Glassdoor: Employee Satisfaction (or lack thereof) in the Travel Industry

Glassdoor.com, a cool website where "anyone can find and anonymously share an inside look at jobs and companies" has provided an interesting peek at job satisfaction inside the travel industry.

Travel is probably an industry Glassdoor knows something about given the site's founders which include such industry notables as Bob Hohman (Hotwire, Expedia) Tim Besse (Expedia) Ryan Aylward (EzRez, Hotwire) along with a few others who serve on the board who've spent a bit of time in travel: Rich Barton, Erik Blachford and Stephen Kaufer.

And what has Glassdoor, which garners its information from current and former employees, come up with? Might as well start with the OTAs since Glassdoor practically grew up in the OTA world:

The chart above details the approval ratings of the companies themselves and their CEOs as reported by the employees who came to Glassdoor and left feedback. (Hugh Jones isn't rated because of a limited number of responses - probably because he is still new in the role.) Looks like Hotwire is a pretty good place to work - we'll leave it to you to decide if that is because all of these guys left to start Glassdoor or not. (Just kidding, Ryan et al)

Glassdoor's info gets more interesting looking at hoteliers:
The highest rated CEO, Issy Sharp, has just announced that he is stepping down - a real shame according to this report. Bill Marriott and Hyatt's Hoplamazian are just a hair behind Sharp, however.

Not surprisingly, airlines show by far the greatest variability from one to another:

Things appear pretty bleak over at American and American Eagle - with labor strife a way of life at AA, clearly Something isn't Special in the Air. Even US Airways pulls better rankings. Southwest and JetBlue, as usual, prove that they are run more like hoteliers than airlines with ratings like these. (oh, they make money like hoteliers, too)

But the big takeaway? Continental and United - look a the difference in internal company ratings. Glassdoor doesn't have a rating for Jeff, but boy do they have one for Glenn. This is going to be one interesting merger, don't you think?

Feds Ask to Halt Civil Rossgate Lawsuit - Criminal Charges Instead for Hilton?

AP is reporting that Federal prosecutors have filed a motion in the ongoing Hilton/Starwood Hotels saga saying that the current civil litigation could harm a criminal investigation.

According to the AP, "The filing Friday by the U.S. Attorney's Office says it is pursuing possible charges of conspiracy, computer fraud, theft of trade secrets and interstate transportation of stolen goods against Hilton and two executives it hired away from Starwood"

Starwood has been pursuing two ex-Starwood executives who are accused of making off with truckloads of confidential documents which were used in the development of Hilton's now ill-fated lifestyle brand, Denizen.

"Hiltonizing:" A New Verb in Continuing Starwood/Hilton Fight

We've been watching this lawsuit go forward with interest for some time now. As you'll recall, Starwood sued Hilton over two senior executives (Ross Kline and Amar Lalvani) who departed and managed to show up at Hilton with seemingly truckloads of confidential documents relating to Starwood's luxury brands. Hilton fired Ross and Amar and sent the documents back to Starwood but claimed they didn't really appear to be confidential documents. Denizen, Hilton's new luxury brand, bit the dust soon after the first lawsuit was filed. The suit even contains a quote from this blog describing the similarity of Denizen to W at the brand launch - what foresight!

As first reported in today's WSJ, Starwood filed an amended complaint today in New York District Court alledging further wrong-doing by Hilton. Most shocking in the new complaint is the seemingly personal attacks against Hilton CEO Nassetta. Starwood is going for the jugular by attacking the senior management team at Hilton.

We've pulled the document (all 130+ pages of it) and posted it here for your weekend reading pleasure.

But in case you don't have time or inclination, we'll post a few of the best parts of this spectacle below:

It appears that the sheer amount of documents (and copies thereof) were truly enormous. Starwood (with just a touch of drama-queen) writes in the amended complaint:

"Hilton has delivered to Starwood hundreds of thousands of pages of documents and computer files retrieved from Hilton offices and the homes of Hilton employees around the world, and there is no end in sight. Deliveries of documents pursuant to the Preliminary Injunction continue, and documents were received as recently as yesterday, nearly a year later. This mountain of undisputed evidence...."

And many of the documents were sent by "Starwood employees used as corporate spies" recruited by Klien using personal email accounts with cute notes attached to the files like: “fyi, I do not ck this email from work so it is ok to send stuff on.” Obviously, the computer science major who wrote these words didn't quite understand how nothing is really ever "ok to send stuff on"

And here is a great quote from an email from Lalvani regarding a potential W in Thailand: “Here’s an interesting one. . . . I have good connections with the owner. Lets discuss protocol during my transition on deals like this so we don’t miss them but also dealing with the fact we don’t have a lifestyle offering yet. This is going to be fun!!” Fun indeed.

