Celebrating International Women’s Day at Marriott

This week, the United Nations will celebrate International Women’s Day, an important time to reflect on the incredible progress and achievements of talented and dynamic women the world over. As we salute inspiring women who have courageously changed neighborhoods, countries, industries and hearts and minds, we must continue to focus on the drive toward global gender parity and the fulfillment of human rights for all.

At Marriott International, more than 40 percent of our top 1,000 leaders are women. Our goal is to achieve gender parity among global leadership by 2025. As a CEO, I believe one of my most important responsibilities is to ensure that everyone who walks through our doors feels welcome. We operate on a world stage and our continued success will be a direct result of our efforts to maintain an inclusive environment, where no energy is ever spent wondering if you belong.

Our founders J. Willard and Alice Marriott taught us that putting people first and opening doors of opportunity for everyone are the keys to sustainable business success.

In honor of International Women’s Day 2020 and its theme, “I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights,” I want to showcase some of the exceptional talent we have at Marriott. I will highlight five associates and a hotel owner in the next two days. Every story and career choice are different. But the underlying traits of each woman are the same: fearless, risktaker, ambitious, bold, hardworking, smart and creative. I hope you’ll take a moment to read their inspiring stories.

Day 1:

Joanna Chugh

Who: Joanna Chugh is vice president of Finance Operations for Marriott in Europe. Based in London, she has responsibility for a portfolio of more than 600 hotels, working with internal and external stakeholders to maximize value for both Marriott and owners.

What inspired your career: I grew up in Dublin, Ireland. I had some family connections to the business. Growing up in a small country on the edge of Europe, I was keen to travel and see some of the world. Hospitality sounded like an interesting career with plenty of opportunities to grow a career, so I went directly to hotel school to study international hotel management.

What was a key decision that propelled your career forward? I started my Marriott career as a room service manager at a hotel in London. Later, I worked as banqueting manager at the Heathrow Marriott. After six years in operations, I decided to apply for the director of finance role when Marriott Hotel Kensington was slated to open in London. The general manager knew me and that I was resourceful and adaptable. He saw I was passionate about the business and a fast learner – all skills that could translate from operations to other disciplines. Somehow, I got the job and that’s how I ended up in finance. I felt a real sense of responsibility to do an exceptional job for that opening, given the opportunity I had been given. To this day, I am grateful.

Who is your mentor and how has she/he helped your career? My mentor was the general manager who took that chance on me. He gave me an opportunity that was beyond my experience. And he told me that I needed to become a qualified accountant. I qualified in 18 months whilst opening the hotel and also starting a family. I had three children in three consecutive years. I didn’t do anything the easy way.

What advice do you have for other women to succeed in the workplace? Resilience is very important in our fast-paced and ever-changing industry. I’ve learned there will always be situations that stretch you and don’t go according to plan. My advice would be to pick yourself up and move on, don’t dwell on it, learn from it. I also have a mantra – leave the job better than you found it. Bring your own style to work and make it your own.

Antika Sangamangmool

Who: Antika Sangamangmool is assistant chief engineer at JW Marriott Hotel Bangkok, Thailand. Together with her team, she is helping to manage the renovation of the luxury hotel, including its 441 guest rooms and four restaurants.

What inspired your career: I grew up in the countryside in a small village of 300 people in Lampang province in Northern Thailand. I majored in hotel studies and began my career at JW Marriott Bangkok as an intern on a rotation where I cleaned guest rooms and public areas, managed linen and arranged flowers for events. I was transferred to Courtyard by Marriott Bangkok as an administrative officer intern in the engineering department. It was fun and I fell in love with the engineering team. This department takes care of the whole building and has to cooperate with all sections of the hotel. I did not study engineering, so every day was a challenge and a new lesson for me. I love this kind of environment. After completing my internship, I was hired in the same role.

What was a key decision that propelled your career forward: Early in my career, there was a political crisis in the center of my city. Protesters blocked the road near our hotel, and we were forced to close our doors for more than one month. After we reopened, the director of engineering resigned. We still had to run the department, so the general manager gave me an opportunity to learn tasks, reporting directly to him. I realized that I could do the work and that he believed in me, so I took a chance and started to gain more knowledge from my team and management. Everyone gave me great support. We worked as a team, which I liked so much. This was a key decision that made me continue on my engineering path.

Who is your mentor and how has she/he helped your career? I have never had just one mentor. Everyone I have worked with was a mentor to me. They are experts in what they do so I have learned and gained knowledge from them. I have developed management skills from the management team, learned engineering skills from the engineering team. I adapted and I am passionate to learn what they do and how they do it, so I can use those skills in my own work.

What advice do you have for other women to succeed in the workplace? Have an open mind to learn new things, new skills and gain more knowledge. Prepare yourself to be ready all the time because you don’t know when an opportunity will come. Also, be a positive-thinking person. Accept and try something new and you will discover skills hidden inside of you. You have to love yourself, respect yourself and believe in yourself. This is my secret to success. I realized that I can succeed in a male-dominated department with a can-do attitude and with the support of people who believe in me.

Kori Johnson

Who: Kori Johnson is general manager of The Mayflower Hotel, Autograph Collection, in Washington, D.C.

What inspired your career: My plan was to be a graphic artist. Then a friend of mine asked me to go with her to an interview at the Residence Inn in Bethesda, Maryland. While I was waiting in the lobby for her, management asked me if I needed help. I said I was there for an interview. The next thing I know, they are interviewing me. They offered me a job as a front desk associate. That led to a sales manager role, a general manager role and so on.

What was a key decision that propelled your career forward? I had an opportunity to leave my director of operations role in Washington and move to New Orleans as a resident manager where I would oversee a 1,300-room hotel. It was a tough decision. I was leaving my friends and family and my home. I’m a native Washingtonian. But I took the leap and it was a great experience. Once down south, my focus quickly turned to welcoming guests for the Super Bowl, then Mardi Gras and then the Essence Music Festival. It was a whirlwind, but it prepared me for my future roles.

Who is your mentor and how has she/he helped your career? I’ve had many but two in particular at Marriott headquarters. They have encouraged me to take chances and not doubt myself. It’s so important to be able to talk to someone who will provide candid advice.

What advice do you have for other women to succeed in the workplace? It’s not your role to tell yourself that you can’t do something. That’s for others to say, so you can prove them wrong. Don’t be an obstacle for yourself. Surround yourself with positive people who are honest with you but encourage you.