Today’s guest is an entrepreneur and opportunist at heart. With over 30 years of experience in the hospitality industry, he has discovered his favorite part is “wowing” his clients. Please welcome to the show, Scott Lee! Scott is the President and Principal at SB Architects. Scott joins the host Dan Ryan to share his experiences from working on the architecture of a prison to where he is now. 

Takeaways: 

• Hospitality at its core is about truly experiencing the place you are staying at. Whether it’s going away on vacation or visiting a familiar place, a great hospitality experience is defined by coming home and sharing stories of what you experienced while away.
• When you are looking to add people to your design firm, you want to strike the balance of getting like minded individuals as well as getting people that will help push the envelope in a positive way. 
• Hiring people that are a cultural fit for your firm is a key component of doing interviews. If they aren’t a cultural fit, then don’t waste time looking at their drawings or design ideas as it will never work out right.
• One way to keep employees motivated and committed to your company is to sell them a piece of the company. This way they behave like owners and take more responsibility and they will feel a sense of ownership and pride as the company grows.
• New ideas can come from anybody at a company. There is no such thing as bad ideas so it’s a good idea to make your company feel like it’s an open environment where everyone is allowed to speak up and share ideas.
• Some people consider luxury to be crown moldings or marble on marble or other extravagant trappings, but there is more of a shift over to focusing on the quality of the luxury you are receiving rather than the quantity of it.
• Scott’s biggest advice to his younger self is to take risks and don’t be afraid to try something new. If you are waiting for that perfect time it might never come and life will pass you by, so jump in and take a chance. 

Quote of the Show:

2:22 “I think hospitality is going to a place and experiencing the place.”

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-a-lee/
• Website: https://sb-architects.com/

Shout Outs:

0:51 David Kennedy

3:31 Hill Glazier Architects

6:45 Rivana at Innovation Station

7:00 Michael Hsu

16:05 Don Sandy

16:12 Sandy Babcock

16:17 Ritz-Carlton

25:59 Farmhouse Inn

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
• Podbean: https://www.defininghospitality.live/
• YouTube : https://youtu.be/WDYRN7OF03o