Journalists always know who all the best interviews are. We won’t publicly say it out loud necessarily, but we know. For me, the best interviews are the ones where I learn something I can jot down and remember — some lasting leadership lesson from a real person, not a platitude.
Arne Sorenson was an exceptional person to interview. Not only was he always genuine and thoughtful in his responses, he was honest. When he spoke in person — or at an online event, and especially in his increasingly prolific LinkedIn blogs — I felt authenticity and kindness and so many takeaway lessons.
That’s the sentiment we’re hearing from the many hoteliers sending in their tributes following his death earlier this week.
One year I interviewed him on video at a Marriott pop-up hotel room set up outside a conference. I was mortified to show up late and drenched because I had run to the interview in the pouring rain, loaded down with all our video equipment. Not only did he dismiss my apologies, he gave me all the time I needed and helped me pack up my gear afterwards.
In another instance, I was on time for our interview but he was late. I found him outside the door to the interview suite, chatting with the hotel housekeeper.
Not all CEOs do that.
Sorenson was such a good interview that I was excited when someone on the Hotel News Now team could have their first chance interviewing him. My advice always was the same: “Ask him anything because he’ll answer honestly.”
By far the best interview of Arne Sorenson isn’t one we did at Hotel News Now. It’s the one Mit Shah, president and CEO of Noble Investment Group, conducted as part of the Bharat Shah Leadership Speaker Series at the Hunter Hotel Investment Conference in 2018.
The full interview, accessible on YouTube here, is an excellent conversation about Sorenson as a leader because Shah really dives into Sorenson as a person. Through anecdotes about visiting his grandmother’s farm in Norway, traveling with his parents, and traveling with his own wife and four children, Sorenson shares insight into the faith, deep interest in people and curiosity about business that motivates his leadership.
About a month ago I had a call with some senior people on Sorenson’s team to prepare for an interview I did with him for the ALIS Winter Update – it would turn out to be his final interview, I believe.
I asked Tricia Primrose, Marriott’s chief global communications and public affairs officer, what Sorenson had been spending most of his time on recently. She replied with something I found really touching: She said his No. 1 concern was making sure Marriott’s employees and associates around the world felt safe and cared for in these really uncertain times.
That final interview was a good one because of Sorenson’s candor. As we wrapped up, I asked what he had learned in this past year that would change him, personally and professionally.
“We are always all a work in process,” he said. “I remain a work in process and hopefully will until the day I’m gone.”
What a marvelous reminder that we all still are learning, every day.
Let me know your stories about Arne Sorenson. Email me, or find me on Twitter or LinkedIn.
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