Value-Driven Hospitality - Casey Lavin - Defining Hospitality - Episode # 184
DH - Casey Lavin
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Speaker: [00:00:00] What I do is inconsequential. Why I do what I do is I get to shorten people's journeys every day. What I love about our hospitality industry is that it's our mission to make people feel cared for while on their journeys. Together we'll explore what hospitality means in the built environment, in business, and in our daily lives.
I'm Dan Ryan and this is Defining Hospitality.
This podcast is sponsored by Berman Falk Hospitality Group, a design driven furniture manufacturer who specializes in custom case goods and seating for hotel guest rooms.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Today's guest is somebody with years of experience in the hospitality industry. He got his start focusing on food and beverage, but over the years has expanded his knowledge. He has a record of achievement preceding him, showcasing his talents and driving operations in the hospitality industry and working with grander names such as Ritz Carlton, Kewa Island Golf Resort, the Greenbrier and Sea Island.
Ladies and gentlemen, [00:01:00]
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Thanks. Thanks for having me.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: It's so good to have you here. And I think just in getting to know you of prepping for this and looking at all of the projects that you work, you know, that you've worked on these great projects, mostly in the Southern United States, but I don't want to limit, I don't want to put you in a box. Um, I get the feeling that values are very important to you.
And to your team and culture. And I, to me, that's the same thing. And what I will say is no matter whether it's a, a hotel, you walk into a restaurant or even a business, a plate in office, when the culture is right, you can walk in there and you just feel it, you smell it, and it's a very hard thing. And it's something that I think companies.
Do not invest enough money, but also time and practice into doing. So I want to just commend you on your dedication [00:02:00] to that and your team and just say, I'm so happy to have you here so that we can get to know you a little bit better and get your story out to the world.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: No, thank you. Thank you for that. And I, I totally agree. I think, and we can get into why, why companies, some companies nail it and some companies don't, but culture is one of those weird things that, uh, You know, as soon as you, as soon as you tape a plaque up to the wall and say, Hey, this is your vision.
This is your mission or your values. It's, you know, that's not your culture. That's just kind of the, you know, was it the Dalai Lama or the Buddha who pointed the moon and said like, don't, don't mistake my finger for the moon. I'm pointing at the moon, but that's not it. And I think culture is similar to that.
Like the values are not your culture. The vision is not your culture, but it's kind of the best you have to be able to capture the essence of the What you're trying to accomplish, but it's got to go beyond that. And, uh, I agree that a lot of people give it that type of thought.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Well, and I want to dig into that [00:03:00] so that I can learn more from you and that our listeners can learn more. But before we get into it, because I think it also closely aligned and I actually think that that's why this podcast has been growing amongst. A lot of different entrepreneurs as well, just because hospitality is That emotional quotient or EQ or, uh, as Danny Meyer calls it in HQ, it's that soft skill.
It's that soft culture and vision and purpose and why that is really essential for hospitality. I think it, it translates into every other business that can make all of us better people, better companies, better stakeholders, better shareholders. So with that in mind, How do you define hospitality? What does hospitality mean to you?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Yeah, I think at its core, it's, it's a choice to love and care for others in [00:04:00] an authentic and genuine way. And, and I think just to peel that apart, cause it sounds so, you know, it's a, it's a pretty, um, esoteric or just kind of. Broad thought, but you know, the first thing being a choice that, you don't choose necessarily the circumstances that you wake up to every day. You choose how you show up. And the same thing goes with us within our industry and any industry, uh, by the way, you know, there's a decision that you make and it's a mindset. And I think the power of mindset Is, um, the most incredible force that can transform somebody's life and transform a community and transform a company and, you know, a family, a household, whatever.
And, and so the choice I think is the first key part of that. And the second part to, to, you know, love and care for love, not in the romantic sense, but, uh, love is, is kind of funny. Cause I don't know that, uh, my wife likes me all the time, uh, but I know she loves me.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: you're [00:05:00] not alone in that feeling.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: I, I've been told that. And it's probably, it's probably reasonable, uh, but it's a, you know, I have a decision, a choice to make in those issues. I can give up when I'm pissed off at my wife and say, no, you know, screw it. Or I can, you know, understand her humanity, my humanity, the things that are between the story that made her where she is, what she's going through, what she might be feeling and process those things to be compassionate and empathetic. And action oriented towards her needs. And I think that's the same with, uh, this idea of hospitality is we make a choice, care for other people. And so I was having this chat with our staff this morning, coveritis coming up through food and beverage. Coveritis was always a term that I coined. That's, you know, how do you, when you're doing 500 covers for brunch in a huge restaurant on a Sunday morning, it's easy to have that third turn of [00:06:00] table 33. feel like just another cover. And here they are. When in fact, they've, there's this anticipation, there's a story, there's a, um, you know, mom's, this could be mom's last brunch or the last moment that they're all together. It could be, they've just experienced some crazy, you know, celebration or loss. Um, they've looked forward to this moment.
There's anticipation and we need to honor that in the moment by shaking off The coveritis, the just the going through the numbers. The same thing with anything else is transaction oriented mindset. And so you're choosing to care for somebody. And I think that's, that's a really intentional thing. Um, and then lastly, I think going back to this idea of being genuine, authentic, it's really making sure that your intentions, what you're doing is, And that's tough when you're in this business because you get so jaded by PNLs, by, you know, owner expectations or, um, you know, Susie called off sick and [00:07:00] this person doesn't care. You know, turnover is so high and like you have all these reasons why you just kind of like throw in the towel. And so I think that at its core, it's just coming back to like, man, this is really about a mindset to care for people and make them feel special. And it doesn't matter if it's in a fancy place, it's a casual place, and, uh, and I think that's, you know, at the core of what hospitality should be.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Yeah, and I love the word intention because I'm So much of this journey into values and stories and authenticity and being genuine, it all starts with intention, right? You can't, and entrepreneurism, it, it, if you're not intentional about, there's no path, right? You got to kind of get out the machete and chop away down.
