Harnessing cultural diversity

Why cultural differences are crucial for the success of Cugó Gran

Everyone knows that being in the hospitality industry means interacting with different cultures each day of the year. At Cugó Gran we know first-hand what it means to be immersed in a multicultural environment as our team comes from different parts of the world.

The team is made up of different nationalities, including Maltese nationals: Elena, who runs our Back Office, Michael, our Night Audit since June 2018 and Neil, who has been taking care of the hotel’s maintenance since August 2019; the Spanish nationals Marc, Quality & Service Executive and Carlos, our Front Office Agent who joined our team recently; British national, Niki, who started off as a front office agent and has been growing with the company, and is now a Sales Manager with us since 2021, the Hungarian Imre, who has been our Front Office Agent since August 2020 and Pravin, our Thai / German Resident Manager since 2018. They will give us a bit of a run-through of the pillars of our multicultural interactions and what values they cherish to successfully collaborate with each other to share the Cugó Gran experience, one that respects and celebrates diversity and every culture.

Pravin mentions the multi-cultural element of the different nationalities and says how he really loves the spirit of the whole team. As a boutique hotel, the team at Cugó Gran can be described as one happy family, with the advantage of being such a small number of people, managing an extremely high end and demanding property, is that each and every one knows each other inside out.

Michael, one of the team players at Cugó Gran says that his motto has always been: “One team, one family”. An aficionado for Maltese history, the hotel is simply a true gem for him. He loves to share his history knowledge with the guests and enjoys interacting with them. He also loves to cook and is quite happy sharing traditional Maltese recipes with the guests, giving them that boutique feeling.

The family element of the team is something which each team member really cherishes, and because they spend so much time together, they have made it their passion to be good and professional hosts of the luxury brand.

“I am very proud to be part of the Cugó Gran family and show on a daily basis our excellent service with a personal touch to our customers.” – Pravin.

Through this interview, we also learnt some fun facts about our team members. Nicky, in her spare time, loves to take unusual and colourful photos of her daughter, whilst Imre describes himself as a world citizen and his experience at Cugó Gran as one which opened a special dimension in his career.

The team interestingly mentioned how variety is the spice of life. They feel very lucky to be part of such a diverse team and because at Cugó Gran we welcome guests from all 4 corners of the world, between the whole team we can normally manage to find someone to help guests in their native language if needs be!

“The team at Cugó Gran is a special team to be part of. Being a small group with some from the very beginning, it really feels more like a second family then just having ‘colleagues’.” – Nicky.

Because at the hotel, the staff is made up of different nationalities, and we frequently have interns from all different parts of Europe, it makes a great environment to be immersed into as there is so much to learn, taste, try and hear about other cultures and backgrounds.

Each and every team member know how to play to each other’s strengths, and who would be the best person to deal with any given situation. They are there for each other both in and out of work, and the results that they see when they all pull together are truly remarkable and something they are all very proud of.

Imre explains how he had applied for the front office agent position because he felt that at a boutique hotel, he would really be able to give a full customer experience, and having worked with several other hotel chains, he feels that he has truly found a gemstone at Cugó Gran.

“I am so happy when I see appreciation and a smile on the face of our guests. Malta is a treasure box for visitors and my job is to find the most matching jewels to our guests. My ‘ars poetica’: Nothing is impossible, and I am so happy that the team I am part of think and act that way as well.”

The teams’ knowledge of different cultural perspectives, and the many skills and backgrounds certainly helps the Cugó Gran brand create a better guest experience, where our international culture very much informs the way we shape the experience for each of our guests. Working with a multicultural team also puts each team member outside their bubble, allowing them to see the world from a different lens. Personalisation is key when creating a 5-star experience and at Cugó Gran we try and make each guest feel as special as possible