they can show their genuine passion to those whom they come in contact with. I have that team at the Marriott. I also love teaching my students at the university and seeing them grow. It might not be known to most people, but we have an outstanding hospitality school at MU. These passions translate to my feelings about Columbia and the growth I have seen in this amazing city.
IF I WEREN’T DOING THIS FOR A LIVING, I WOULD … be a professor at a university or writing books somewhere in the Northwest.
BIGGEST CAREER OBSTACLE I’VE OVERCOME AND HOW: Early in my career, it was getting others to accept my competence in the positions I held despite my young age. I overcame this by letting my work speak for me. (This is a point I make to my students before they set out on their careers: Let your actions speak for you; someone will notice.) Lately, the biggest obstacle has been balancing family and career. I have found success in this by making my family members a part of my work life so they understand what I do and how I prioritize them.
A FAVORITE RECENT PROJECT: The current series of meetings with the business community about tourism development that the CBT is putting on. Passionate business people are working together to find ways to build the image of and tourism vision for this dynamic city. As I have said, we are on the cusp of greatness as a community.
WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THIS PROFESSION: The hospitality industry requires long hours (a 24/7 business), but the rewards of working with so many different professionals in the hotel and in our banquet/meeting area gives us perspective on the pulse of the community and its residents.
FAMILY: I have a super supportive wife of 20 years (next year). Stacy and I met in college, and she is from Charlottesville, Va. We have four children: Connor, 14; Taylor, 12; Spencer, 7; and Parker, 4 months. All of them teach me things daily. Connor is the baseball player, Taylor the actress, Spencer the gymnast and Parker the drooler.
WHAT I DO FOR FUN: Time with my kids keeps me young. I love to bike, and you might see me pedaling back and forth to work. I love to play basketball and golf, even though I do not have much time for either. I cannot get enough of Colorado, and I have spent a good portion of my life there. We return as often as we can. I used to hike the “fourteeners” as they are called (the 14,000-foot mountains) in Colorado. Spending time with friends is something I do not do enough of but love to do.
FAVORITE PLACE IN COLUMBIA: My favorite place to eat is a tie between Murry’s and Shakespeare’s. We also love all the parks.
ACCOMPLISHMENT I’M MOST PROUD OF: Personally: Giving my wife and kids a chance to grow up in a great community. Professionally: Having worked in so many areas of the hospitality industry from 1,000-room convention hotels to resorts and smaller hands-on properties. This has helped in teaching and taking classes toward an advanced degree.
MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THAT I … ran the only mountain rodeo in the United States for three years in Colorado.