Embassy Suites® San Diego – La Jolla Celebrates Two Top Honors
Hotel named 2009 Recycler of the Year for significant strides to lower global impact and General Manager of the Year for outstanding leadership
The City of San Diego has named Embassy Suites San Diego – La Jolla 2009 Recycler of the Year in the 17th Annual Waste Reduction and Recycling Awards sponsored by the City’s Environmental Services Department. This is the hotel’s first win of the prestigious award. The hotel was recognized for the significant strides they have made, thanks to the guidance of General Manager Michael McGilligan, who recently received the Embassy Suites General...
Memphis, TENN, The City of San Diego has named Embassy Suites San Diego – La Jolla 2009 Recycler of the Year in the 17th Annual Waste Reduction and Recycling Awards sponsored by the City’s Environmental Services Department. This is the hotel’s first win of the prestigious award. The hotel was recognized for the significant strides they have made, thanks to the guidance of General Manager Michael McGilligan, who recently received the Embassy Suites General Manager of the Year award for outstanding leadership for 2008. Some of the 2009 Recycler of the Year recipients include Point Loma Nazarene University, San Diego International Airport, Sea World, and PETCO Park -San Diego Padres. The hotel received the award and congratulations from Mayor Jerry Sanders during a ceremony.
“Being able to make a difference in the world we live has become part of our daily business,” says McGilligan. “It’s about doing the big things and the small things as well to maximize our impact. This means a lot of involvement on behalf of our staff and we’ve seen great results because of their hard work. I want everyone to feel like the work they do feeds into a bigger picture – and that means the quality of our planet as well as the success of our hotel.”
Features of Embassy Suite’s Environmental Efforts
McGilligan hasn’t tackled this feat all on his own. The Embassy Suites team members have played a huge part and, paired with the efforts of sales administrator, Sheri Facer, have made many changes to the way hotels typically do business by making modifications in areas including: low flow showerheads and toilets in all suites; recycling all light bulbs, batteries, toner cartridges, wood pallets, packing materials, phone books, and all office equipment; installing energy efficient light bulbs; defaulting copiers to print double-sided; re-using room keys; phasing out Styrofoam at the complimentary breakfast; using recycled water for the grounds landscaping; re-using coat hangers from employee dry cleaning; and placing recycling bins next to all trash cans outside the hotel. Even recyclable/biodegradable bags are arranged in the suites so guests can recycle items like cans and newspapers from within their suite with little effort, allowing them to continue to make responsible choices for the environment while on the road.
During this process, McGilligan has made efforts that not only improved the Earth, but the lives of his team members as well. Bed linens, towels, and used furniture are not only donated to local charities, but are available for employees in need also. Leftover food from the complimentary breakfast and nightly reception are put in the employee break room to both minimize waste and feed employees. Above these other efforts, McGilligan has utilized the skills that were necessary to building an award-winning recycling program and has been able to ensure a higher employee retention, high guest satisfaction, and best practices that can be mirrored by other Embassy Suites hotels. By truly caring about the world around him and involving and educating his team members, McGilligan’s hotel is seeing great success, assuring continued group efforts in the future.