TTT | Ricco De Blank | CEO SHKP | S02EP11
Channel: techtalk.travel
Date: 2018-12-17

It was a great pleasure to sit down with Ricco for this interview. I was lucky enough to catch him whilst he was visiting Amsterdam leading up to Christmas. 

Given it has recently been announced he was stepping down as CEO of Sun Hung Kai Properties based out of Hong Kong, it was an excellent time to sit down with him to understand some of the qualities that have made him such an industry influencer with the world of luxury branded hospitality. 

Prior to transitioning to the property development side, Ricco was General Manager of one of the most beautiful hotels in the world, The Ritz Carlton Tokyo. It was there I first met Ricco during the pre-opening stages of that project in 2006. It was very apparent to me then, that Ricco was someone who does not accept second best. He holds himself to the same high standards that he expects of everyone that works in his team. He is a true professional.

As Ricco said in the interview, working in the hotel industry requires patience, like a good bottle of wine, only getting better with age, so will the career of someone who fully commits to being a hotelier.

Chapters
2:04 Chapter One - Ricco's background
5:57 Chapter Two - Experience with hotel tech
9:28 Chapter Three - Phones in the room
11:22 Chapter Four - Who is Sun Hung Kai Properties
12:17 Chapter Five - The life of a hotel property developer CEO
14:35 Chapter Six - WeChat's influence on travel
17:15 Chapter Seven - Relevance of hotel management companies
21:58 Chapter Eight - Acquisitions and Data Security 
25:44 Chapter Nine - The GM of a luxury branded hotel
30:32 Chapter Ten - Ricco's advice to starting a hotel career

Ricco De Blank LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricco-de-blank/

Website: https://www.techtalk.travel
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/techtalk-travel/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/TechTalkTravel
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/techtalk.travel/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/techtalk.travel/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-738331289

Opening & Closing Music:
https://soundcloud.com/andrewapplepie/running
https://soundcloud.com/andrewapplepie/sungodown