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Josiah Mackenzie

1093 posts
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  • 1 min

The Operating System Behind High-Performing Hospitality Brands: Critical Thinking, Culture, and Guest-Centric Design – Matthew Bell, Mollie’s

🏨 Chapters range from "Early years," emphasizing nurture and debate, to "Hospitality as Connection," exploring critical thinking and experiments. Highlights include citizenM lessons, where the customer is king, and the inverted pyramid model. Discussing Mollie's, it traces the journey from "Roadside Roots to Urban Hospitality," including a Manchester opening. It covers evolving rooms, diner experiences, scaling growth with AI, and cracking the diner model. The full timeline spans from 00:00 to 25:13.
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The Year of the Operator: What 2025 Revealed (And Why Operations Will Drive Us Forward) – Josiah Mackenzie

🏨 2025 marked the “Year of the Operator,” as Josiah discusses how top hotel operators maintained profitability despite underwhelming top-line results. Operational excellence is highlighted as a key advantage moving into 2026. By creating a "virtuous cycle" involving teams, guests, and financial outcomes, operators displayed how strategic management can transcend performance expectations. Listeners are encouraged to implement these insights to enhance their hospitality ventures.
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The Era of the Operator: Why Constant Improvement Defines Great Hospitality Leadership Today – Ryan Magnon, Ithaka Hospitality Partners

📈 Ryan Magnon, COO at Ithaka Hospitality Partners, emphasizes the importance of strong operations in hospitality, drawing on his experience at Capella, Chick-fil-A, and the U.S. Air Force. He highlights the need for intentional business study, purposeful staff development, and continuous improvement. Key tools include metrics, dashboards, and listening posts to understand operations and the guest journey. Sharing insights can transform team dynamics and enhance business outcomes.
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  • 4 min

What Hotels Can Learn from Chick-fil-A’s Culture of Excellence – Ryan Magnon, Ithaka Hospitality Partners

🍖 Ryan discussed Chick-fil-A's culture emphasizing service and excellence over nearly 15 years. The company focuses on people, not just chicken. Leadership drives a giving culture with high expectations. In 2017, Ryan led a team to develop a drive-thru consulting methodology across approximately 2,000 restaurants. Despite lacking direct experience, they had 90-120 days to learn industry practices, which proved crucial when COVID-19 prompted a shift to 99% drive-thru operations by 2020.
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My Air Force Lesson: I Didn’t Have All the Answers, but My Team Did – Ryan Magnon, Ithaka Hospitality Partners

✈️ Ryan Magnon, Chief Operating Officer at Ithaka Hospitality Partners, shares insights on leadership shaped by his early years as a young Air Force officer. He emphasizes the importance of humility, trust, and listening, which have become the foundation of his leadership style. These principles guide him in building teams and driving excellence within modern hotel operations.
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How Baseball Taught a Future Hotel COO Time Management and Hospitality – Ryan Magnon, Ithaka Hospitality Partners

🏨 Ryan Magnon, COO of Ithaka Hospitality Partners, reflects on his time as a bat boy for the Atlanta Braves, highlighting how it taught him essential hospitality and time management skills. This experience emphasized anticipating needs and personal excellence, which continue to influence his leadership. These insights are crucial for anyone in hospitality. Music for the episode is by Clay Bassford from Bespoke Sound.
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The Next Big Wave: AI, Energy, and Human Potential – Chet Pipkin

💻 Chet Pipkin, founder of Belkin, reflects on emerging trends shaping the future: AI, energy, wellness, and educational transformation. He identified the personal computing boom in the 1980s and now explores how these forces will redefine living, learning, and hospitality experiences. Hospitality leaders can leverage these insights for meaningful guest experiences in a dynamic environment. Listen to the series finale for valuable perspectives on innovation and change. ????
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My Formula for “Effortless” Hospitality Tech – Chet Pipkin, Desolation Hotel

🏨 Chet Pipkin, founder of Belkin and Desolation Hotel, integrates decades of consumer tech experience into hospitality. He's employing technology to streamline guest experiences, from EV charging to seamless bike checkouts. Chet emphasizes removing friction and solving issues, focusing on guests and staff. His approach simplifies systems to enhance service. Explore the episode for practical insights on elevating technology use in hospitality. Music by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound accompanies the show.
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