Tony Capuano, President & CEO of Marriott International, on leading in emotionally challenging times

"That Sunday evening, Mr. Marriott called to tell me the board had appointed me as CEO. ... He said, 'You are going to have to figure out a way somehow, not to ignore those emotions, they are natural and appropriate emotions, but to compartmentalize them a bit. And the reason you have to do that is tomorrow morning, 800,000 people are going to wake up and put on a Marriott name badge. And they're going to look to you to lead them out of this existential crisis that the pandemic has represented.' The gift he gave me that evening was a way to sharpen my focus on the task ahead."⁠
-Tony Capuano, President and CEO of Marriott International⁠
On this episode of Redefiners, Tony talks with Clarke Murphy and Hoda Tahoun about leadership lessons he’s gleaned from almost 30 years at Marriott, including his top advice for leaders transitioning into the CEO role. He’ll also dig into Marriott's Bonvoy customer loyalty program, sustainability at scale in the hospitality industry, and how technology and AI can help deliver high-touch personal service.
ABOUT TONY CAPUANO
Anthony Capuano is President and CEO of Marriott International, Inc. Before he was appointed CEO in February 2021, Mr. Capuano was Group President, Global Development, Design, and Operations Services, where he led the strategic unit growth of all of Marriott’s brands while overseeing the global design team as well as Marriott’s global operating standards and protocols for thousands of properties around the world. Mr. Capuano was also responsible for oversight of the EDITION Hotels, a unique concept in the luxury lifestyle hotel space conceived by hotelier Ian Schrager and Marriott International. Mr. Capuano joined Marriott in 1995 and was instrumental in its steady growth over the years which included the acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide in 2016. Mr. Capuano earned a bachelor’s degree from Cornell University in Hotel Administration. He is an active member of the Cornell Hotel Society, The Cornell School of Hotel Administration Dean’s Advisory Board, as well as the Business Roundtable, and the American Hotel and Lodging Association’s IREFAC Council. Additionally, Mr. Capuano serves on the Board of Directors for McDonald's Corporation and Save Venice, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the artistic heritage of Venice, Italy.
/ anthonycapuano
‪@MarriottBonvoy‬
‪@MarriottIntl‬
‪@MarriottHotelsandResorts‬
#redefinerspodcast #russellreynoldsassociates #leadership #executive #ceo #business #podcast #tonycapuano #marriott #marriottbonvoy #marriottinternational #marriotthotels