FOR many executives, an undergraduate degree—much more a postgraduate one—is almost always as important as experience in their respective fields.
In fact, it is always an advantage for someone attempting to enter a particular industry if he has a related educational background to hold on to.
However, Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center General Manager Trevor MacDonald begs to differ.
“I have no college degree, but I do have a degree in knowledge and experience,” he laughs.
True enough, the Australian MacDonald went to a technical school in college and studied business management only years after he was already into the aviation and hospitality industries.
In fact, his background and interests are very far from the industry he is excelling in now, and he even considers his being in the hospitality industry as nothing but a “mistake.”
Coming from an agriculture background, MacDonald is into an active and outdoor lifestyle, such as riding horses and motorbikes. Likewise, he is also into football and tennis.
“After college, I was invited to go backpacking around Europe,” he shares. Thinking it was going to last for only six months, he left his homeland, only to return three years after.
It was then that he began his “degree in knowledge and experience.” MacDonald first entered the commercial aviation industry as a reservations officer in the Australian Airlines.
He then moved to the flag-carrying airline of New Zealand, where he worked for 18 years and moved up the ranks from reservations agent, reservations supervisor, ticket supervisor and sales representative to country manager. To add even more color to his decades of experience, he also worked as a radio jock for two years in New Zealand.
MacDonald shares he used to sneak his own music into the playlist, but the manager would tell him off.
“I enjoyed it, but I got sick of it quickly because of the repetitive music,” he laughs. He eventually entered the hospitality industry when he joined Sheraton, where he stayed for 16 years. He has been with the Oakwood Group for two years now and currently works as the newly instated general manager of Oakwood Joy~Nostalg Center in Ortigas, Pasig City.
Transparency and mentorship
WITH 18 years in the hospitality industry, a total of 40 working years, and wisdom and know-how beyond compare in his belt, MacDonald shares he can now truly say he has a degree in experience, knowledge and skills—and he is only more than willing to share these with his new team in Oakwood Joy~Nostalg Center.
“I have been in the industry for a very long time,” he says. “I bring here my leadership and mentorship, and I want to give people a direction and a career path.”
MacDonald says that, during meetings, he engages with his staff and encourages them to ask questions. “Some of them are shy or have never had the chance to personally talk with a general manager before, so I let them know that I’m a transparent person,” he says. “I take time to sit with them and explain to them that my door is always open—anyone can walk in.”
Breath of fresh air
“WHEN I arrived in the Philippines, it was just like back home,” MacDonald muses. “For me, this has been the easiest culture to move into primarily because of the language.”
“In the hospitality industry, English is the prime language because of international travels,” he adds. The 64-year-old executive compares his experience in the Philippines with that in Thailand.
“Thailand is a very beautiful country, but there are frustrations when it comes to communication. Majority of the population is not very good in English, unlike here in the Philippines,” he says. “There is no need for me to slow down my speech to be understood, and, even when I walk down the street, people still talk in English.”
“Coming here is like a breath of fresh air!” he says.
MacDonald further explains that the Filipinos’ culture of being friendly and embracing is another factor that made it a lot easier for him to adjust.
“I look at my staff sometimes after terrible mornings, and they will still have smile on their faces. Sometimes, they would tell me, ‘I’ve had a terrible morning!” But they will still have a smile on their faces!” he laughs.
This, he says, is despite the Filipinos’ suffering because of transportation.
“It’s such a grief that people go to work and back home and experience the horrible transportation situation every single day.”
“Working with the people here is easy, and it takes the stress out of management because, aside from the good understanding and communication, everyone here is motivated because they take pride in what they do. If only they can get here with less stress,” he adds.
Leaving a legacy
HAVING spent only four months in the country, MacDonald has not gone around the country just yet. He spends most of his days in meetings, reading his flood of e-mails and checking that everything is in place around the hotel.
During days when he has the time to escape from his busy routine, he watches movies with his wife and keeps an active lifestyle by playing tennis and football, which entails running about 15 kilometers during a match.
“This is why, even now, I still feel young and fit,” he says.
But, with only a few months of stay left in the Philippines, MacDonald says he is not only looking forward to traveling and seeing more of the country, but leaving a legacy, as well.
“I would like to leave Oakwood in an improved financial position, and, I believe, I will achieve that,” he says.
“I also want to leave Oakwood knowing that I have made a difference—that every staff member that I have come in contact with learned at least one major thing from me that has made a difference in their professional or personal lives, and that I have moved their minds from good to great!”
Image credits: Jimbo Albano