Zhang Lei is the General Manager for Four Points by Sheraton Shenzhen, the first Chinese female General Manager within Starwood Hotels and Resorts.  Being also the first Four Points by Sheraton brand to debut in China, Zhang leads and oversees the modernized management team. With over 20 years of experience in the hotel industry, Zhang was appointed to this position in November 2003 and has since spearheaded the pre-opening team of the property.

Zhang started out in 1983 as Front Office Manager in Great Wall Sheraton Hotel and progressed rapidly over the years to management positions including Director of Sales and Marketing and Director of Rooms.  In 1991, Zhang was the first Chinese national to receive the prestigious ITT Ring of Quality Award awarded by ITT group, for outstanding contribution to quality management. Formerly in 1988, Zhang also received the honorable "President's Award" presented by Sheraton Asia Pacfic Division.

Zhang was eventually appointed as Deputy General Manager in St. Regis Beijing from 1997 to 2001.  From 2001 to 2003, Zhang was the Acting General Manager in Sheraton Tianjin and a taskforce for Sheraton Jia Zhai Gou.

A widely-traveled woman who is passionate about life and her profession, Zhang is a Beijing native and has a university degree in Zhengzhou University. Her family resides in Beijing.

China Hospitality News asked Zhang Lei questions about the tourism industry. Let's see what she has to say:

How long have you been working as General Manager of the Business?
I was appointed General Manager at Four Points by Sheraton Shenzhen on 17 November 2004.  I am also honored to be the first Chinese female General Manager within Starwood Hotels and Resorts.

How long have you been working in the hospitality industry?
I have over 20 years of hospitality experience ranging from Front Office Operations, Housekeeping as well as Sales and Marketing, since 1983 in ITT Sheraton Group before it changed hands to Starwood Hotels and Resorts in 1998. I started working in Great Wall Sheraton Hotel in 1983 till 1997, progressing rapidly over the years to management positions including Director of Sales and Marketing and Director of Room. I was eventually appointed as Deputy General Manager in St. Regis Beijing from 1997 to 2001.  From 2001 to 2003, I was the Acting General Manager in Sheraton Tianjin and a taskforce for Sheraton Jiu Zai Gou.

What changes have you seen in the travel industry in the city since you took on your position?
There is a growing importance of China in the world travel market even for decades to come and it is definitely a key engine of growth in Asia for Starwood.  Shenzhen's bullish economic developments have generated a high demand for business travelers. Growing population of domestic travelers are creating a large demand at the upper mid scale market in the industry too.

How do you see the hospitality industry developing in the city within the next five years?
As one of the first economic zones and a major industrial and export base for China, Shenzhen is commonly referred by economists as 'boomtown' and serves as the southern gateway to mainland China attracting both corporate travelers and visitors with its unique theme parks, varied carnivals and activities. The industry will continue to bloom as in year 2005 alone, 7 more international hotels are opening in Shenzhen.  As competition arises, the service standards of the hospitality industry will be boost up and Shenzhen will continue to grow into a dynamic city.

In your business, what is the breakdown between business and leisure travelers?
For now, our feeder markets for the group as a whole: business for hotels in China come from within China (45% to 50%), 25% other Asians, 25% Europeans and North Americans.

What advantages do you see your business have in the market?
The Four Points by Sheraton brand with more than 136 properties in 17 countries, is the first to be introduced in China. And Four Points by Sheraton Shenzhen is the first mid-scale property offering full-service hotel experiences in the market.  It is also the first in any of the Asia Pacific properties, to introduce the Four Points by Sheraton Four Comfort Bed, a signature brand feature in all of the 278 contemporary guest rooms. Our hotel's design, d'cor and styles are very contemporary and elegant which is specifically created to reflect our style and meet the needs of our corporate market.

What difficulties are you facing in the market?
Compared to countries like America and Australia where the Four Points by Sheraton brand has attained internationally-acclaimed success, we are pioneering the brand in China for the first time. However, with our brand promise and impeccable services, we are confident that we will establish our brand name in the market within a short time and we aim to grow rapidly in China.

How do your local staff and expatriates work together as a team?
The organization values workforce diversity and the management team has a good mix of foreign expatriates (from England, Turkey, Malaysia and Singapore) and the local Chinese. Through regular Human Resources internal activities, teamwork and communication are fostered and built. All front-line associates are proficient in both English and Mandarin and inter-departmental communications sharing are strongly enforced.

What is your localization policy? What is the time frame for that policy?
We have a majority of local Chinese associates but we do not have a specific localization policy as we believe in workforce diversity and bringing the 'best of both worlds' to our management team.

What kind of training program do you operate to ensure consistency of staff competency and service level?
Our parent organization, Starwood Hotels and Resorts have institutionalized an extensive Starwood One Training Program in line with our Starwood Care culture. It compromises of 4 phases where programs are tailored to different levels of associates (e.g. Operational level and managerial level) to develop their fullest potential. Associates are trained and retrained periodically to ensure highest standards of work performance and to deliver our brand promise, at all times.

What use does your business make of recent high-tech developments?
Our facilities are technologically oriented to providing an environment of convenience. Our hotel public areas including banquet and meeting rooms as well as 6 dining outlets are all fitted with wireless connectivity. Our meeting and convention rooms are also equipped with state of the art audio and visual equipments.

What is the current breakdown of recruitment between expatriates, local expatriates and local staff? How do you expect this to change in the next few years?
We have about 5 percent of foreign and local expatriates mostly holding senior management positions at the moment. Local Chinese stands a majority of the total employees population. In the next few years, we still hope to have some mix of expatriates and local Chinese as we believe the blend of different cultures will benefit our hotel in many ways. Expatriates bring in different work experiences and interesting cultures whereas the local Chinese are familiar with the nation's policies and structure.

How do you view your competition in your city or throughout China?
We welcome the competition as this will put all the hotels to a test.  Four Points by Sheraton Shenzhen strives to serve as industry leader with our service excellence, pushing the standards and raising expectations in this highly competitive market.

What do you think differentiates you from the competition?
Our greatest strength is our Four Points Hotels by Sheraton Shenzhen brand promise. We are committed to providing comfort, value and uncompromising service to business and leisure travelers, consistent with the level of service provided by the Starwood family of brands. Cited in 1999 as the Best Full-Service Mid-Scale Hotel Chain by Business Travel News, Four Points by Sheraton is one of the fastest growing brands in the global hotel industry with 133 Four Points Hotels by Sheraton operating in 12 countries.

What kind of loyalty program do you have in place? What advantages do you see from running such a program? Is the program specific just to your city?
We are part of the Starwood organization's loyalty program, Starwood Preferred Guest ('SPG').  Having over 15 million members internationally, it was awarded the Best Hotel Loyalty Program for five years consecutively by consumers via the Annual Freddie Awards, one of the most prestigious honors in the travel industry voted on by frequent travelers worldwide.  We value our guests and we hope to gain their loyalty within our hotel chain towards this program. The 'SPG' was the first loyalty program in the hotel industry with no blackout dates and availability restrictions, enabling members to redeem stays whenever and wherever they want. Members can redeem rewards such as free hotel stays, instant cash coupons or airlines miles within Starwood Hotels and Resort's more than 700 participating hotels.