Hospitality runs in Ryan Rivett’s blood. His grandfather was founder of Super 8 Motels and
My Place hotels, and Rivett has been president/CEO of My Place Hotels of America since 2017.
He has plans to build on his family’s legacy and continue to grow both My Place and its Trend Hotels & Suites by My Place brand. Rivett shared more details with Hotel Business.
—Abby Elyssa
Why hospitality? How has your family inspired you to work in the industry?
Growing up, hospitality was the culture surrounding my family and the focal point of success. My key role models were entertainers, and I got exposed to that from a young age, so it just became natural to me. As a career path, there was only one consideration. The hotel business was all there was, and I’ve never looked back. Is there another business that allows a person to engage in the satisfaction of others as much as the hotel business? After all, what’s more important than where you sleep? And in the context of extended-stay, where I’ve chosen to focus, what’s more important than where you sleep and eat?
What about hospitality excites and motivates you?
More so than any business I’ve observed and engaged in, the people focus of the hospitality business is the most rewarding. Every hotel is people working to create comfort, safety, enjoyment and experience for others. Whether it’s team member to team member or team member to guest, the objective is the same, and the reward always leaves an imprint.
What was your first hospitality job? What did it teach you?
As a teenager, I spent the summers working in our fishing lodge in Alaska. The setting was nothing short of unexplainable. The guests were unique, the hours were long and the pay was terrible, but I loved every minute. I learned how to talk and relate to people, as well as the value of storytelling and that sharing an experience was more important than anyone’s role within that experience.
What are some of your goals as CEO this year?
As a leader, the goal should always be to see people grow and succeed as leaders. This year, not unlike any other, my goal is to see my team grow and succeed in their disciplines and the success they take home to their families. With respect to the franchise company and our chain, realizing milestones in the maturity of our support systems and full implementation of innovations that have been developing as we have grown are the most significant goals I have this year.
What’s your five-year plan for My Place?
Growth. We have a tremendous amount of infrastructure that propels us forward, so we’ll keep riding that wave. While the core My Place brand continues to be our strongest objective, I see our complementary brand, Trend Hotels & Suites by My Place, really hitting the opportunity curve in the next couple of years. Internal and collaborative technology development is a huge priority for us, and I expect that, in the next five years, My Place’s tech ecosystem will become much more independent and tailored to the system’s needs.
As a leader, what did you learn from the pandemic? How has your role as CEO shifted post-COVID?
I’m always learning, but I can’t say I credit the pandemic with many contributions to my learning process. That said, I think the perspective shift required by many circumstances surrounding the pandemic increased my awareness of the value of simple, timely communications. During the pandemic, my role shifted away from franchise development and more into operations as we accommodated abnormal circumstances. Now, we’re back to where it was before.
Can you talk about My Place’s company culture?
It’s a family. People challenge each other. We share in the processes of finding solutions. We step on each other’s toes and embrace each other’s challenges. We’ve largely avoided corporate bureaucracy and unhealthy competition by keeping dialogue open across administrative levels and focusing on buy-in as a fundamental measure of value produced. We love to entertain; we get excited about having people over and welcoming them into My Place. Parties are stimulated easily.
What challenges do you expect to face this year? How are you working to overcome those?
The cost of doing business and navigating chaotic regulatory and political environments are the biggest challenges that our industry presently faces. We’re right there with the rest of the industry, but I think because of our size and our culture, we’re in a very good position to overcome those challenges without significantly impacting our growth and development. We are adaptive, and it has served us very well over the past several years—this year is no different.
What’s the best advice you’ve received and what advice do you have for aspiring hospitality professionals?
Listen first. If you know what your audience, stakeholders and opponents are looking for and expecting, you can understand how best to navigate challenges and objectives for success.
Why is hospitality a great career for young professionals?
Hospitality, more so than any other business, is about people. People serving people—to experience that early in your career builds considerable value, regardless of where your life and career may take you.
