Just as the country began to travel again, Terrance Frederick became the new director of sales, events and marketing at the Andaz West Hollywood in California—changing his career trajectory from corporate hotels to leisure and breaking barriers for the storied hotel.
Challenge Accepted
As a child, Frederick became interested in hospitality as a child after seeing the film “Dunston Checks In,” which was set in a hotel. After high school, his godmother encouraged him to attend Hampton University’s hospitality program, and while he studied the industry during the day he worked as a bellman and behind the front desk at the Founders Inn and Spa in Virginia Beach, Va., operated by Capella Hotel Group. He planned to go into hotel operations, but he noticed a member of the hotel’s sales team who seemed to genuinely connect with guests. Intrigued, he asked the colleague how he did his job. “And he told me, ‘I don't think you ever could do my job.’” In response, Frederick made a promise: “I'm actually going to take your job one day.”
He began learning about sales and marketing and realized that that side of the industry provided a steadier schedule—appealing for a young husband and father. After earning his bachelor’s degree in hospitality management in 2010, Frederick joined Coakley & Williams Hotel Management Co., which had a portfolio of about 30 limited-service hotels at the time. “And I learned quickly that I did not want to do [limited-service hotels],” Frederick recalled. “So I quickly pivoted back to full-service.” He returned to Capella and made good on his promise, replacing the Founders sales manager who had once told him that he could not handle a sales job.
In his new role, Frederick found himself one of the few Black men in a position of authority at the hotel. He quickly became a mentor around the hotel for the line-level employees who aspired to management careers.
Getting in on the Ground Floor
After a year at Founders, he followed his director of sales to Meliá Hotels International, which was gaining a foothold in the U.S. at the time. While he enjoyed the job, which involved moving to Atlanta, he also noted some cultural challenges working with the Spanish company. “They love taking their vacations in the summer,” he recalled. “So [when] we had questions [about] some corporate direction and leadership, we literally would have to wait three, four months during the summer to get answers.”
Joining a company as it grew meant that Frederick and his team had to fight for market share. “Our strategy was to build relationships with the local community, the [convention and visitors bureaus] of the world and almost be a bottom feeder, especially for the city,” he said. “I don't think I've ever made as many cold sales calls, ever, besides that hotel.” Fortunately, he said, the company had a good database and a “great” national sales team. “Three of their managers were local in the Atlanta market, so they helped us out a lot,” he said.
In early 2014, Frederick moved on to Hyatt Hotels Corp., starting out as a sales manager at the Grand Hyatt Atlanta. He had admired the brand from afar, he said, and he wanted to secure a position without the help of someone else already at the company. He rose up through the ranks over the years, advancing to associate director of sales (working with a team of five) before moving on to the same position at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta, where he worked with a team of 20.
Go West
Ready to move on from Atlanta, Frederick moved to California to be director of group sales at the Grand Hyatt San Diego, where he oversaw a team of 30. The 1,600-room hotel brought in so much revenue for the city, he said, that the mayor would sometimes come by to meet with corporate clients. “That's how much tax dollars you bring into the city,” he said. “I learned the value of actually being in hotels and it sticks with me to this day.” But Frederick was only there a few months before the pandemic halted events and slowed travel, and he wound up trying to book the hotel remotely. “It was probably the toughest learning experience I've ever had,” he said. Negotiating with customers during a pandemic was a different challenge. “They thought we had no heart,” he said. “But at the end of the day, we still had a business to run.”
After a year and a half, Frederick was ready for something smaller and moved on to the Andaz, where he is learning not only how to market a lifestyle hotel but how to sell a property that caters primarily to leisure travelers. “I've been in corporate hotels all my career,” he said. The Andaz, however, runs between 80 and 85 percent transient on some days, and some of the executives come to work in jeans and T-shirts. Another key difference is that GM Julian Tucker is also a Black man—a working situation Frederick has never experienced before. “He's the first Black general manager of this hotel and I'm the first Black director of sales ever at this hotel. So that was history and barriers we were able to break together.”
Terrance Frederick’s
Challenge
While Frederick opted for sales over operations in order to have a more stable schedule, his job still requires him to spend significant amounts of time away from his family, and being away from his three children as they’ve grown up has been difficult.
Success
While he sometimes stays overnight at the hotel, when Frederick goes home he leaves work behind. “I spend time with [my family]. I work from home a couple of days and at five o'clock sharp, I’m cutting off [so I can] have dinner with them. On the weekend, I’m engaging with them and doing stuff with them and taking them places.”
Advice
“Understand how the hotel actually makes money. What’s profitable for the hotel? Learn that part of it. Sit down with the director of finance. Talk to your finance managers ... A lot of people at hotels—even managers that have been doing it for years—they don't understand the business.”
Secrets to Success
Have fun: “We are a people business, but we still have to make sure we actually have fun and people want to be around us as well.”
Strike a balance: “Figure out a little bit of balance for yourself. Work-life balance is important.”
Work hard. “You really really have to work hard and try to better yourself in order to get to the next level.”
Owner: Hyatt Hotels Corp. Operator: Hyatt Hotels Corp. Opening date: 1963. Rooms: 239