And Hilton allegedly made it easy for all of the team to use the Starwood documents by uploading them onto Hilton's common drive:

“[W]ere you able to retrieve that strategic development list of cities/countries from Amar’s discs? Maybe you sent it and I missed it? We now need it urgently. Could you send to me or show me where to search?”

In response, Swierk informed Mani:
“I asked Joy to put all of those documents on the s: drive so they are all located in s:HPP/HPP Development/W docs.”

And "Hiltonizing" the stolen documents was a top priority:

"Further to our discussions earlier today, I think we need to have your team work with you ASAP on Hiltonizing this and sharing it with the Exec Group ASAP."

Starwood's asks of the Court in response to Hilton's actions are unprecedented; the best of which include:

• Court appointment of one or more “monitors” to assure Hilton’s compliance with all injunctions and Hilton’s non-use, directly, indirectly or derivatively of any Starwood Confidential Information or information derived therefrom;

• Euthanizing Hilton’s terminally infected Denizen Hotels brand;

• Imposing a “penalty box” or “time out” enjoining for an appropriate time period any further development of Hilton’s luxury and lifestyle brands to compensate Starwood for Hilton’s unjust enrichment from its wrongful use of Starwood Confidential Information across all of Hilton’s luxury and lifestyle brands

Starwood is asking for a baby sitter to watch over Hilton and is even suggesting a "time out" - obviously the drafting lawyer has children.

Still, our favorite has to be the request to "euthanize" the "terminally infected" Denizen brand. Again, spectacular drama.

As we mentioned, Starwood is clearly going in for the kill with this - but at what cost we wonder? Lawsuits are not Starwood's core business - hospitality is. If the allegations are true, Starwood is clearly entitled to relief but one wonders if such a nasty public feud is in the best interests of anyone.

American's Complaint Against Imhof Joining Delta - Now Viewable Here

Here is the actual complaint American had lodged against Charles Imhof, former MD-Passenger Sales at AA.

While not nearly as soap-opera worthy as the Starwood/Hilton complaint but we really have to wonder about the basic judgement skills of a senior executive with AA. Sending highly confidential files clearly marked as such to a personal email address days before resigning to take a similar role at a chief competitor? Downloading sensitive documents onto a stick? Negotiating an employment agreement from his AA.com email address? ReAAlly?

Read the complaint and make your own decision.

Round I: Starwood vs. Hilton, Round II: AA vs. DL

Crains NY is reporting that American Airlines has filed a lawsuit against Chuck Imhof who recently left the top sales position at AA in New York for a similar role heading up Delta's sales efforts. The suit alleges that Mr. Imhof, prior to his resignation, emailed confidential strategy and pricing documents to a personal email account from his work account.

Sounds quite similar to the current saga unfolding between Starwood and Hilton where several senior executives departed Starwood for Hilton and, according to Starwood's complaint, decided to take more than a few confidential documents along to jump-start their future careers.

AA is sueing to prevent Imhof from working for Delta and is also suing him personally to claw back deferred compensation, performance bonuses and stock options as well as legal fees.

We are waiting for a copy of the actual complaint - we'll have more to share after we review.

"Rossgate" Continues - Federal Grand Jury Subpeonas Documents From Hilton

Today, a federal grand jury in New York requested documents from Hilton relating to the allegations that two former Starwood executives (Ross Klein and Amar Lalvani) improperly removed thousands of sensitive and confidential documents relating to Starwood's luxury brands. According to Starwood, these documents were used to enable Hilton to dramatically shorten the time required to bring Denizen to market. In addition, they contained valuable proprietary data about Starwood's development pipeline, developers etc

Hilton has "temporarily" suspended development of the Denizen brand and suspended both Ross and Amar on paid leave.

Oddly enough, however, Hilton has not suspended Ross and Amar from the Denizen website. They are still prominently featured as the brand leaders.














As an aside, we can't help but laugh at how similar Ross looks in this picture to former Starwood Hotels CEO Barry Sternlicht. Funnier still because Barry was the original brains behind the W brand long before Ross arrived on the scene.


This investigation will prove a huge distraction for both Hilton and Starwood over the coming months - how much time will both chains focus on these efforts vs. generating revenue in these trying times?

And how will this change Hilton's development pipeline? We can't imagine that many developers (what few that are in fact looking right now) will be looking to sign a deal with Denizen anytime soon - today's developments should open new opportunities for other, non-Hilton brands in the "lifestyle brand" category.

