The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), South Asia’s largest and most iconic hospitality company bagged top honours at the prestigious ‘Worldwide Hospitality Awards 2018’ held recently in Paris.
Somnath Mukherjee, Area Director of Karnataka and General Manager of Taj West End, Bengaluru received the coveted ‘Best Hotelier’ award. Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur, was the joint-winner of the ‘Best Wow Effect’ for a luxury hotel category and Taj.live, the company’s social media command centre, was placed among the top three digital innovations of the year.
Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, IHCL said, “We are extremely delighted to be recognised at a forum as prestigious as the Worldwide Hospitality Awards. Somnath Mukherjee epitomizes the ethos of Tajness that underlines our commitment to operational excellence. The other honours in the field of providing unique experiences and staying ahead of the curve with best use of technology, further reaffirms our reputation as leaders that compete on a global platform[sic].”
Somnath Mukherjee was recognised for being the ‘Turnaround Man’, after his immensely successful tenure at Taj Varanasi prior to becoming the General Manager of the iconic Taj West End, Bengaluru. He has been acknowledged for his outstanding contribution to financial growth, high guest engagement scores and excellent employee satisfaction. He currently manages a portfolio of 9 IHCL branded hotels across the state of Karnataka in India.
Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur, has been at the forefront for enabling guests to truly experience the royal grandeur of Rajasthan with superlative and intuitive services that surpass their expectations. Taj.Live, identifies opportunities to organically interact with a wider audience through omni-channel trend tracking and analysis, encouraging deeper guest engagement and personalisation. The Worldwide Hospitality Awards was founded in 2000 and provides an opportunity for hotels to highlight exemplary achievements across different categories. The finalists and winners are chosen after a rigorous process of online voting and deliberation of juries of experts. The Awards are considered to be an excellent representation of the diversity in the international hospitality industry.