Life!

Young hotelier’s destiny and dedication

She was just accompanying her then boyfriend to Cebu for his final interview in the pre-opening period of Plantation Bay Resort and Spa when one of the resort owners encouraged her to apply as well.

Destiny had it that she would be hired. Eighteen years later, Nenette Gumabon Castillon has advanced to become the General Manager of this world-class all-Cebuano resort. (Plantation Bay Resort and
Spa marks its 18th anniversary on July 17.)

Of course, it didn’t happen overnight. And something happened that also put her life at risk. Nenette and some co-workers were on their way home from a Christmas party on a Friday the 13th in December 2002 when NBI agents mistook them for outlaws and riddled their resort van with bullets.

But she has moved on from all that. And today, be it conquering a learning curve, or showing a guest around the resort, the pretty GM who graduated Cum Laude from the University of St. La Salle-Bacolod does it with grace and her signature smile.

Play! cornered Nenette for an interview and asked her about her new position as GM and passion for yoga.

What was your ambition growing up? Did you imagine managing a resort someday?

No, not really. Simple lang. I wanted to become a flight attendant, or a newscaster. Up to now, I really enjoy watching flight attendants do their job, especially in international flights. But, as a kid, I had motion sickness. Even for just a short ride, I would get dizzy. So I ended up taking up Mass Comm in college.

What was your entry point in Plantation Bay?
I was part of the service crew of McDonald’s in Bacolod while I was in college. It was a fad back then when McDonald’s opened in the Philippines, parang sikat ka when you’re working at the same time you are in school. I was with the local marketing team. We were the ones in red. I handled kiddie parties and such for three years until I finished college. I continued working because it was fun. I got promoted to assistant store manager before I left. And then we have friends who knew the owners of Plantation Bay. The hiring was in Cebu and I was just accompanying my boyfriend, who was eventually hired. And then, one of the owners suggested that I go for an interview as well. So I did, and got hired as telephone operator.

You mean you had zero experience in the hotel industry prior to that?
You can say that. Although I have a high regard for people working in the hotel because it looks glamorous… you get to dress up, wear makeup. But all I really wanted to do that time was chaperone my boyfriend.

You were probably hired because of how good you sound.
Probably. I never really got to ask the recruitment guys why they took me in.

So, you have already been working in Plantation Bay Resort and Spa since Day 1?
That’s right. Then I became business center secretary for four years, moved to the front office, then in 2002, the resort wanted to open a spa, and I was given the chance to be one of its supervisors. But then I didn’t really accept it at first because I didn’t see myself as a spa person. But they said, sige lang since you have the potential of being a supervisor. So I was sent abroad to study, to learn about the spa business.

What happened to the boyfriend?
Well, he became my husband. We got married here, and during that time, we were both working in Plantation Bay. We’ve decided to raise our kids here in Cebu. And then he left the country, and after a few years came back and worked in Shangri-La. Today he is one of the duty managers of the Radisson.

Is there a career competition of sorts?
Oh, no! He is very supportive of me. I say now that behind every woman’s success is a man.

What do you think is your edge over the other pioneer employees?
I was with the hotel since Day 1 and I’ve been assigned to different departments. When Mr. (Efren) Belarmino (VP for Marketing) wasn’t around, sometimes he would ask me to pinch-hit for him, probably because he was confident that I knew the hotel like the back of my hand. I was HR director for four years before I became the Property Officer Director, which was Mr. Belarmino’s post before he became GM, and that post has been vacant for 10 years. In hindsight, he probably thought that when he retires, he’d already have somebody to succeed him.

Have there been attempts by other properties to “pirate” you?
Oh, yes. Well, you check the offers. But, at the end of the day, you look back and realize that it’s your loyalty that counts, and your job satisfaction.

What’s a major life lesson that you learned while working for Plantation Bay, one that you wouldn’t learn anywhere else?
Starting from scratch. We are encouraged to hold a position that is not totally related to our course, one that’s outside your comfort zone. When they think you have the potential, as long as your are committed to rise to the challenge and you have the right attitude and discipline to be a leader—that’s where it starts. Everything can be learned. Here in Plantation Bay, rather than hiring externally, we get somebody who’s honed here, homegrown.