How far beyond Ross and Amar did the knowledge of these documents go within Hilton? That could be the difference between this affair bringing down just the two Denizens vs. something much broader.

Starwood sues Hilton over Denizen - "Zengate"

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide (HOT) has sued Hilton Hotels over trade secrets relating to Hilton's new brand, Denizen. We previously discussed Denizen when it was launched a few weeks ago in Berlin and noted its remarkable similarities to Starwood's W Brand. However, at the time, we chalked it up to Ross Klein's memory and panache. (Hey, Panache isn't a bad name for a boutique brand, is it?)

If Starwood's claims are true, it may be more than simply enduring style and charm that helped define Denizen. Starwood claims "This is the clearest imaginable case of corporate espionage, theft of trade secrets, unfair competition and computer fraud." Strong words indeed.

So, what, if anything, might have Ross taken with him? Revenue projections and past performance? Bliss soap samples? Music play list for the elevators? This isn't like stealing the recipe for Coke or the nuclear launch codes but it clearly sounds as if Ross left with more than a towel or two.

Indeed, according to Starwood, Ross and Amar departed with literally boxes (8 of them!) of documents detailing extensive market research, sensitive management contracts and blueprints for developing a new brand - something Starwood clearly knows a few things about given the launches of W, Element, and aloft.

Starwood has also sought a full injunction against Hilton from using any of the documents in launching the Denizen brand which, if successful, could effectively shutter the brand for some time.

It will be interesting to watch this play out in court. And it will be a huge distraction for both chains at a time when revenue generation is critical.

Denizen: Hilton's 2nd new brand in as many months

Hilton announced their latest brand, Denizen, here in Berlin this morning. Denizen will be Hilton's entire into the "lifestyle brand" category pioneered by Starwood Hotels' W brand. Not coincidentally, Denizen will be led by former W boss Ross Klein.

And why "Denizen?" Merriam-Webster defines Denizen as "an inhabitant" and while Dictionary.com takes a more suave approach with "a person who regularly frequents a place; habitué: the denizens of a local bar." Klein defines Denizen as meaning literally "citizen of the world" which is somewhat humorous given the next definition from Dictionary.com: "a person admitted to residence in a foreign country ; especially : an alien admitted to rights of citizenship" - that sounds like the startings of a debate on immigration.

Denizen sounds to be cut from the same cloth as W in many respects - a focus on large, urban destinations, cutting edge design, anticipating guests' needs in advance, cutting edge technology etc. Sounds a bit like Marriott's Edition as well.

No actual confirmed locations were announced but the usual suspects (along with a few new, non-W cities) were listed: Abu Dhabi, Austin, Beverly Hills (California), Buenos Aires, Cancun, Hollywood (California), Istanbul, Jerusalem, Las Vegas, London, Los Cabos, Miami, Montreal, Mumbai, New York City, Panama City and Washington D.C.

Lets hope the hotels run better than the new website, www.denizenhotels.com which is crawling along at a very pokey pace today.

Hilton to Launch Home2 Suites Extended Stay Product

Today Hilton announced a new brand, Home2 Suites by Hilton. You might think that its an odd time to launch a new brand in the beleaguered hospitality space but this brand may have staying power.

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/090126/20090126005319.html?.v=1

Consider that Hilton claims to already have 10 franchise applications - most importantly with financing in place. If you are a developer looking for a brand to put on a new build - the power of Hilton global sales force, marketing programs and HHonors program is not to be dismissed. This is a huge advantage for Hilton.

Next, the brand itself is right for the times. In tough times, what sounds better than a "homey" suite to curl up in? The style is "hip and humble" according to Hilton - sounds like a significant upgrade to Hilton's current Homewood Suite offering which is plenty humble but certainly not hip.

Home2 has many similar design elements to Starwood's aloft product but will probably not have the jarring music as you walk in the door. It sounds more like a home than aloft's "everyone should check-in in a bar/nightclub" approach. Sounds good for the times.

But apart from more light and less music (we hope) many things are pretty similar between the brands. Consider:

• Similar number of keys (90-180 for aloft, 108 for Home2)
• Small real estate footprint required for construction
  
• Community lobby meant for gusts to "hang out" and work in (aloft's is more like a bar and Home2's feels more akin to a Starbucks)
  
• Free wireless throughout the hotel
• Small indoor pools, outdoor areas for socializing
• And of course, a green approach with things like bulk shower dispensers; dual-flush toilets; and recycled flooring

Granted, aloft's product isn't designed to be an extended stay product but the similarities are remarkable.

And at least Hilton will allow us to capitalize the first letter - home2 would have been painful.