——An Exclusive Interview with Mr. Daniel Arbenz, General Manager of InterContinental Shanghai Pudong
——专访上海锦江汤臣洲际总经理丹尼尔·艾宾斯先生
Interview: Cherry Li Chinese Version: Wendy English Version: Helen Photos: by InterContinental Shanghai Pudong
As you thread your way through this sophisticated, cosmopolitan city amidst all the dazzle, peculiarity, luxury and flamboyance, you will be easily submerged in its boisterous flourish, and overwhelmed by the ups and downs in life. It’s a shared desire of many to pause for a bit of relaxation in a moment of tranquility. If there is a place that indulges you with a natural feel, warm hospitality, authentic international delicacies, a sound cozy sleep, coupled with access to a range of facilities, then this must be the most-sought after destination among travelers.
The InterContinental Shanghai Pudong is definitely a destination of this kind. Its General Manager, Mr. Daniel Arbenz is certainly pleased with the hotel’s constant influx of guests. Recently appointed as General Manager of the InterContinental Shanghai Pudong and also the Regional General Manager of Intercontinental Hotels Group for Shanghai, Daniel is thoroughly conversant with any topic concerning hotel management. With his more than 30 years of hotel management experience, he has at his fingertips every tiny detail of hotel operation. As a humble leader who rarely throws his weight as a senior general manager, Daniel gets involved in the daily hotel operation, communicates with guests and his employees, and shares with them his first-hand experience. Daniel is an expert on how to give full play to the hotel’s many advantages as a highly accomplished general manager.
The InterContinental Shanghai Pudong boasts of a number of enviable advantages. Strategically located in the heart of Lujiazui Finance & Trade Zone, the hotel enjoys an advantageous geographical location. It is 5 minutes’ walk to / from Century Avenue Metro station, the largest interchange metro line station connecting lines 2, 4, 6 and 9 to various areas of the metropolitan city. The Fuxing tunnel, a major tunnel that connects Pudong and Puxi, is at the hotel’s doorstep, and is a convenient way for guests to reach Xintiandi (a dining, recreational, leisure center) within 10 minutes by taxi. There are shopping malls nearby such as the Next Age Department Store, 96 Plaza and Pacific Digital Plaza while the Oriental Pearl Tower, IFC Mall, Super Brand Mall and Riverside Avenue are just 2 kilometers away. The hotel’s strategic location offers enormous convenience for business travelers and exhibition delegates alike as the Shanghai New International Expo Centre and Shanghai World Expo Exhibition & Convention Center are merely a 15-minute drive. The Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park and Jinqiao Export Processing Zone are also easily accessible by taxi or subway. For airports, it takes 30 minutes by taxi to/from the Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport, while it’s a 40-minute drive to the Shanghai Pudong International Airport.
The InterContinental Shanghai Pudong boasts of 398 stylish and elegant guest rooms and suites and over 2,850 square meters of fine meeting facilities manned by professional meeting managers and a hospitable catering & event team. For dining, there is the renowned Chinese restaurant called Oriental House, and the Level 1, the all-day dinning restaurant which offers extensive choices of oriental and occidental cuisines. The Lounge 777 in the lobby is an excellent design blend of modern décor and a reminiscence of the city’s glorious past. The InterContinental Executive Club, perched on the top floor, is acclaimed for its unparalleled service and panoramic view of Pudong new financial area thus making it an unmatched choice for business people.
Daniel is not only adept at highlighting the hotel’s superiority in attracting more clients, but he is also mindful of what guests expect and what they need. In his opinion, the true competitiveness of a hotel emerges from a fusion of its brand excellence and the local culture. Daniel is a sharp observer at work and takes a proactive part in business networking and travel industry activities. Outdoor sports, such as golf, is his other passion which exposes him to charity works in local communities. Daniel is also passionate through many years about long distance running. In his own words, running enables him to uncover the reality beneath the city’s superficial appearance, to refines his methodology of hotel operation and management, and to forge his perseverance.
Daniel’s hospitality career spans over 30 years is a marathon in itself. In his adolescent years, he traveled around the world with his father and became enthralled with luxury hotels management. Since he joined the hospitality industry from a long cherished passion, Daniel has worked in multiple deluxe hotels in Europe, Australia and Asia with 17 years with the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG). It is IHG’s unique charisma that enraptures him and with his own perseverance, Daniel has carved out a brilliant career. The strong drive imparted by IHG brand is exactly what this intrepid explorer finds himself a part of. IHG maintains a leadership role in the market after a remarkable growth which fills Daniel with a sense of accomplishment and pride. He has witnessed shining figures during critical moments of IHG’s grow history.
More importantly, Daniel’s career with IHG enables him to pursue an exquisite and pure life of which he has always been a firm advocate. IHG’s composure when it comes to a decision between a courageous stride and a tactful retreat for the hotel’s development has been Daniel’s interpretation of the essence of his career and his personal life. Based on this accord, he has made every effort to create a pure and sincere ambiance for guests and employees alike when it comes to communication between individuals which is related to life itself. To facilitate such purity and sincerity, Daniel prescribed that on Thursdays, face-to-face communication shall replace telephone communications whenever possible which, in turn, shall replace email communication whenever possible hence sincere, face-to-face interpersonal communication is made on a regular basis.
