Tried and true

The more than 20-year-old Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel is recently given a makeover. Provided to China Daily

Juergen Sterkau, general manager of Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel.

Hotel profile |Shanghai

More than 20 years of experience proves the hotel's value. Yang Yijun reports.

Located in the heart of Hongqiao area in the upscale business district of Shanghai, the Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel has been a favored choice for business travelers for more than 20 years. The recently refurbished hotel is welcoming guests with savvier service and more innovative facilities.

"I would call this hotel almost like an institution, since the hotel has been well-regarded in the city for more than 20 years. This is a big plus for its property," Juergen Sterkau, general manager of the hotel, said.

He believes the biggest advantage is that the associates have been working in this business for a long time, some for 20 years or more.

"The hotel has one of the highest rates of repeat guests in Shanghai and within the Marriott International chain."

"The other day, I had a general manager's cocktail reception where many long-stay guests arrived. They tried other hotels. But at the end of the day, they still come here because they feel the associates really take care of their needs," he said.

According to Sterkau, the hotel has achieved high marks in associate opinion surveys, since they are happy with the management.

In recent years, Renaissance Shanghai Yangtze Hotel has been renovating its facilities to stay competitive.

It has undergone a major room renovation project. Only four floors remain to be renovated this year. Many high-tech features were added for the guest-rooms. A plug-in iPod connection was built in the wall panels so guests can use the television as an amplifier.

The hotel constructed an extension for banquet facilities in a new building that connects the complex with footbridges.

"We have one extra ballroom of 800 square meters and five function rooms that will position the hotel to different parts of the city," Sterkau said.

Since working in the hospitality industry for nearly 30 years, 24 years of which were with the Marriott Company, Sterkau maintains a management philosophy, which is "walk the talk".

"You should be enthusiastic about working in a hotel, which is not a job you start at 9 am and finish at 5 pm, because you could not survive in the industry," he said.

To create a comfortable working environment for his associates stands as a fundamental principle.

"You must pass on a smile to your associates, so they show happy facial expressions and greet customers in a friendly manner. If I would lead a hotel with fear, the associates might treat the guests like that as well," he said.

"This philosophy comes from a well-known saying of one our company's founders: 'Take good care of your associates. They will take good care of the customers and the customers will return again and again'."

"That's a very simple, straightforward sentence, and I think it's the most important thing," Sterkau said.