Name: Christie Hicks
Title: Senior Vice President, Starwood Sales Organization
Company, city: Starwood Hotels & Resorts; Stamford, Conn.
Number of employees: 171,000 worldwide
Recent project: With a goal to be the easiest hotel company to do business with, Starwood developed StarwoodPro, an educational program designed to equip travel professionals with tools and strategies to grow their businesses. A recently introduced core module on upselling helps partners increase loyalty and profitability. The program includes six business-development modules and a growing library of destination immersions — nine options available now, with additional content planned for 2014.
First job: Secretary, Hyatt Regency New Orleans
Little-known fact about you: I learned to speak and cook Italian while living in Italy in my 20s. I make a mean spaghetti carbonara.
Your Business
Essential business philosophy: Please your customers and the rest will follow.
Best way to keep a competitive edge: Always ask, “What could we have done better?”
Yardstick of success: Being emulated by competitors and talked about by customers.
Christie Hicks as a Traveler
Most important item when traveling: My iPad mini
How I spend time on board: Reading and sleeping
Favorite restaurant in the world: Café des Artistes in Puerto Vallarta
Favorite destination: Anywhere in Italy
About Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Features and amenities that attract business travelers: Starwood is one of the most global high-end hotel companies, with nine lifestyle brands — Sheraton, Westin, St. Regis, W Hotels, Le Méridien, The Luxury Collection, Element, Aloft and Four Points by Sheraton — offering a wide range of accommodations in 100 countries. The portfolio continues to expand, with openings planned in 2014 across key growth markets such as China, Brazil, Mexico, the Middle East, Indonesia and Africa.
Business travelers benefit from design and service innovations that support productivity and well-being on the road. Examples include social and connected workspaces like Link@Sheraton (created with Microsoft) and Tangent at Westin for small, impromptu meetings. Fitness and wellness offerings — including Westin Gear Lending with New Balance, SuperfoodsRX, Sheraton Fitness by Core Performance and Color Your Plate — help guests maintain healthy routines while traveling.
How Starwood attracts millennial travelers: Starwood focuses on digital, mobile and social innovations that set the company apart. The company was an early adopter of unedited guest ratings and reviews, leveraged state-aware technology in mobile apps, built an iPad app for iOS7, and introduced mobile check-in. Starwood is investing significantly in mobile, research and development, and on-property digital innovation to meet millennial expectations.
Unique benefits for frequent travelers in the SPG program: Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) is the company’s award-winning loyalty program across all nine brands. SPG rewards members with Starpoints for stays and select amenities and offers exclusive experiences tied to music, sports and culture. Since its 1999 launch, SPG’s policy of no blackout dates at a wide collection of hotels reinvented loyalty expectations. Frequent travelers can access three membership tiers with competitive earning and redemption options, including free nights, personal ambassadors, Lifetime status and more.
SPG expanded its value through partnerships such as Crossover Rewards with Delta Air Lines, allowing members to earn Starpoints on eligible Delta flights, receive reciprocal elite benefits, and redeem Starpoints for upgrades, flights, merchandise, spa amenities and curated Moments by SPG experiences. The SPG mobile app for iPhone and Android uses state-aware features so members can view hotel details, check-in history and point balances; the app has been downloaded more than 2 million times.