Our guest on Defining Hospitality this week is an architect with over 2 decades of experience designing spaces. He’s a renowned leader who thrives in the intersection of hospitality, real estate development and technology. Welcome to the show, President of The Hardy Group, Brent Hardy! Dan shares the mic with Brent to learn more about Brent’s background and how The Hardy Group has grown. In this episode, Brent shares strategies for balancing vision and budget, highlights the importance of effective communication, and looks towards the future of the hospitality industry. 

Takeaways: 

• For Brent, hospitality is more than just a hotel building or an office space. Hospitality is about the interactions with people, and appreciating the moments throughout the whole experience.
• When working on a project, balancing vision with budget is a necessary aspect that takes planning. While making changes to your design is never the first plan, your team needs to be collaborative on making adjustments to fit budget constraints.  
• When new clients enter the industry, they don’t fully understand the operational requirements or a property. When helping design new buildings, you’ll need to communicate the nuances of planning for operations.
• As the industry matures, it’s more important than ever to have a plan for training your next generation. Build out opportunities for them to grow as professionals and to step into leadership roles.
• When looking towards the future, companies with a strong foundation need to be focusing on expanding their vision. Find new entrances to the market, try new ideas, and identify missed opportunities from the company’s history.
• When working with a client for the first time, they may have concerns. To instill confidence in your clients, you need to demonstrate both technical aptitude and a level of passion for what you do. Passion for your work is integral in building trust.
• While clients don’t need to know every technical detail on a product, they do want to know you understand their concerns. By putting yourself in their shoes, and empathizing with their needs, you build a stronger relationship.

Quote of the Show:

• “10 years from now, if we’re doing the exact same thing we’re doing now, we’ve made a mistake.” - Brent Hardy

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brent-hardy-aia-ishc-20706353/ 
• Website: http://www.jhgi.com/ 

Shout Outs:

• 24:42 - University of Illinois 
• 33:54 - Danny Meyer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhmeyer/ 
• 33:56 - Setting The Table: https://a.co/d/j03hDnF 

Ways to Tune In: 

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0A2XOJvb6mGqEPYJ5bilPX
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/defining-hospitality-podcast/id1573596386
• Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmaW5pbmdob3NwaXRhbGl0eS5saXZlL2ZlZWQueG1s
• Amazon Music: ​​https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/8c904932-90fa-41c3-813e-1cb8f3c42419