In November an International Hotel Investment Forum was organized by Asia Hotel Forum at the Westin Chaoyang in Beijing.

Attendants were mostly hotel owners, or aspiring hotel owners looking for directions where and how to invest their money, and if owning a hotel would be a good investment.

Also represented were of course the major hotel management companies active in China, sending their senior representatives to explain to the public why investing in hotels still has a good long term future. Further attendants and exhibitors were various architecture, construction and hotel supplies companies, most of them targeting potential business from hotel currently under construction, or yet to be build.

On behalf of TOP Hoteliers, Managing Director René J.M. Schillings was also present and invited as a key speaker on the topic of managing all these hotels, yet to be built.

His message towards the hotel owners present was perhaps one with a difference; "In China it's not a challenge to build more hotels. Land, location, capital are available. Building a hotel is just a matter of putting bricks and stones together, and in China there are some stunning examples of grand and glorious hotel projects coming up everywhere".

And although most hotel owners and managers spoke about potential difficulties of filling the hotels with guests and thus looking for high occupancy rates and high room rates and/or RevPar, and ultimately profit and return on investment, few hotel owners and hotel management companies realized that in order to operate the hotel, and make this investment work, as a going concern and running business, you need the capable people to do this.

Much talk was about last year, this year, next year performances of hotels, but whichever hotel is opened last year, this year or next year, it will be operating for the next odd 30 years as a hotel.

And it will need staff as long as it is a functioning hotel. With more and more hotels coming in China they will not only be competing for market share, they will also find themselves in competition for the talents in a tight market.

About the Author:
René J.M. Schillings, a Dutch National, is the owner, founder and Managing Director of TOP Hoteliers, the first specialized hospitality recruitment agency to open offices in the People's Republic of China (in 2004). Based in Hong Kong he devotes most of his time managing the 2 offices in Shenzhen and Beijing, where his team of consultants recruit hotel managers for all major international and some local hotel companies in China. His company was very early to recognize the need for local talent, Mandarin speaking expatriates and China experienced expatriates. His knowledge of the China Hotel Industry stems from his career as Hotelier in China that began in 1997. He has a BA in Hotel Management from Stenden University, The Netherlands and an MA in International Tourism & Leisure Studies from Metropolitan University in London, England. He is a keen observer of industry trends and has published numerous articles on HR issues in hospitality in China.

Company website: www.tophoteliers.com