Meet the Mentor: Melissa Stoman
Melissa Stoman is the Operational Task Force at Accor hospitality group. She has progressed all the way from waiter to Operational Director, overseeing nine hotels in six different Countries. Having Melissa come on board as a mentor is amazing for our mentees. Her experience is so wide-ranging and is sure to inspire and empower so many people within the programme.
We sat down with Melissa and asked her about her time in the industry so far and why mentoring is so important!
How did you get into the industry? Where did it start for you?
Towards the end of High School, my father asked me what I want to do with my life. I recalled my sister once talking about being a Hotel Manager and as it was a weekend, I did not want to have a heavy "what are you doing with your life conversation"; so I blurted out Hotel Manager. Three months later, I was working in a Hotel as a Banqueting Waiter. That was the start of my journey.
Do you think having access to mentors would have helped you in your career?
Tremendously! A sounding board that perhaps frames your perspective in a different way almost always helps with clarity. I certainly did not know the different avenues available in such a diverse industry.
Who has been a good mentor to you in your career so far?
Michelle Pughe-Parry de Klerk founder of The Women's Chapter. I admire her approach to her career. She is a natural Peer Mentor. Many twenty-minute conversations with Michelle asking the right questions have resulted in some of my best career decisions.
What is your best, worst or funniest hospitality story?
There are so many, but what always sticks in my mind is a time when I was working as an event coordinator. A Marques tent company hit a water main during the installation for a wedding. This resulted in the entire outdoor venue's brick floor lifting like a tidal wave. To jump on the flooring covering the space of ten, ten-seater tables to then have to even the flooring and lay the tables took most of the night. For the entire wedding there was no water in the building and to top the evening off, a guest lit a hymn sheet on fire with the candle on the table. I calmly took it out of his hand into an ice bucket behind us and he just kept signing while I exhaled, blistered hand and all. The bride NEVER knew of any of it.
What hospitality brand is worth keeping an eye on for 2023? What company do you think is doing really exciting things right now?
Ennismore the hotel group. Check them out!
Do you think you need higher education to be a success in the hospitality sector?
I am in two minds about this. My career progressed all the way from waiter to Operational Director overseeing nine hotels in six different Countries. Although I have focused on self-development nonstop, I did not have formal higher education. Therefore, the answer should be no. However, a large percentage of the industry still specifies vacancies that a degree is required in order to apply for. I am very excited that skills-based hiring is on the rise.
Would you recommend others to do the mentoring programme? Both as a mentee and a mentor.
Yes, there are too many benefits not to.
If you’d like to join the Otolo Hospitality Mentoring Programme, you can do so here:
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