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HSMAI is pleased to honor Dan Surette with the Career Achievement in Sales Award at the Sales Leader Forum on November 13th in Washington, DC.
Surette joined Omni, where he is the Chief Sales Officer, in August 2017. Prior to joining Omni, he worked at Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. for more than 15 years where he served as the vice president of North America sales and field marketing. Surette attended Johnson & Wales University where he earned a degree in hospitality management. Throughout his career, Surette has been a member of several leading professional organizations, including HSMAI.
HSMAI staff had the pleasure of talking with Surette about his career and HSMAI, read on for the interview.
1. How did you get involved with HSMAI? What impact has your association with HSMAI had on your professional development?
When I was just starting my career, I was transferred to the Sheraton Washington Hotel DC where I began my second job in the industry and still learning how to be a Sales Manager. The HSMAI Chapter was strong in DC, so I started attending the monthly meetings. It was a safe place for me to be around peers who were in similar stage in their career. While it was intimidating at times, it was also so helpful to be around others which much more experience.
2. Can you share a bit about your journey and experiences that have shaped your expertise in this area, and how they inform the perspectives and insights you’ll be sharing during your session?
I was fortunate to work in different roles across my career that helped shape my knowledge and growth in the industry. I moved from a smaller resort, to a convention hotel, to global sales, to sales leader, area/regional leader to corporate leader. Each of these stretched me and helped me learn and grow. There were so many mentors and coaches along the way to guide me, and I would not be where I am today without them.
3. What core philosophy has driven your career to date and how has this philosophy developed over time?
I have always had energy and enthusiasm – sometimes too much! Over the years I have felt that positive energy is important with teams, and I try to find the positives and look to build people up whenever I can. Having been in situations where I was not supported or asked to have an opinion or not encouraged, it can eat away at your confidence and in the end happiness in the role. We need to give our teams a voice, allow them to make mistakes and assist them to grow and chart a path forward.
4. Could you share a piece of career advice or habits you think are important for rising leaders?
I try to stay connected with my teams and the business as much as possible. Don’t fly too high, as it is important to understand what is happening, how they are doing, and what they need from you to be more productive and successful. Know your business and know your people.
5. Could you share any details about upcoming projects or initiatives you’re looking forward to?
We are working on some new sales performance and visualization tools. I’m very excited to see how we implement the platform and how quickly it will have an impact on seller production and incentives. I’m also interested to see how AI can be used for us as an organization more effectively and curious to see how it grows in our industry over the next 12-36 months.
6. How do you see the role of technology evolving in the hospitality industry, and what steps are you taking to stay ahead of these changes?
Technology continues to evolve for our industry. As I said, AI is not going away, and we are staying close to understand how it can help us from a process and efficiency standpoint. At the same time, we need to learn how to make sure our brand and hotels are optimized to be displayed in consumer and event searches, for example.
7. What does receiving the HSMAI Award for Career Achievement in Sales mean to you?
I was really taken back when Juli called. I have been to many of these events and watched leader after leader who I looked up to and respected be recognized like this. I’m still not sure I have made the impact that the recipients before me have achieved, but I am truly honored to be receiving this tremendous recognition from HSMAI.