Despite a rough year, the Hotel Sales and Marketing Association (HSMA) Philippines has recognized the country’s best hoteliers to highlight the champions of resilience through the prestigious Virtus Awards.
In its sixth year, the award ceremony was held virtually last Dec. 10.
The Champions of Resilience Awards were won by Ma. Elena Cecille M. Daugdaug, Sales Manager of Quest Hotel and Conference Center Cebu in individual category; Luxent Hotel under the leadership of GM Melanie Pagkalinawan in team category; and Chroma Hospitality, led by Carmela Bocanegra, Vice President for Sales, in the marketing communications category.
According to Margarita Munsayac, HSMA chair, Daugdug was chosen out of seven other nominees because of her remarkable dedication, perseverance, business agility and incredible resilience during the pandemic.
“Not only did our winner protect the business, but our winner also grew the business that contributed to the retention of a sizable percentage of hotel staff,” she said.
Out of the seven finalists, Luxent Hotel bagged the award in team category for its holistic approach toward mitigating the effects of the pandemic, while Chroma Hospitality’s marketing campaign titled “Safely Apart, Closer at Heart,” was chosen among five nominees for being the most comprehensive and well-planned campaign.
Virtus Awards chair Rose Libongco said during the media presentation Friday that it was highly important for the HSMA to continue with the tradition because despite the hurdles encountered these past few months, the organization has continued to be active and make itself available to customers and stakeholders.
To note, the hotel industry, as part of the tourism sector, has been assisting the national government by primarily serving as temporary quarantine facility for returning Filipinos (ROFs), returning Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs), and now balikbayans. The industry also caters to other frontline workers like medical staff, government employees, and others.