Being a wife and mother, at the same time a manager—how do you manage the responsibilities?
It’s very challenging because my husband and I are working in the hotel industry… even more when the kids were still babies. You know how it goes working in a hotel, so unpredictable, a bit difficult. Pero we have very good teamwork, my husband and I. Sometimes we lose our helper, but we still survive. Nagra-round-robin kami without hampering our individual duties. There were days when one of us would call in to ask for an emergency leave because the helper didn’t show up, or decides to leave. But now that the kids are ages 14 and nine, it’s been easier.

How did your passion for yoga start?
It started when I became a member of Gold’s Gym two years ago. Of course, I’ve tried PRT before and Zumba with Rebecca Martinez, a friend and officemate. There, yoga was offered. At first I though it would be very boring, no challenges. But when I got into it, slowly I realized that it’s life-changing.

Yoga teaches the values of patience, endurance, determination. Like when you do the poses… sometimes you fall face flat but you manage to get up and achieve it on your next try. Best of all, it relaxes—and at the same time, re-energizes you. It makes you happy because it produces happy hormones, too.

What is your management style?
It’s the training and leadership style of (Founder and CEO) Mr. Manny Gonzalez. We are given this supervisor’s kit and all is written there. It’s like our bible, the ABC’s. Very practical and results-oriented.

If you can start your own plantation, what sort of trees would be in it?
Fruit bearing trees such as mango, coconut, santol, lanzones, mangosteen. These are my favorite fruits, and most people love them, too. One hectare is a good start for a business that I dream to have someday.

Pick your Top 5 dream destinations?
Maldives, Bahamas, Europe, Dubai, and Palawan. They all look majestic in pictures. It will be an experience to go to these places.

Cite an instance when, as a manager, you thought out of the box, and how did it figure in the success of a task?
I accepted the different posts that I held in the hotel without having expertise and related scholastic background to back me up. I never knew all these would pave the way to where I am now. All I had was the right interest and a steady momentum to perform well in every assignment I got. The skills were learned and acquired along the way. Most people think you should be an HRM graduate to land a position in the hotel. This is a plus, no doubt. But, in my case, the hotel molded me to be the kind of leader they want me to be. Being in an out-of-the-box culture helped me think out of the box!

What’s the greatest compliment you received in your line of work and from who?
This is another way of answering your question. “Nenette and I probably have the same spirit.” This was the reply of Mr. Gonzalez in one of the interviews when he was asked why he chose me to be the GM.

Acquaintances would often tell me: “You’re young to be a GM!” or “You may be one of the youngest GMs in the hotel industry.”

What are you most proud of as an employee of Plantation Bay?
That I rose from the ranks, and that it didnt happen overnight. I love what I am doing.

They say that if you work in paradise day in and day out, one day you’d get tired of it. Fatigue would set in. How do you address “job fatigue” issues among your subordinates?
Praise God, I’ve never encountered job fatigue yet. There is always something new and interesting to learn in our respective jobs that keep our momentum at a good level. If it happens one day… well, I will deal with it as it comes. What I want to do is consistently keep the happiness around the workplace. The brain is at its best when you are happy.

In the next year when the ASEAN Integration takes place and our neighbors are allowed to have businesses in our country, how do you plan to maintain your position in the global market?
Before the Asean integration, it has been Plantation Bay’s objective to train its people well and be competitive with those in other countries. We aim to give them the necessary soft and hard skills through constant training in order for them to perform well in their respective jobs while they are with the company. On the other hand, we aim for them to land good positions abroad, which speaks well of the products of Plantation Bay.

How different would you run Plantation Bay in your stay as GM? Would you require everyone to do yoga?
I won’t. But I would encourage the staff to try it.

What is the most challenging part of being a female general manager?
Most GMs of five-star-hotels are actually female, but they are mostly foreigners. A female and being a Filipino at that is is not so common.

As a GM, you are the face of the hotel. I’m still in a training stage. Technically I’ve been the GM for six months, since I got the confirmation in December, although I’ve been acting-GM all in all for a year now.

How do you give yourself a break? Do you turn off your phone?
I never turn it off. Even if it’s in the wee hours, I still answer calls. What if there are emergencies? For relaxation, I find time to exercise and do yoga at home.

What specific task you least like as GM? Signing checks, maybe? Or is that the easy part?
It’s not that easy because you need to know what you’re affixing your signature for.

It cannot be ministerial, when you just go through the motions. Going back to the question, I couldn’t think of anything that I least like.

So, what’s the best part?
You have the chance to inspire people. You become a mother to everyone.