You have to be intentional, intentional about your wayfinding, your vision and where you're going. Um, If I could share, like when I started [00:08:00] my, well, I started my entrepreneurial journey in August 28th, 2001,
I think I was 26 years old. And I started a company acting as a distributor for an Asian furniture manufacturer, uh, from my kitchen table in San Francisco.
Um, and then I, you know, I fumbled along just trying to figure things out and how it is and build a team. And it was, you know, it was just very difficult. And then I joined this entrepreneur's organization. It's called EO. Um, and it's about 10 years ago. So when was that? That was 2014 or 13. And, uh, It was all started by this guy named Vern Harnish, who's amazing.
And he's written all these books. One of the books I read was, um, mastering the Rockefeller habits. And one of the things was like, you got to get your culture right. And one of the ways to do it is to talk about your values, um, every day. And every company has usually between three and six values and it's, how do you find your values?
You, they're [00:09:00] probably already existing if you haven't figured out your values within your team or
your leadership team. And how do you pull it out? Um, then once you have the values, it takes a long time to get them to settle. And sometimes you reorder them. Sometimes you get rid of them, move other ones in until it really just feels right.
It goes back to that feeling of when you walk into a place of business and you just, you just get it, you feel it, you can smell it. Um, how did you go about defining. And distilling what your values are at BHC. And then how do you discuss them amongst the team
and customers? All actually not just team.
It's all of your stakeholders. It's your clients. It's your, if you have shareholders, I don't know if you're a shareholder, it's your employees, it's your, it's everyone. It's your community. How do you, how do you communicate them without. Being just a poster on the wall because I think that's where people lose it.
It shouldn't just be a poster on the wall It's not pointing at the moon.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: no, yeah, that's, [00:10:00] that's perfect. And like, I, I'm a big EO fan. I'm in, I'm in the other version of YPO,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Oh, I love YPO too. All of these are good for all of you listening
You get so much out of it. It's like a fire hydrant of just
black magic and It's awesome
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: And, and, you know, it's a learning, the YPO and EO community for me is like, it's a reminder that you're, you're with these other presidents or CEOs of organizations that are not necessarily in your industry and like, we're all doing the same thing in different ways. And so like values conversation is a good one. So just to kind of back. What you just asked. I mean, going back to the first word intention is, is really important for our company and for any company. And I think. You know, I was listening to a podcast or video or something the other day, and it was talking about the shopping list method, which I thought was brilliant because I don't know if you go grocery shopping. Um, I, I, [00:11:00] I, loathe shopping. I just, I don't like shopping period for clothes or for food, but I, you know, of course do it. Uh, I, I much prefer the, you know, Whole Foods app and they deliver it or something, you know, it's cause it, but the point of this was, was when you create a list. And you know what you're walking into the store, you get, you're much more likely to stay on track, both from an efficiency, speed, cost, and, um, You know, uh, order of things.
Like you, you just have, you have a very specific direction because you've set an intention going in the store. And oftentimes what I do, unfortunately with the store is walk in the store with a cart and then I start grabbing stuff and then I wonder why it bills 300. I've got the stuff that I'll never use.
And I, God help us. If you're, if I was hungry at the moment, it was shopping. Like I get all this extra stuff that I'll never eat that sits there and you're. And I think that, You know, the idea of intention is that, is what are you aiming for? And if you don't have anything you're aiming for, [00:12:00] um, you, you missed the mark.
And I love this, you know, I love reading like, uh, sacred traditions and, you know, the definition of sin is to miss the mark. And, and all that means is, Are you, you know, if the idea is to hit the target of being a good person or an altruistic company or a company that wants to achieve excellence or a household that wants to make difference in its community, if that's the mark, then there are things that you can do that add to that and take away, right?
It's that simple. And so how do you, how do you begin to frame that in with a company? And I think that's where, you know, starting with your vision mission values is really key. And so what we did. You know, our company's been around for three and a half years. We're a family office. We're just getting, getting rolling and building this luxury collection and trying to challenge the status quo a little bit, the Southeast and, uh, you know, do some things that are more long term thinking because we're not a private equity group, we're not a REITs, we're not selling the stuff that we're buying, we're [00:13:00] going to be investing in this stuff for a hundred years.
And so we're thinking about this longer term plan. And so the first step was really me and the, uh, our founder owner, Ben Navarro, sitting down and talking about what is important. Uh, as a company, what are the things that we want to accomplish? And so we framed out a vision, which is, you know, what a company wants to do, a mission, how the company is going to achieve that vision and values, tools and toolbox allow you to get there that were just kind of loose of what we thought.
And then to your point, we then went to our operating businesses. And had them workshop these ideas as well as their own idea. What do they feel is important? What isn't? And we began to weed those things out to get to our initial vision mission values. And I mentioned this before we jumped on the recording here, but I think what we just went through after three years Is a repolishing of our vision mission values now that we've been living with them because we had to reorder them. There are some words that just weren't perfect and we wanted to clean them up. We [00:14:00] wanted to be more specific about our vision and where we're going. And then, uh, and that's something that we just went through. And so how do you, how do you breathe this stuff to life? I think, you know, there's the obvious stuff, which hopefully most of us are doing. Um, with big organizations. One is, you know, you hire to your vision, mission, value. Step number one, how do you do that? It's very specific recruiting tactics that train and equip decision making managers with how to hire people who are aligned with your values. There's obviously, you know, uh, talent acquisition tools like Talent Plus, Predictive Index, other behavioral, you know, models that can help adapt that.
