FROM THE LEMON TREE HOTEL, GUINDY, CHENNAI..............1

            THE STORY OF AN EXEMPLARY LEADER!

"What about Rasam and Rice today?” asked a foreigner guest jocularly when he was served a sandwich on the fourth day of Chennai floods. That was on 04 December, 2015.

"For up to four days we were serving only Rice and Rasam or Rice and Sambar to our guests. That’s what made the foreigner guest quip jocularly" added Rajesh Tavalla - the General Manager at Lemon Tree Hotels, Guindy, Chennai.

Last week, I was staying in this hotel. Over a friendly chat with Rajesh in my suite room, this blog happened serendipitously.

"I was not in touch with my wife and son for three nights" said Rajesh when I probed more on the floods in Chennai that had paralysed the city last year during November - December.

The moral of the story is this  - While he was not in touch with his own family, he was taking care of the Lemon Tree family for sure. As many as a dozen employees whose houses were inundated with water were instructed to come and stay in the hotel with their family members. Plus there were the room guests (occupancy was over 90% in this 108 room property). He also helped the badly affected sister property at Lemon Tree Hotel, Simona at Manappakkam - just six km’s away. Not over, he along with his team decided to adopt a nearby colony and help them in rescue efforts by distributing survival kits which included clothes, food, milk, blankets, mosquito repellents, candles, matches, medicines and disinfectants. Rajesh and his team touched as many as 150 families. He even walked up to  12 Km’s on foot just to buy milk and fuel which was needed to keep the hotel breathing.

Some good souls amongst the guests wrote in Trip Advisor thanking Rajesh and his team for their yeomen service and timely help. May their tribe increase.

"We were trapped inside the hotel. Luckily every one supported. Bringing the family members of the staff members who had lost their homes, to the hotel and taking care of them during this traumatic situation gave me so much satisfaction" said Rajesh (40) married to Sirisha and blessed with a son. His son Vikram is studying in 7th Standard.

I was really surprised to know that this hotel gave full marks to Rajesh in the "Employee Satisfaction" survey. They also gave 100 per cent marks to their GM in "The Great Place to Work" survey. Remember, Lemon Tree Hotels has earned its place in the top ten places amongst the ‘Great Places to work in India’.

That said, I know Rajesh since 1999. He was a Front Office Executive then at GRT Grand, Chennai. That is where we had met first. He joined Lemon Tree Hotels as Director of Sales in Feb 2013. Got promoted as General Manager in 01 April 2015.

 Visiting temples gives him solace and succour. Listening to devotional music is his hobby.

 Text and Pictures: R Kesava Mallia in Chennai