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Marriott on the Move

Bill Marriott's Blog

Greening Marriott's Supply ChainJanuary 6

Today, I'm going to talk to you about toilet paper . . . and Marriott's commitment to the environment. Seriously, there really is a connection.

Earlier this year, we announced our five-point environmental strategy to help address climate change. One of these goals is to green our $10 billion supply chain. Because of our size and scale, we can ask our vendors, "How can you make your products more environmentally friendly?" And they've come up with some great solutions that don't cost any more money, which is good news in the current economy.

Now, the next time you check in at one of our hotels, chances are you'll unlock your guest room door with a key card made of 50 percent recycled plastic. Or, you may be sleeping . . .

Islamabad Marriott Hotel ReopensDecember 29 2008

It's been a short three months since terrorists struck our Marriott hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan. It was a terrible loss for the owner of the hotel, Sadruddin Hashwani. Many associates and guests were killed and the building was destroyed by fire. But Mr. Hashwani was determined from that first night to rebuild the hotel, and I'm proud to tell you that yesterday, the hotel began to reopen. What a triumph of the spirit.

I would like to congratulate and commend Mr. Hashwani, his family and all of our wonderful associates for their hard work and dedication rebuilding and reopening this wonderful hotel in record time. It shows their resolve to keep the doors of commerce and communication open by creating an environment where people . . .

Spending the Holidays with FamilyDecember 22 2008

We're nearing the end of 2008 and I wanted to take this opportunity to reach out to all of my readers and wish them a happy holiday and all the best for 2009. I'll be spending my Christmas in Washington, D.C. Every Christmas Eve, we have all our children and grandchildren over for Christmas Eve dinner. This year there will be 27 of us.

Then on Christmas Day, we go around with our presents and visit each one of our four children and their families. We start out at about 9 o'clock on Christmas morning and we get home at about 6 o'clock on Christmas evening. It's a wonderful day with family and presents and toys for the kids and plenty of good food, so it's a great opportunity for us.

There's no doubt that the . . .

Dad Always Said, Take Care of Your EmployeesDecember 17 2008

Today is a very special day for me and for my family. My dad, John Willard Marriott, Sr., is being inducted into the Labor Hall of Fame at the U.S. Department of Labor here in Washington, D.C.

As many of you know, my father, with the great help of my mother, Alice, founded this company, which started off as a nine-seat A&W root beer stand, in 1927. Dad was a hard worker and our employees emulated that same work ethic. He also believed the key to a successful business was to, first and foremost, take care of your employees because he always said, "If you take care of them, they'll take care of your customers and the customers will keep coming back again and again."

My father always made sure to take time to listen to his employees and let them know . . .

How I Learned to Pay Attention to the DetailsDecember 11 2008

It's no secret that I'm known as a stickler for detail. I try very hard to visit almost 300 hotels a year and give them my own version of the "white glove test" to look and see how things are going, to make sure they're as good for our guests as we can make them and that our guests have the best possible experience when they stay with us.

I guess one of the reasons I began paying such attention to detail was due to an experience I had when I was in college, working at one of my father's Hot Shoppes that he had opened out in Salt Lake City, Utah. I was working back in the kitchen on an afternoon after school and was assigned the task of cleaning out the deep fat fryers. I accidentally poured . . .