Page 66 - The New Gold Standard

PRINCIPLE 1: DEFINE AND REFINE
a luxury hotel. When you cast your eye across the lobby of a typ-
ical Ritz-Carlton today, it is incredibly diverse. Diverse in race,
gender, attire, and the presence of families and diverse in what
this group of guests looks for in a hotel experience. We have had
to respond to that because our customers are evolving and our
hotels are being located worldwide in vibrant locations such as
Shanghai, Doha, and Macao. We needed to evolve with our cus-
tomers and our communities or we would not be relevant.”
(Please see the sidebar“Ritz-Carlton President Simon F.Cooper”
for more information on Simon and his efforts to strategically
position the Ritz-Carlton brand.)

Ritz-Carlton President Simon F. Cooper
Simon F. Cooper is president and chief operating officer of The
Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company. He oversees the operations, devel-
opment, and strategic positioning of Ritz-Carlton.
Under his leadership, the company continues to earn the
highest accolades, including being ranked first in guest satisfac-
tion for luxury hotels in the J.D. Power and Associates 2007
North America Hotel Guest Satisfaction Study.
Since joining the hotel company in February 2001, Simon
has overseen a major expansion of Ritz-Carlton hotels, devel-
oped brand extensions, championed relevant hotel design
changes, and spearheaded enhancements to Ritz-Carlton’s ser-
vice approach.
Between 2007 and 2011, Simon and his leadership team an-
ticipate opening 33 hotels, 24 Residences, 7 Clubs, and 3 ser-
viced apartments at locations around the world, including
Dublin, Beijing, St. Lucia, and Denver.
Simon joined Ritz-Carlton from Marriott International,
where he served for three years as president of Marriott Lodg-
ing Canada and senior vice president of Marriott Lodging Inter-
national, responsible for Canada and New England.

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