Welcome to another episode of In Search of Excellence. It’s a true pleasure to have Tony Capuano as our guest today! Tony is the President and CEO of Marriott International, the world's largest hospitality company with nearly 8,600 properties in 139 countries and over 31 brands, including JW Marriott, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts, BVLGARI Hotels & Resorts, The Ritz-Carlton, Westin Hotels, and Resorts and Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, among many others.

Marriott also has the travel industry's largest customer loyalty program, Marriott Bonvoy, which has more than 186 million members! Tony sits on the board of directors of McDonald's Corporation and Save Venice, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the artistic heritage of Venice, Italy, which since its founding in 1971, has funded the conservation of nearly 2,000 individual artworks.

 
01:56 Tony’s family, childhood and early years

- The importance of work ethic
- The impact of Tony’s father and grandfather
- His parents divorced, lived with his father
- Very self-sufficient from an early age
- Played lacrosse at school
- First job as a pot washer at Toby’s Dinner Theatre
- Fell in love with the hospitality business
- There are no bad jobs, everything can be a learning opportunity


09:39 Interns and the operating side of the business

- Tony’s experience with his interns
- A member of the Dean's Advisory Board at the Hospitality School at Cornell
- Students who have a passion for the operating side of the business
- Tony has a lot of optimism for the future of the industry


12:58 Job interviews after graduation

- Cornell School of Hotel Administration
- After 8 job interviews, got 7 offers and 1 rejection from Marriott
- The importance of humility
- Tony had deep admiration for the Marriott Company
- Joined them in 1995


16:24 Working in a consulting firm

- “A and B work” message from his boss that changed his perspective
- Your work impacts your team, customers, and investors
- Catchphrases from Bill Marriott and his father
- Success is never final


22:02 Joining Marriott during their hardships

- Worked under Kenneth Leventhal as a consultant
- Got to do significant international work
- But he had a burning desire to be inside the projects
- Was always impressed with Marriott’s intellect, integrity, and innovation


24:36 The importance of being in the right place at the right time

- Working until 10 pm
- Raised with a strong work ethic
- Carol Wagner and a trip to New York
- Working until the job was done

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