But it's, uh, really helping our leaders. Make sure they're selecting the right people, I think is the first thing. And then second, as you onboard and orient people, you know, orientation, obviously it's kind of an expected thing. You have a rah rah pep rally, you get up, you talk about your vision, mission, values, and that's all fine and good.
But I think it's, uh, [00:15:00] how, how does, how does that come across authentically with what that means to the person and what do they do with that information? I think that's something that, uh, can be easily lost. Um, and then you, you know, as part of this. When you're hiring somebody and onboarding them, there has to be a ceremonial. End to that, where you now ask them to marry you where, you know, and that's where, you know, not that somebody needs to, you know, um, not that somebody needs to join a cult because I, you know, people, people can sense when something's not real or authentic or against their own values, but let's assume that you've hired somebody that's amazing. And you've hired somebody that's perfect and completely understands your culture and vision values, and that's in them already. That's what you hope is that it's like like minded people coming together and they're going to do the same thing. At the end of the orientation, there should be a, are you in? Because if not, that's cool. You go call me, we'll find you a job somewhere else. Maybe we'll find [00:16:00] you a job making more money. Don't do it here because it's going to be wasting your time and our time. Like let's, let's be honest with that. And I think the best organizations at the end were like, look, do you want to join us on this mission? Do you want to join us on this journey? Does this make your heart? Because if not, that's totally cool. That's fine. This might not be for you and that's totally fine. No big deal, but we can't keep going because you're going to hate us and we're going to not like you. And that's totally fine. No problem.
But unless we have that conversation of like, do we want to get married? It's hard to really think that you can, you know, adapt this stuff well. And so there's gotta be a call to action. At the end, it's got to be something like, Hey guys, here's what you want. You think about
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: and how did how did you when as you're reorganizing Intentionally, your values, what's, like, walk, share us the process you're going through or just went through, um, how, how did you go through and identify and, uh, and, and evolve or massage [00:17:00] them into being more aligned with who you are, where you are right now?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: to be honest, this, this was a, uh, it started with a review of our last colleague engagement survey. And, you know, you put out these surveys and you know, it's, the surveys are usually about how we're doing as a company and there's a question in there about how committed and. Um, aligned with our vision, mission values are you, and there's another question in there that was about, um, where are there times that we as a company have not lived our vision, mission values? Two key questions. And there, you know, most, most colleague engagement surveys have a version of this. And so I remember looking at the answers to these and, and then looking at the comments, you know, that's where you really get, uh, you have to sit [00:18:00] down with a stiff drink sometimes, or you're reading comments.
Uh, and so I remember reading the comments and the thing that came across was. We, we love the company. We love what it stands for. We love the direction that you're going and we're totally on board. The vision, which was previously two words, enriching lives. That was our previous vision is too nebulous for us to grab hold of. What does that mean? Where are we going? Exactly. We get that we're enriching lives of our community and the people walking by the buildings and the colleagues that are thought fellow coworkers, the owners, You know, uh, whatever we, the hotel guests, obviously, and people who are dining with us and all those things.
But what, beyond that, you know, where was it, where are we really going? And it wasn't that, that came across that clearly. It wasn't like somebody wrote that, but as you began to, you know, if I were to take all those comments, I bet and put it into like chat GBT and say, [00:19:00] Synthesize these points. I think it would have said, you need to make sure your vision is much clearer as a direction, kind of going back to the word, you know, the idea of sin to miss the mark. What is the mark? And if you don't define the mark as I am, we are going to do X. It's very hard to ask everyone and hold everyone accountable for that. And I think that's, that's really where it came from. And then we began to look at our, um, our values, which are wonderful. And we didn't really change a lot of our values, but there are one or two words that were just. Um, you know, hard to action. Uh, one of them was compassion. We're very compassionate and empathetic company for sure. You have to, I mean, in, in order to truly embrace hospitality, but what does that mean to a server or to a housekeeper or to a project manager or to our interior design team? What does that really even mean? And what do you do with it? And that was the other thing that came across in our surveys was that [00:20:00] it just wasn't. We needed to have something they could cling on to. And so that then led us to do a little mini day retreat, my, my senior team. And, and, you know, I, Went through this whole, uh, spiel, uh, like I've just gone through with you about like, look, this is, this is why this stuff matters.
And this is what I think people are saying. And that my recommendation is we explore this to make sure that at the day, we are crystal clear where we're going. If we can't define what we're going to do, if bill, bill, check back with the New England Patriots wasn't like, Hey dude, everybody, we're gonna win Super. We're gonna do it and this is what we're gonna be and we're gonna be this. It's very hard for the team to have actually accomplished that. So if we're trying to do something very significant and you can't easily explain like, what specifically is that gonna be, then it, it's hard to ask everyone to join us. And that's, that's the beginning of it. Then we began to workshop, what do we, what do we want to accomplish? And that was really with our initial leadership team. [00:21:00] And we defined the framework and then we created a subcommittee made up of managers across the entire portfolio to contribute and weigh in. They then massage it a little further. We then had a subgroup beyond that of line level team members that can respond and say, yeah, this makes sense. Or no, this doesn't make sense. And that, that's really the three tier process. And once we got that cleaned up, I went to, uh, uh, our owner, uh, Ben and Kelly Navarro and said, Hey, this is, this is where we were. This is why this doesn't exactly, isn't perfect for where we want to be now that we're three years in, and this is where we're going to take it. And wanting them to be aligned so that as we make decisions together, we're making decisions that are truly in keeping with our vision, mission, values. We can't be hypocritical, meaning if we're going to buy more buildings, if we're going to sell stuff, we're going to invest in things, if we're going to hire people or, you know, whatever we do as a company has to be completely true. [00:22:00] aligned. And if the owner all the way down to the newest employee line level team member isn't a hundred percent on the same page, then it's hard to really accomplish success. And that's, you know, very wordy way of, of how, how we got there.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: And how did your, after going through all that, or I don't know if it's fully baked, because it sounds like you're just on the
tail
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: No, it's. We just unrolled the new version a
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Oh, great. Okay, so it started, the vision was Enriching Lives, where did it, where did you wind up?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Okay. Listen, don't, don't judge me for having,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Well, it's new. it's new.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: this is a, I know I'm going to go through it, I think I could do it all from memory, but just to make sure I'm clear, this is our daily intentions card. I think you can see this and it's basically, you know, it's our own. Uh, when I was, when my first jobs with the Ritz Carlton was, uh, Ritz Carlton Naples, and what I loved about it was the credo card. That every employee had on them was [00:23:00] so profound and it was a liturgical tool. It was something that was in your pocket, but everyone had that they could commit to. And so similarly, every team member has this on and it's, you know, inscribed in it is our vision and mission inscribed in it are seven values. And then on top of that are these 18 daily intentions that we go over every day that are just about, you know, things that we're going to do to make sure that regardless of what business you're in with us, we're We're all doing the same thing and that we're using the same, uh, language and, uh, you know, uh, concept of how to get there.
