Around the hospitality world with Minesh Raniga, Regional Finance Director for Hilton
Welcome back to the FocusCore podcast and thanks for listening. In today’s episode, host David Sweet is joined by the Regional Finance Director for Hilton Worldwide International, Minesh Raniga.
As you listen, you’ll understand why David really likes Minesh and had to interview him for the podcast - he’s warm, friendly, open - the personification of great hospitality. Which, as a long term Japan resident and the architect of a long and esteemed CV in hospitality is not a surprise. Minesh’s career has taken him globally and we’re excited to share his career journey and his insights on the hospitality industry and working in Japan on the podcast.
In this episode you will hear:
- Minesh’s journey from growing up in Fiji and moving to Australia to study
- How his first career as an accountant at one of the Big Four firms was not for him and how he found himself working in finance at Sheraton Hotels by chance
- What he loved about working for the Sheraton Hotel group and why he stayed for nine years
- Resigning to move to the Gold Coast, Australia to open a pizza and ice-cream shop with his brother-in-law, a pastry chef
- Getting itchy feet and rejoining Sheraton Hotels in Malaysia and then Bangladesh before moving to Miyazaki in Japan
- What his first thoughts of moving to Japan to work were when he in arrived in 2008
- What it was like working in hospitality in a financial role after 2011’s Earthquake
- Moving to Tokyo to work for the Hilton Hotel brand and why he moved
- How working and living in Japan has changed and evolved the way Minesh works and what lessons we could all learn from Japanese colleagues
- How Minesh is trying to lead the Japan Hilton hotels into the modern technology era - no easy task in a country that still heavily relies on faxes
- What the challenges are as Finance Director in a country of high labour costs and in an industry that has been impacted by Covid
- The difference between Japanese hotel customers and other hotel customers - from the amenities they use and expect to how they book their hotel experience
Connect with Minesh Raniga:
Website: https://www.hilton.com/en/corporate/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/minesh-raniga-b1a5a94/
Links of things mentioned in this episode:
EQ Travel - https://www.eqtravel.com/
Waldorf Astoria Japan - https://newsroom.hilton.com/waldorf/news/waldorf-astoria-to-make-japanese-debut-in-tokyo
Connect with David Sweet:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/drdavidsweet/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/focuscorejp
Facebook: :https://www.facebook.com/focuscoreasia
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/focuscorejp/
Website: https://www.japan.focuscoregroup.com/
Doin’ the Uptown Lowdown,” used by permission of Christopher Davis-Shannon. To find out more, check out www.thetinman.co. Support independent musicians and artists.
