In 2015, John Rubino, then SVP, operations for Island Hospitality Management, was the keynote speaker for the Penn State University School of Hospitality Management graduation ceremony. His son Eric, who was graduating with a BS in hospitality administration/management, was in the audience.
“It was a really exciting moment for me to be there and share that experience with him that way,” said John, who’s also a graduate of the school. “It’s one of those lifetime moments I’ll never forget.”
Eric said it was “a proud moment to be able to sit there and listen to his speech,” adding, “It was cool to be able to sit next to my fellow classmates and hear that wisdom imparted on us from somebody who I’ve had a lot of respect for my entire life.”
Today, the Rubinos are leading Scranton, PA-based Extreme Hospitality into its next chapter. The company began as a consulting firm and, upon John’s appointment as CEO last month, is now providing clients third-party management services.
John Rubino was named Extreme Hospitality CEO upon the launch of third-party management services.
Eric, who is COO/principal of the company, shared that it launched in 2016 and “was born out of a gap that we saw in the marketplace as a consulting company to assist first-time owners and developers in developing their hotel assets and guiding them strategically through that process, with some hotel expertise along the way. Once those properties opened, we began helping them with owner advisory services, which, ultimately, became our asset management service line.”
According to John, who is also principal/co-owner, the company has an advantage in the hotel management space because it is small, relative to most third-party operators.
“We’re able to personalize plans to address specific issues that an owner might be having at their property and take on those challenges and any others we find,” he said. “We’re small enough to give that personalized attention, but large enough in that we have broad industry knowledge. We refer to that as CBI, which is ‘community-based individuals with corporate business intelligence.’ We take that same approach with our hotels, and we bring that to the community as well, getting involved with the areas where our hotels are.”
While the company has primarily focused on asset management, consulting and “ad-hoc engagements,” as Eric put it, he said, “We’re excited to now be providing third-party operations as an additional service line to our existing suite of clients, and also expand into helping other clients needing that service.”
Extreme Hospitality has a policy of not revealing the hotels in its portfolio, but he pointed out that the company has worked with a diverse group of properties.
“We work with everything from small boutique properties and independents with a handful of rooms, to independent properties with hundreds of rooms and franchise locations in various types of markets,” he said. “We also work with some standalone restaurants and bars. We’ve even ventured into other real estate classes when they needed help.”
John Rubino, Extreme Hospitality
The elder Rubino has served in numerous roles in the industry, having spent 25 years at Interstate Hotels & Resorts, five-plus years at GF Hotels & Resorts and a year at the aforementioned Island Hospitality Management. He had never been a CEO before last month.
“There’s not much that I have not done in the industry,” he said. “I’ve worked as a dishwasher, server, front-desk clerk, general manager, regional trainer, COO and president. I’ve either done it, managed it or led it. I’ve held numerous roles, but I’ve primarily led teams, which thoroughly prepared me for this venture as CEO and co-owner of the company. I like being able to lead because I can use my knowledge and everything that I’ve gained in the industry to help an asset perform better by leading the on-site team, making me personally responsible while also being accountable to the client on the performance of the asset.”
It’s not unusual in this industry for a father and son (or daughter) to work together leading a company, but when talking to the two Rubinos, it’s easy to recognize their special bond.
“Eric has always inspired me,” said his father. “There have been many proud moments of seeing him operate like he does. He’s knowledgeable about the industry in so many capacities, but he manages with respect to get things accomplished and impact results.”
John said that Eric’s interest in hospitality blossomed early in his life, recalling a time when his son came to visit his office when he was in grade school.
“I was on a call with a hotel team while Eric listened to our conversation being conducted on speaker,” the elder Rubino explained. “He motioned to put the call on mute and then said to me, ‘What you should say is…,’ and he had his opinion on how I should have addressed the situation. At that moment, I knew he was listening to learn and truly got it. Eric has the natural ability to be in the business. Combining that with his determination, his education and his hard work makes him unstoppable.”
Eric has not lost sight of how his father mentored him to become the executive he is today, calling John “one of the greatest mentors one can have in the industry.”
Eric Rubino, Extreme Hospitality
He added, “I don’t know what industry I may have ended up in had he not introduce me to hospitality. We’ve always had some level of interaction professionally since I graduated college. Working side-by-side growing a company together is really special.”
Having your dad as a mentor means he will offer advice when needed. While Eric couldn’t point out a specific piece of advice that stood out, “The tone was always the same: Lead with kindness and with your heart,” he said. “He’s always taught me to not forget that it is a people-first business, and I think that has really helped me to keep empathy in mind in every conversation I’ve had, regardless of where in the industry it’s taking place. Oftentimes, I sit in meetings or interact with clients when he’s not there, and I think, ‘How would he say it?’ or ‘What would he do?’ It’s always present in my mind.”
The pair told the story of how John’s speaking engagement at Eric’s graduation came about.
“I remember getting the phone call asking if I would speak at graduation,” John recalled. “The first thing I thought was that I had to make sure Eric was OK with it because it was his day. I made that phone call to him, and hearing him say he was excited and proud made me feel really good.”
When John called, Eric was traveling to Atlanta to attend the Hunter Hotel Investment Conference with some administrators from Penn State’s School of Hospitality Management because “I was nominated to go by John W. O’Neill, the school’s director. I got my first job in the industry through a connection I met that week.”
Eric pointed out that there were many memorable quotes in that speech. “One that stands out is ‘Never reply to an email when you’re angry.’ I think that sums up the person and the type of leader he is,” he said.
Like many other management firms, the company culture is an important piece of the puzzle for the Extreme Hospitality leaders and its employees. John explained that he and Eric look for people who are “smart, ambitious and go-getters” to join the team, “but they must also be professional, respectful and kind. Above all, it’s about doing what is right, and that can only be accomplished by possessing strong moral and ethical values in every transaction and interaction.”
He added, “I encourage every leader at every level, from supervisory to managerial to C-suite, to treat your team members not the way you, yourself, want to be treated, but to treat them the way you would want your loved ones to be treated. In most situations, we have higher expectations of how our loved ones are treated, and we would tend to put up with mistreatment for ourselves more than we would tolerate it for others.”
John also offered this advice to other leaders: “You should want the people that work for you to want to come to work every day and enjoy it. You don’t know what their home life is like. It might be the best eight hours of their day when they spend it with you or at your hotel.”
Eric noted that culture cultivation “is something that my father has done his entire career and bringing that into our company is a cornerstone of every single conversation that we have.”
When John was asked what the future holds for their company, the industry veteran deferred to his son because “he really has a plan for growth that we both signed off on, and we’re excited to be able to do that together.”
So what is that plan? “I see us continuing our growth both organically and inorganically,” Eric said. “We’re looking to work with clients, individually, one property at a time, helping them grow their portfolio and making an impact with each of their investments and across their hotel and hospitality holdings.”
He didn’t rule out growing via mergers and acquisitions of other third-party management companies, as well as strategic partnerships.
“We’re a little different than a lot of groups that are looking to do that because we’re not private equity-backed,” Eric noted. “We’re entrepreneurial, and we’re excited to look at strategic alliances and acquisitions where we can bring those properties into our portfolio and provide even better service. And we can bring those associates into the culture that we’re building and provide them an even better work-life balance and an ability to grow their careers professionally, while making sure we’re providing great service to our clients.”
He concluded, “So while we’re looking to grow, we’re not looking to grow just to grow. We’re being cautious and organized in how we look at it, and we’re also coming to the industry with a different approach than what you’re seeing out there.”