But our vision, is to be the leading luxury hospitality company recognized as an iconic American brand. And how we. Got there was, and we had a lot of qualifiers before.
It's like, well, wait a second. Shouldn't we say, uh, a leading instead of the leading, or shouldn't we say Southeast because we're really a Southeastern company, um, shouldn't, you know, [00:24:00] there are all these things, American brand, why is that important? and and for a lot of particular reasons, we decided, no, we're going to be uncompromising in this pursuit. That we're going to achieve excellence and we're not going to stop until we get there. It might take 20 years, uh, and it's going to take a while. We're brand new, but if that is our goal, then let's be unrelenting in getting there.
And that is our Superbowl title. And, you know, American brand, we are proud of, you know, to be a American company.
And even with the wonderful things and terrible things that, you know, you might see on TV and. Our country is still remarkable and we are, you know, we've provided opportunities for countless people, including you and I and all the other team members that we get to work with. And we should be proud to embrace that as an American brand.
Um, and we felt like that was a really important thing.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Um, it's interesting going through those values and getting, it's [00:25:00] getting to that card, that credo, if you will, the credo card was Ritz Carlton. What are you calling yours?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Daily intentions,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: The daily intention card. it's amazing how much work goes into all those qualifying word choices, right? Because I just remember, I don't know, eight or 10 years ago going through my values, And reordering them and just trying to get them perfect.
And it's like perfect. Sometimes it's the enemy of good. You just got to get them out there, but then check in and evolve them. And so for me, I had one core value as for the company, which really when I was starting, it came out of me, but it was like make fun happen. Then it was caring, be organized, be tenacious, um, adapt and improve.
And we say what we mean, and we do what we say. And what, after a while, And I actually, caring was at the bottom of that. And then I was like, well, this is weird. Okay. We have fun. But is it really one of our values to make fun happen? No, like that's [00:26:00] just kind of part of the operating system. Got rid of that move, caring up to the top.
And I was like, ah, okay, that feels much better. Cause we're leading with our heart and we're caring. Um, but to go through that was such a. Difficult bout of thinking and journaling and writing and just getting it just right. Um, and it takes years. But it's always the first step that's the most important.
And then we go into like, that's kind of what all the why is. Or that's the, like, surrounding what we and I do. Um, then getting to the why was a whole other thing. And it was also just interesting how I couldn't even see the why in front of me. Like I would journal, I created like a, like a US Open tennis tournament of all the things that I love about what I do.
And I would have them battle each other and get to the final. [00:27:00] And I still couldn't see it. And I wrote like scores and scores. And, um, what it turned out to be, I talked to a coach of mine and he's like, you don't see it. I was like, no, I don't see it. He's like, you love the journey, man. And then I literally was shook to my core because I, A, I couldn't see it.
And he was just like, Oh, this is what it is. And then it, it came out to, okay, I provide furniture to hotels, but to me, it's not that what, what lights me up more than anything is making sure that the whole process of getting that hotel open, that everyone is. As cared for and well attended to as possible along the journey.
So what lights me up more than anything is making sure that people are cared for towards the journey of opening the hotel. And then on the, it's evolved into all these different things. Like in the podcast, it's what I do doesn't really matter. Why I do what I do is I get to shorten people's journeys every day, right?
I get to like take all this knowledge that I've learned from, EO, and [00:28:00] MIT, and Vern Harnish, and all the business porn books behind me, and kind of coach people on it. I love it. That lights me up. And when you're, when I am in my Purpose, passion, and vision, and why it's really being in a flow state, and it's really hard to get a whole team around doing it unless we're all talking about it all the time.
So how do you guys take that card? I know you said you're looking at it every day, but, um, one of the things that we would do and still do is in our daily huddles, we, we share a core value story about someone else on the team. How do you talk about your values and disseminate them now that they're refreshed and renewed and reinvigorated?
How do you guys, how did, how do your, how does your team discuss them and get them out and live them and breathe them
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Yeah, I mean, similar to you that the most obvious place is the Daily Huddle and [00:29:00] there, it's funny because in hospitality, um, you know, where did the, where did the term lineup come from? It's a Skaffier term, right? Back from the turn of the century. And really, um, This idea of professionalizing our industry to a different level was literally lining up the staff.
