Magda Ramis Vives, Talent Branding and Acquisition Specialist for Meliá Hotels International, gave us her take on the company’s special relationship with Les Roches…
Meliá is Spain’s leading hotel company and – with more than 380 properties across four continents – it also ranks among the world’s top 20 largest hotel groups.
The business has forged a close working relationship with Les Roches, taking students and graduates for internships as well as permanent positions via its graduate training program.
To tell us more about the company’s appetite for our students – and what it looks for in each new recruit – we sat down with Magda Ramis Vives, Talent Branding and Acquisition Specialist for Meliá Hotels International.
Q: Why do you recruit from Les Roches? What is it that makes our students stand out from the crowd?
Magda Ramis Vives (MV): For us, Les Roches is one of the most important schools, which we really enjoy working with. We love the students because of the multi-tasking orientation they have; of course, they are well introduced to the operational departments, but also with the management focus.
Also, this international environment is very important for us. We are working in hospitality, and we have hotels around the world. So, for us it’s important to recruit students that connect with this passion for our industry, and for the operational side, while always looking to the management and the strategic vision for the hotels.
Q: What are the top qualities you look for in a candidate?
MV: I would say that the main thing we look for is the attitude. At the end of the day, attitude is something that you can train, of course, but this is more something that you show, you feel. And for this sector, the passion is very important.
After that we need the skills that we look for here in Les Roches: the passion, the service orientation, the proximity to innovation, and the excellence. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter in which kind of hotel you work, there’s always this emphasis on excellence and the service vocation which corresponds to our values in Meliá. So, for us, it’s very important to try to find a match between our values and the skills and the attributes that we are looking for in each talent.
Q: How important is it for young hospitality professionals to be digitally savvy?
MV: For us, and I think for the hospitality industry more generally, this is very important to a lot of the questions and issues that we face every day. In a way, we are lucky to work in hospitality because it is a sector which is always in a constant transformation. And this transformation, without this technology and this innovation approach, wouldn’t be possible.
So, at the end of the day people who are very oriented towards new tools, to digitalization and to trying to find ways to be more digital and more technologically oriented, is the most important thing for us.
Q: What advice would you have for new graduates coming into the hotel industry?
MV: I would say be focused and show your passion for hospitality. And be client-oriented at all times – because ultimately the client is the core of our business and so you must have a passion for service excellence. Plus there’s always room for innovative thinking, of course, especially in areas like sustainability.
And for us, it’s very important also to attract people who are not only looking for a job right now, also to build an experience with us. The experience of a candidate but also the experience of a life with Meliá.
Q: And lastly, what can Meliá recruits expect to find when they enter your business to launch their careers?
MV: Good question! For sure, you will find a company that allows you to develop your career. Meliá is a place where we have a lot of space to grow. My manager always says that when she interviews someone, she’s not just thinking about the position she’s interviewing for; she’s also thinking about the next steps that this person can achieve. So, as a candidate, you will find a company that allows you to grow and that is working in, and managing in, this sector with passion, with excellence and totally client oriented of course.
Thank you for these interesting and helpful insights Magda!
- For more information about careers at Meliá Hotels International, visit the website