Beyond this, there remains much more to marvel at. Firstly the InterContinental Shanghai Pudong was the first five-star hotel in Pudong District, secondly it’s the first hotel under InterContinental’s umbrella in Greater China; and lastly Daniel’s first job posting to China was with IHG’s first hotel in China. This is as predestined as it is coincidence. IHG’s history and the brand classics find their expression at the InterContinental Shanghai Pudong, you will rejoice and even be touched by such a poised attitude as well as with its natural balance between tender sensibility and technological availability. Amidst the hustle and bustle, at the heart of prosperous Pudong, the hotel evokes a feeling that touches the heart of anyone, be it a guest or a passer-by.
穿行于繁华都市，浮沉在成败得失间，在种种炫彩、离奇、奢华、艳丽之中，偶尔的驻足、片刻的宁静、一点点的放松，反而成了人们的期待。顺着这种期待，如果能找到一个地方，那里有着得体的热情、自然的气息、纯正地道的美食、舒适安静的睡眠而又享用到种种便捷与周道，自然会成为旅途中人趋之若鹜的处所。
上海锦江汤臣洲际大酒店就是这样一个地方。酒店宾客盈门的盛况，自然让总经理丹尼尔·艾宾斯先生倍感欣慰。不久前才被任命为上海锦江汤臣洲际大酒店总经理及洲际酒店集团上海区域总经理，30余年酒店管理经验让他对酒店运营的各环节了如指掌。从不以一个资深的总经理自居的谦逊，让他每天都有机会融入酒店之中，和客人、和员工一起去交流与体验。像丹尼尔先生这样成就斐然的总经理，总是知道如何淋漓尽致地发挥出酒店优势来。
上海锦江汤臣洲际大酒店拥有绝佳地理位置优势。坐落于浦东陆家嘴金融贸易区中心地带，地理位置优越便捷。从酒店出发，步行仅需5分钟即可到达上海最大的轨道交通换乘枢纽--世纪大道站，并可在站内换乘轨道2、4、6、9号线。酒店入口毗邻复兴路隧道（连接浦东及浦西区域的主要隧道），驱车仅需10分钟即可轻松到达上海“新天地”—餐饮、娱乐、休闲中心。大型购物中心第一八佰伴，96广场，太平洋数码广场比肩而立，信步可达。东方明珠电视塔，国际金融中心商场，正大广场及滨江大道距离酒店仅2公里。这种理想的地理位置为商务及会展人士提供了极大的便利 --上海新国际博览中心及上海世博展览馆距离酒店仅15分钟车程；搭乘出租车或地铁前往张江高科技园区，金桥出口加工区也十分便利；酒店距离上海虹桥国际机场仅30分钟车程，驾车前往上海浦东国际机场仅需40分钟。
398间时尚典雅的客房、面积超过2,850平方米完善的会议设施设备加上专业的洲际会议经理和热情的宴会服务团队。荟萃东西方美食的全日餐厅壹阶层餐厅、享誉盛名的中餐厅东方食苑、融合了上海现代印象和都市怀旧气息的柒酒廊以及因其细致入微的宾客服务及宽广的浦东全景而屡获客人好评的行政楼层俱乐部让这里成为了商务人士的不二之选。
丹尼尔先生不仅擅长突显酒店的优势来吸引客人，更擅长体察发现客人的所思所想与所需。在他看来，每一家酒店只有将自己的品牌与优势融入到当地文化之中，才能形成真正的竞争力。为此，他不仅在工作中去观察体会，在工作之余也会通过积极参与社交活动，进行高尔夫等户外运动去贴近当地的生活。丹尼尔先生的另外一个爱好就是长跑，他说，长跑中，可以观察到城市浮华之下的真容，可以夯实自己经营管理思路的质量，可以锤炼自己坚持到底的毅力。
丹尼尔先生30余年来在酒店业服务的经历本身也是一个长跑的征程。自从少年时随着父亲游历全球而爱上酒店生活并加入酒店行业以来，他已经服务过多家遍布欧洲、澳洲和亚洲的豪华品牌酒店，丹尼尔先生加入洲际酒店集团的时间也已经长达17年，这么多年能乐此不疲，不仅是因为自己的坚持，也是因为洲际酒店集团的品牌魅力吸引着他，让丹尼尔先生找到归属感。看着自己所处的集团飞速发展得以占据鳌头时，让他充满成就感。看着洲际酒店集团在发展中的每一个闪耀的数字，丹尼尔先生感到非常自豪。
更重要的是在洲际酒店集团工作的过程中，丹尼尔先生可以追求一种他一贯主张的精致而纯粹的生活。品牌行止从容的理念，跟他经常会思考到的酒店生涯与现实生活的真谛一脉相承。也正是基于这种理念上的契合，让他工作之中也竭尽全力地希望为他的员工和客人来打造一种纯粹的氛围，纯粹的关于生活，纯粹地关于人与人之间的交集与分享。为了这点纯粹，每个礼拜四丹尼尔先生能打电话就不发EMAIL，能见面沟通就不打电话，真正立足于心，落实于人与人之间面对面的交流。
值得惊叹的不只是这些，上海锦江汤臣洲际酒店是浦东地区第一家五星级酒店，同时也是洲际酒店品牌在大中华区的第一家酒店，丹尼尔先生在中国的第一份工作是供职于洲际酒店集团在大中华区第一家酒店，这么多第一是一种巧合同时也是一种必然，在丹尼尔先生领导之下的上海锦江汤臣洲际大酒店里，会让人找到洲际酒店集团的品牌历史，不论是行止间的从容切换，还是科技便捷与人情温暖间的自在均衡，都会让人欣喜。衬着酒店门前的喧闹，映着今日浦东的繁华，上海锦江汤臣洲际大酒店触及到每一个人的内心，不论是路过，还是停留。