And so servers would line up, you know, you inspect your, uh, your shoes and, you know, how do your socks go right below your knee and all these weird things, your fingernails, we inspect and your hair and all these different pieces, you'd line up the same thing with, um, with culinary. And then it began to evolve even further, but there's this esprit de corps in this heartbeat that would collectively kind of. read through the team because all of a sudden the server and the cook was no longer being treated like a server and a cook. They were treated as a professional, as a CEO of their station. And that, that is a completely different thing. That is a human need. The [00:30:00] soul needs to have that type of purpose, that type of professionalism, that type of pride. And so when you have a lineup and it's all tactical and technical stuff, like, okay, everybody, let's go. You know, we're going to do 400 covers today. We got Mrs. Jones coming to 31. Remember, she doesn't want her, you know, it's like all this stuff. And like, and then remember the corners of the bed need to be folded. Yes, as if luxury, you should be doing that stuff. But when that is all you're doing, You're asking people to be workers and you're asking them to just get in, clock in, do the work and go home. And there's no wonder you miss the hard work. So how do you fix that? And that's where across our company, we have 60 lineups a day.
There's 60 within the company somewhere. There's right now, I promise you, there's a team having a, a, a lineup that required
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: and trying? and also, I want to go back to a word that I love that you said, cause it applies to everything about the doing and the what it's you're doing those in a, in a way to, [00:31:00] Dissolve or dilute severely that coveritis that can encroach. It's like
getting so caught in the, caught up in the activity of the what, that you lose sight of the why.
Anyway, I'm sorry to interrupt you, but
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: no, no. no. That's
yeah, that's exactly the point of it is that you, you have to get out of that stuff and look, I think the, I don't know what you did last night, but you know, I think about like between when I left work last night and when I came to work this morning, life happens. I was, I did about 35 things that just had me all over the place. And so one of the things about a daily huddle, if it's done well, is it just zeroes us back into the one thing, which is brings it all back into what matters most, and if the first thing that I'm hearing is all of the tactical BS that needs to happen, go work somewhere else, like everywhere's doing But if instead I'm hearing authentically a story. Alignment story, where I'm hearing a [00:32:00] celebration story. I'm hearing, you know, about, um, a philosophical point, fulfills my soul, and it gives me purpose. And we're, and we're drawing, uh, energy from that. It then makes the tackle stuff a little more palatable, you know, and it makes you more likely to sustain the days that are super tough.
And so our lineups, we require our teams. To make sure that at least 51 percent of that lineup is cultural and philosophical in nature, and that is key. And so they, there has to be preparation and intention going into it. What does my team need right now? And of course, we're going to touch on the value of the day.
And we're going to touch on the intention of the day. And sometimes that means. a video. And sometimes it means a guest speaker. And sometimes it just means, you know, Billy talking about how wonderful it was to, that Sally did something yesterday and it's incredible. And that's why we work. It's, there are all these different ways that you can do that, but there has to be that heartbeat. [00:33:00] And it reminds me of this story, uh, that I, I, I frequently tell, um, and I love it because it, it, it synthesizes everything that you've just said, like about your journey and about, you know, the U. S. Open bracket, you know, like how do you get down to what matters most? But it's, uh, it's the reason why lineups and huddles matter, but it's basically this, the story of, uh, of of this master architect.
His name is, uh, Christopher Wren.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: the big cathedral in London,
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Yes, he did.
Come on, man. Michael's? St. Paul's. One of the saints.
Cathedral.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Sorry. Yeah.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: He did, he did a bunch of beautiful buildings in Cambridge University. And, you know, he's, he's prolific. And this is back in the 1500s. He was commissioned by the King to build a cathedral in London that would rival the Vatican. So, you know, he spends years drawing this thing meticulously and getting plans and they level the earth for what would be this. [00:34:00] You know, a hundred year, many generational build for however long it took. I should probably find out how long
it took, but it took a long, Chris Wren, Christopher Wren,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Not to be confused with the outgoing FBI director, right? Isn't he Chris Ren too?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: uh, you know, they're, they're not the same person.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: I know they're not the same person. One was like hundreds of years ago, but I was like, I just heard that. I read it in the newspaper this morning. Anyway, I don't want to detract you. I didn't
realize
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: that's Funny. I think, no, I think
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: name. Yeah. Funny.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: it.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: love
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Uh, so funny.
Um,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: want to
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: no, so anyway, the, the, uh, this guy, you know, commissioned, um, Design this whole thing. And, and, uh, then they go and they start employing thousands of people. They start hiring and London needed the England needed this type of project.
And it just put tons of tradesmen to work and generational, uh, generations of carpenters and brick masons and all these people to do what they do. And it was a really important thing. So anyway, so this guy is now Christopher Wren is walking around the building [00:35:00] as they're laying the foundation. And he famously goes and he talks to different groups and it's been written about in lots of different ways, but the way that I, uh, love to tell it and understand it is he goes to the first group and these were guys that were just laying the foundation, one brick or stone off after another.
And we'd go to them and say, what is it that you're doing? And these guys would say, yo, Hey, we're, you know, coming to work. And we put the stones and bricks on top of each other and, you know, fine. And they did a good job. They came to work on time. No problem. Dave. He goes through a second group who's doing the exact same thing around the corner. What is it that you guys are doing? Just to understand what they're doing, what they think they're doing. And they say, Oh, you know, we're actually building a wall and it's, you know, 20 feet by 10 feet. And, you know, we've got. Nine days to do this section of it. And so me and these other nine guys are working on this and this is how we're doing it.
Great. So they had a little bit of view of what they're doing. They were fine. They were great. They came to work on time. Everything's cool. [00:36:00] And then lastly, they go to the third group on the other side, same job, same everything, you know, for all intents and purposes, and this group, the main foreman looks at this guy and says, what am I doing? I'm part of a team that's building this cathedral. That's not even going to be done in our lifetimes, maybe not our kids lifetimes, but guess what? This thing that we're a part of, look at what it's doing to England. Look at what it's going to do for people down the road who have the opportunity to go get enriched by this cathedral. It's going to be a place where the town goes when the fires and the rages of war come. This place will be there. It's going to be a place where the homeless go to get fed and little me and us and these little hands get to be a part of building this thing. Can you believe it? And so the point of that is there somewhere was a supervisor or a manager or a director or CEO or whomever that was able to say, [00:37:00] guys, guys, don't, don't mistake what you're doing as making, as, as making beds or feeding another person at table 33. That is not what you are about. What you're doing is doing something that is changing someone's life. And so when you begin to plant that seed in somebody and you remind them that you're not a housekeeper and you're not a server, you're instead building this cathedral, you begin to act differently and you begin to professionalize a little differently.
