General Manager - The Forester Hotel

OUR STORY

The Forester Hotel is the first boutique-inspired Hyatt Place in the world and the first hotel to open in the City of Lake Forest since 1929.  The hotel, therefore, blends the comforts of Hyatt Place and the tradition of Lake Forest with a unique design and modern amenities to create a one-of-a-kind experience in its market.

The word “Forester” refers to a steward of a forest and its trees – someone who is entrusted to both protect nature and nurture its growth as well as someone who must respect the past while blazing new trails.  This dichotomy is not only reflected in Lake Forest’s motto – “naturae et scientiae amor,” translated as “for the love of science in nature” – but in the very design and ethos of the hotel.  We are currently seeking team members who can similarly act as stewards that respect, nurture, protect, and innovate across all aspects of the team and guest experience. 

JOB DESCRIPTION

The purpose of the General Manager (GM) of The Forester, a Hyatt Place Hotel, is to provide world-class service to all guests. The GM will work with the Operations Team to oversee all hotel operations including:

  • Impactful leadership and support for the team

  • Quality assurance and exceptional guest service standards

  • Fiscal responsibility and a strong working knowledge of financial statements and internal controls

  • Associate development and engagement

ESSENTIAL DUTIES

Operations

  • Responsible for all aspects of hotel operations, day-to-day staff management, and guests

  • Ensure compliance to SOPs, policies, procedures, and service standards

  • Handle guest complaints and oversee service recovery process

  • Oversee and manage all departments and work closely with department heads daily

  • Responsible for occupational health, fire, and life safety

  • Responsible for all safety, security and wellbeing for guests, visitors, and staff

 

Financial

  • Manage budget and forecasts

  • Ensure revenue and guest satisfaction goals are met

  • Ensure all decisions are in the best interest of the hotel and ownership company

  • Develop short and long-term strategic goals for performance improvement

  • Understand P&L statements and be able to react with impactful strategies

  • Meet all report deadlines daily, weekly, and monthly

  • Make financial/business decisions, achieve goals, maximize revenue, and achieve profitability

  • Work with the Revenue Management and Sales teams to maximize room yield and hotel revenue

 

Associate Engagement

  • Encourage and build mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.

  • Strive to improve service performance

  • Utilize interpersonal and communication skills to lead, influence, and encourage others

  • Coach, mentor, and help others to improve their knowledge and skills

 

Marketing

  • Make decisions on marketing strategies to position the hotel and differentiate from competitors

  • Work closely with Corporate and Restaurant team to create and execute restaurant marketing & activation plan

 

 

SKILLS, EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE

  • College or higher-level education

  • 5+ years’ experience within the Hospitality Industry in a full-service property.

  • Previous General Manager and F&B experience strongly preferred

  • Hyatt brand and/or boutique experience a plus

  • Friendly demeanor and excellent communication and customer service skills

  • Must be a strong leader, self-motivator, team builder

  • Good organizational and prioritization skills

  • Prior computer experience using windows-based software preferred

  • Experience with financial statements, forecasting, and budgets