TRUSTWORTHY
GENERAL MANAGER
"Mr. MS Oberoi was a visionary and so is Mr. PRS Oberoi, But it is PRS who took the Oberoi Group to a
different level. The Vilas brand is his brainchild. Vikram Oberoi is very open, accessible, affable and very
unassuming.....and today Oberoi’s is the best brand in the World" quips D P
Bhatia, the General Manager, at the Clarkes Hotel, Shimla.
I had the good fortune of meeting him recently during my stay in this hotel last
week.
DP Bhatia (64) who retired from the Oberoi Group of hotels as the General Manager of the legendary Clarkes Hotel, Shimla in 2008 was not allowed to leave! Instead Mr. PRS Oberoi beckoned him and asked him to continue in the same position. What I infer is that his intense self-discipline and loyalty was instrumental in his second innings with the Oberoi Group.
Remember: Bhatia has been serving this organisation for the last 48 years that is since 1967.....SILENTLY...SELFLESSLY....FLAWLESSLY.
In 1967, when Bhatia was an engineering student, an advertisement caught his attention. The Clarkes Hotel Shimla had vacancies. It was vacation time and Bhatia thought of giving it a try. He submitted his bio data, got called for an interview.....and to cut the long story short he joined the next day. His parents were visibly upset because their son had suddenly decided to join a hotel from being an engineering student.
"In those days" says Bhatia, "Clarkes was a seasonal hotel. Just to pass my time during the vacation, I had joined". Though his parents disapproved his act of joining the hotel, his General Manager was impressed by Bhatia's focussed performance. He never allowed Bhatia to leave after his three months part time job got over. Bhatia's journey with the Oberoi family begins here...
In a span of two years Bhatia became a Supervisor. Over the next 30 years, after stints at the Oberoi New Delhi and Maidens, New Delhi followed by Trident Kochi he became the General Manager of the then Oberoi Khajuraho property. After serving at the Trident,Agra as the General Manager his next stop was the Clarkes Hotel, Shimla again in 2007.
Clarkes Hotel at Shimla is owned by the PRS Oberoi family. It's a personal property of the Oberoi family. This happens to be the first hotel of the Oberoi group. I am personally very glad to note that today, with 36 hotels in the chain the Oberoi group has become the best brand in the world.
"It was Mr. PRS Oberoi who has been instrumental for my growth. I am very grateful to the Oberoi Group. This is a great organisation with highly professional and guest centric people. Be honest and hard-working... No one will stop your growth at the Oberoi's
DP Bhatia (64) who retired from the Oberoi Group of hotels as the General Manager of the legendary Clarkes Hotel, Shimla in 2008 was not allowed to leave! Instead Mr. PRS Oberoi beckoned him and asked him to continue in the same position. What I infer is that his intense self-discipline and loyalty was instrumental in his second innings with the Oberoi Group.
Remember: Bhatia has been serving this organisation for the last 48 years that is since 1967.....SILENTLY...SELFLESSLY....FLAWLESSLY.
In 1967, when Bhatia was an engineering student, an advertisement caught his attention. The Clarkes Hotel Shimla had vacancies. It was vacation time and Bhatia thought of giving it a try. He submitted his bio data, got called for an interview.....and to cut the long story short he joined the next day. His parents were visibly upset because their son had suddenly decided to join a hotel from being an engineering student.
"In those days" says Bhatia, "Clarkes was a seasonal hotel. Just to pass my time during the vacation, I had joined". Though his parents disapproved his act of joining the hotel, his General Manager was impressed by Bhatia's focussed performance. He never allowed Bhatia to leave after his three months part time job got over. Bhatia's journey with the Oberoi family begins here...
In a span of two years Bhatia became a Supervisor. Over the next 30 years, after stints at the Oberoi New Delhi and Maidens, New Delhi followed by Trident Kochi he became the General Manager of the then Oberoi Khajuraho property. After serving at the Trident,Agra as the General Manager his next stop was the Clarkes Hotel, Shimla again in 2007.
Clarkes Hotel at Shimla is owned by the PRS Oberoi family. It's a personal property of the Oberoi family. This happens to be the first hotel of the Oberoi group. I am personally very glad to note that today, with 36 hotels in the chain the Oberoi group has become the best brand in the world.
"It was Mr. PRS Oberoi who has been instrumental for my growth. I am very grateful to the Oberoi Group. This is a great organisation with highly professional and guest centric people. Be honest and hard-working... No one will stop your growth at the Oberoi's
says D P Bhatia.
"Mr. Vikram Oberoi and Mr. Arjun Oberoi, both involve themselves deeply in the affairs of this hotel. They are very focussed on their core business (hospitality), they understand the nuances of the business and they know how to conduct themselves. The leadership style in Oberoi Group is worth emulating. Both will personally look into the guest feedback, investigate deeply, and take the corrective measures flawlessly".
Gardening and Pencil sketching are Bhatia's hobbies. Married to Kala, Bhatia is blessed with a son - Deepak (married to Poornima) and two daughters – Seema who is married and teaches at IHM, Lajpat Nagar, New Delhi and Reena who is with Ernst and Young, also based in New Delhi.
D P Bhatia lives in Clarkes Hotel with his wife and Grandson Shaurya (6), who is presently studying in a school in Shimla.
Tailpiece: My first humane hero was Sanjay Sharma, Area General Manager, Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi. Presently 32 General Managers report into him. (Blog story posted on 11 December 2014). The second Humane Hero was Brand Master Chef Inder Dev (Fortune Select Excalibur, Gurgaon) who recently celebrated his 25 years in the hospitality industry. (Blog story posted on 25 March 2015.) My third Humane Hero, obviously, a natural choice....the legendary General Manager Bhatiaji, who else.
Text and Pictures: R Kesava Mallia in
Shimla
No comments:
Post a Comment