You begin to see meaning and purpose different. And that story is one about mindset, but it's also one of leadership that it requires leaders to sit there and say, Today is not like yesterday. Don't think this is another day like yesterday. Yesterday was, you know, Thursday. Today's Friday. Guess what we're going to do today? And values and huddles and vision, all those things are just part of that secret sauce that help people remind themselves that they're building a cathedral. And the question is, what is your cathedral? And I think that's At the essence of what great [00:38:00] leaders should be doing.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Anyway, it's just, I love that.
I,
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: um, to those brick layers who were building the foundation that didn't get to see the end of it. But built this amazing monument. I think in 2018, I was there and I was there with my family. We went through the cathedral and I'm terrified of heights, like totally. I get vertigo. It's really bad. I could be on a ski lift, but there's something about when I'm really high up and not connected to something, I, I lose my mind and I went through and you go up into the [00:39:00] big dome and then, but you can only go one way.
And then you have to walk outside along the dome. And I nearly, I had like a full on panic attack. I almost had to crawl, uh, to get out of there, but it was, uh,
thank thank you, Bricklayers. You had a profound impact on my life to realize I don't want to do that again. But yeah, uh, I like the idea of what is your cathedral. Right? Because again, that gets into intention. It gets into the why of what we do. Okay? So, if you were to describe the why now of BHC after going through your, your refocusing, what's the why of BHC? And then actually, what's your why?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: yeah, no, that's, that's good. I mean, sort of my why, um, I probably about I'm 43 now. I, I I'd say this is when I was 30 or 31. I had this [00:40:00] kind of life epiphany where. You know, I've been working since I was 14 years old, started in kitchens, started washing dishes, started, you know, um, Pantry stations, garmage stations all the way up to, you know, expediter type of thing. And, um, and then just started worked all the way through college, worked afterwards and I've worked, worked, worked, worked, worked like that's been my thing. And, and so I've worked my way up until I was 30, 31 to this, you know, vice president level within a super luxury, um, company and had, you know, You know, this beautiful life and wife and cars and house, you know, all, all these things.
And, and, you know, we're, I had thousands of people there, you know, 1500 people that worked with me every day that I got to lead. And, and it was just, thing that was supposed to be the pinnacle and I just wasn't fulfilled. I was, felt like there was something missing and I felt like that was going to be the answer.
Like, [00:41:00] you know, when I just get to this point, I will have arrived. And you realize that that's not real, right? That's just not how life works. And thankfully I got it young enough where I was able to kind of reprioritize and think hard about what are my own, you What's my reason for coming to work every day?
What's my reason for waking up every day and how do I make it make an impact? And it, I needed to realize that, uh, my, my cathedral needed to be clarified and that the, the ladder I'd been climbing for years, Was perhaps even leaning on the wrong building. Um, I needed to shift what I was really doing. Uh, and so that led me to really kind of challenge, you know, how I thought my leadership, what I'm doing, I'm giving back and, and where I'm making an impact. And, and hopefully in doing so even suppress my ego a little bit [00:42:00] more, uh, although that's still a challenge at times for sure, or challenge, you know, um, what, uh, my own, you know, sensibilities or temper and that type of thing. And, And, and, that was a really important thing. And so I think, you know, what is my why at the end of the day? Um, it's, As corny, as cliche as it sounds, it's truly to make a lasting imprint and impact on those around me and in whatever way I can. And that might be the homeless guy that I passed this morning who's asking for 5 outside of my car at the stoplight, or it could be the team that I met with this morning and had a company jeopardy game about our vision, mission, values, and intentions. Um, or it could be, you know, those people listening, uh, to this podcast today. And I think that's, that's ultimately what's most important is if, if I can truly make an impact in people and, and, and, uh, whatever way that looks like, then, and [00:43:00] that's my why. And I think for our company, similarly, um, my boss, a wonderful, brilliant. Guy, business guy, philanthropist, Ben Navarro and Kelly Navarro. Um, they, you know, he's had wonderful successes that have given him, uh, all sorts of, uh, opportunity and resources. His life is really now dedicated to making sure that he's making an impact in the lives of others as well, through education and through scholarships and through our own school system, Meeting Street, uh, schools here in Charleston to, um, you know, impacting, uh, Other, other elements of policy or, or, or just helping, uh, he's teaches a class called intentionality, which, uh, you'll find interesting at the local college where he's passing on his own ideas around why living intentionally matters. Uh, and so when we were able to connect and think about, you know, what, what is the purpose of our company? Uh, [00:44:00] this was in 2021. Um, You know, what we recognize is hospitality is really a powerful anecdote to a situation in our country that we needed to help diffuse and whatever we can. And one of them was when you're staring at your phone and you're looking at Fox News or CNN or Instagram or whatever, you know, media that you're looking at, it's so easy to get pulled into, you know, This world is, you know, a bad place or that, you know, people are at odds with each other and everyone hates each other. You know, what what's going on here and what you and I know is that like, when you go to a restaurant or you go to a, You know, a park or you go to a concert or you, you are in everyday interactions. Like that's, it's not real. Like we, we are caring, loving people. I noticed yesterday I was driving home and this, um, lady, uh, was driving like an old car down the bridge.
And, you know, she, uh, had a flat tire and pulled over and there must have been nine people who [00:45:00] stopped to help her like in one way or the other. Nobody's asking like, where, you know, what, who do you vote for? What do you believe in? There's this wonderful humanity that hospitality when provided to strangers, which is what that was last night on the bridge. That's, that's the essence of, of what we feel we need. And, and, um, trans, you know, if you look at that, More broadly, we had this, you know, Elton John concert at our stadium, Credit One Stadium, uh, last year, and in the, in the box was, you know, probably one of the more conservative Republican governors, arm in arm with one of the more, uh, progressive liberal congressmen in the country, singing Benny and the Jets. And, you know, that's, that's the essence of what the world needs more of.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: totally need more of that.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: totally. And so hospitality is a great way to do that. And that's, that's what we've themed our business off of. Well, let's find ways to connect people. So, you know, um, I'm looking across my, You know, if I look out my window of my [00:46:00] office across the street at one of our hotels, uh, we spend far more money than we probably should on Christmas and holiday decorations.
And the majority, and there's hundreds of thousands of people that will pass through that building over the course of the month that we have them up. And then we do snow events three or four times a night. Uh, where it snows in this courtyard and music and it's all choreographed and people can sign up to go for free and we'll have 35, 000 people show up to go and experience this and come in from all over and we don't charge, charge a penny.
And that's that's the essence of, What we do because we're able to because we have the resources through the Navarro's and through our company that we do. We get recognized and everyone has that same position, but that's really the thesis of why we do what we do.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Um, I'm gonna just go back in time a little bit I was looking at your LinkedIn before and I didn't realize that you had um, you went to college in Switzerland How did you decide to do that?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Uh, [00:47:00] because Cornell wouldn't have me.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Ah, then you got
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Partially,
partially accurate. Uh, yeah, Cornell. No, I, I look, I grew up in hospitality. I was working since I was 13 or 14 in kitchens. I knew I wanted to do what I do. And there was only a few schools in the world that you would go to that, that are, you know, recognized as well. best in class. And now, fortunately, there's a lot more. For the time in the United States, it was Cornell, maybe one or two others. Um, and then in Europe there was, you know, a school in, uh, in, uh, outside Amsterdam. And then there was, you know, a couple of schools in Switzerland. And I loved, uh, the idea of being in Europe and being Swiss trained was kind of a dream.
I loved operations. Maybe not. I didn't. I wasn't so passionate about the business of hotels, but I was a passionate about the hotel business and wanted to be in operations. And so it just made sense that I would go and study over in search.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Wow And then did [00:48:00] you stay in Europe after school or did you come straight back?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: I came straight back. Yeah. I did internships and summers, uh, at different hotels over there, but, uh, he was hired. By the Ritz Carlton company, uh, out of college, come back to the U. S.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: And how did you get your start washing dishes?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Uh, we, there is this, I grew up in Lynchburg, Virginia. There's a great restaurant, uh, group called Meriwethers. And it was, it was just, you know, kind of the high end restaurant in town. And, uh, I had spent most of my, uh, time from eight till about 12 cooking in my grandmother and loved. The idea of bringing people to the table, love setting the table, dimming the lights, putting on music, lighting the candles. I was kind of that weird kid that was like, you know, wanted to figure out ways to bring my rowdy family of 10 people, uh, eight, seven brothers and sisters, mom, dad to a table. [00:49:00] And if, if it was more likely to go perfect, or at least for four minutes, go perfect. If, if the setting was a little more intentional.
There's like this detail around. And then that led to actually cooking these traditional meals and then taking on those traditions after my grandmother passed away. Uh, and so it just became this thing. And I just was like, I'm going to be a master chef. So where would you go to train this local kitchen?
I knew a friend who worked there. And so she got me in as a unpaid illegal, most likely, uh, you know, dishwasher and cook. And then I just worked all the way up through high school while, you know, everyone else was going and playing football or something. I was going to work in this kitchen and just loved it. The energy of it, the passion, the personalities, the weirdness, the quirkiness. I mean, there, there's just this thing that just, you know, was completely. Completely me. And, uh, that was, that was, uh, [00:50:00] how I fell in love with it.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: And if you go back to the, uh, kind of growing up within that environment, uh, and working your way up and working through high school and having your job evolve and growing, what do you think from that very formative crash course in hospitality, if you will, have you brought forward into your current role?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: The good stuff or the bad stuff?
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Well, how about both? Well, how about one of each? Give me one of each. The
best and the worst. Like, uh, we'll be a little Charles Dickens here.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: the tale of one city on the bad side, I, you know, I look, I, there's no bad. I think there are things that, uh, I, you know, growing up in a big family and big environment like that, you have different things that are just kind of, uh, You know, um, ingrained. And one of the things that, that I know probably drives my staff and team crazy is I thrive really well [00:51:00] under intense last minute pressure. And so I will sometimes artificially create that because I find it's where I, I, I generate the most creativity and, and, uh, you know, and so that, that was a product of having to be creative in a large household. You know, you just have to figure out how to be on your, Uh, be quick on your feet and figure yourself out pretty fast. Uh, I, I wish at times that, uh, I, when people are like, Oh, you got four weeks to plan this. I'm like, no, no, no. I need like three hours, give me three hours last minute and I will nail it.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Give me some good constraints and put me in a crucible and I'll figure anything out.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Right. And I've tried trying to artificially create that weeks. And I just, it doesn't have the same impact and it drives people crazy. I'm sure. But, uh, it's, it seems to work, um, for me, at
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: What about the, what about the best, what are the best attributes you learned from there?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: I'm a, um, a really good generalist. I'm not a expert in [00:52:00] any subject. Um, I am, but I am a very good generalist where I have a little bit of information about a ton of stuff. And I know enough to know where I'm over my skis and need to draw experts into different areas. So I have a decent 360 view, I think, of at least the business sense of what's happening and where we are and what's going on in these different elements and, uh, can have my Spidey sense up.
I think that's something I learned from that. And I think the other thing is that, you know, I'm also a, um, uh, I'm also, you know, I don't know if peacemaker is the right word, but I, I'm, uh, I'm able to. Bring people together, I think, and to get people aligned. Um, and I think that was one of my, uh, the outcomes of being in that, coming up through that entire environment is you just kind of figure things out and how to negotiate and how to, you know, charm people over at times or how to, uh, you know, [00:53:00] uh, sell an idea or how to, uh, resolve conflict or address. An issue proactively and, and confrontation is perfectly. Um, I'm, I love confrontation. I don't have a problem with it. And I think that's a very healthy thing. I, I seldom let something go, uh, unsaid probably to my detriment sometimes. And I think that, uh, those are things that probably came out of that.
That's my, my bet.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: All right, so thank you for sharing that, because I think it's also just a crash course in hospitality, right? You get you, you've seen pretty much all aspects of it. I want to go back to your why, just leaving a lasting impact. And
as you look. To the future in your role as president of BHC. Um, and like, I dunno, you, you, the portfolio of hotels is pretty spectacular. Um, the team that you're building, the constant intentional, um, refocusing and evolution of [00:54:00] your values and vision and purpose. The Casey that I'm talking to and everyone's listening to right now, what's exciting you most as you look forward?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: I think it's that we've only just begun and, you know, I don't know if you're like this, Dan, but I, I am by far my harshest, biggest critic and I am a, uh, you know, we'll, we'll do five things. And I'll wonder why we didn't do the other 10 things in addition to that, uh, type of type of person. And so I need to do these constant kind of check ins where I take inventory of where we are. And where we aren't. And as I think about where we are, you know, in, in a short amount of time, we've acquired an enormous portfolio that is all moving in the right direction. We're investing, you know, um, significant, uh, you know, over, 160 million dollars into the [00:55:00] Charleston place, reposition it as a luxury five star property.
We're about to open an amazing waterfront property called the Cooper, uh, that'll be open in September or October of next year, of 25. Uh, we've got a, um, uh, number of incredible assets that we are Developing, building, grooming, and there's other things on the horizon. Meanwhile, our culture, our brand is continuing to improve and enhance. The quality of our team is only improving every day. Uh, and we know more about who we need to be and where we are. Then we've ever known and nothing is in our way. Um, it's very, you know, there are a lot of times with different companies that I can say, you know, ah, if only this corporate office didn't exist, like we could take the training wheels off and this thing could be amazing.
I've said that tons of times, but only we had a different ownership structure and we didn't, we had, we didn't have such a capital strapped or strained. Um, [00:56:00] perspective of what we could do. Imagine what we could accomplish. Um, or if we only had, you know, the location, the destination aligned with what its potential is, imagine what we could do, and we don't have any of those problems. We, we are the corporate office. We can do what we need to do. We have the benefit of a, uh, aligned, uh, Investor, uh, in our owner that's able to, uh, to, to make sure that we accomplish what we have set out to accomplish for the longterm. We've got a location in the Southeast that is on fire and, and has a. You know, has complete alignment within all, you know, residences, uh, uh, or excuse me, residents, as well as municipalities as a whole, as well as, um, from the state's perspective, industry and commercial business perspective. And so when you put all those things together, it's like, man, we are just getting going. And I'm most excited about what it'll look like in three years when we have the [00:57:00] Charleston Place complete. American gardens, our park is fully open. We have the Cooper is off and running. We have. Uh, are a membership club that we're gonna be working on here shortly up and running and we have this brand that's been polished and all these brand pull throughs and details and the design elements that are, that are really, uh, what we believe they should be when you have all that, it's just super exciting to think about what this is going to accomplish because I genuinely think going back to our vision that we will be well on our way to have accomplished What we set out to do.
We won't have gotten there yet because it's one of these targets that will always be moving, but I think it's going to be a step in the right direction. We're certainly going to be further along than we are today.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Yeah, I, I love the idea of the notion that we've only just begun. It's, you know, I just feel like every day with the companies that I am a partner in or stakeholder in, Every day is the [00:58:00] beginning and it makes me think of one of my favorite sayings, which is, um, you know, when's the best time to plant a tree?
It's 20 years ago. And I just think that being an entrepreneur in hospitality or any, in anywhere is, uh, today, always the next day always offers a new start. And I don't know, that's pretty much what gets me out of bed every day too.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Yeah, no, I know what you mean. Me too.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Um, this has been really wonderful and thank you for sharing your vision and values and, and kind of what BHC is all about. Um, if people wanted to learn more, What's a good way for them to get in touch?
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: uh, my LinkedIn page, certainly on our company, BHC, LinkedIn, um, as well as Instagram, as well as Facebook. Uh, you can follow us at bhc. com. Um, and, uh, you know, there's, there's a multitude of different ways that you can plug into [00:59:00] our different businesses as well.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: Um, we'll put all that up in the show notes for everyone. Um, Casey, I know how busy you are rolling out, um, your intentionality cards and getting everyone beating to the same drum, um, and opening all these projects and, um, I just want to say thank you for taking time out of your really busy schedule to be here with all of us.
So I appreciate it.
squadcaster-2923_1_12-13-2024_095240: Dan, thank you. Yeah, this has been fun.
dan-ryan_42_12-13-2024_095240: And I want to say thank you to all of our listeners. If this changed your way of thinking about values and purpose and why, please pass it along. If you think someone else can benefit from it, please pass it along and don't forget to like, comment and subscribe. It makes a huge difference. And, um, thank you.
Thank you all for tuning in and thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
[01:00:00]
Creators and Guests
