The Maho Group recognised its “gems” at its “Maho Gives Thanks” event on Tuesday evening. These team members were singled out for their dedication to the resort and to its guests prior to and in the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Recognised were Elizabeth Attidore (bartender), Esdmond Fleming (bellman) Eline Arrindell (front desk agent), Nigel Steward (assistant bar manager), Gipssy Wilson (SunFit instructor), Edmond Huggins (bartender) and Gregoire Codington (chief steward). In photo are some of the awardees with Maho Group President and Chief Executive Officer Saro Spadaro (second right) and Human Resources Head Patricia Vlaun (left). (Rajesh Chintaman photo)
MAHO--“Putting process before goals, in my view, is simply the wrong way to do things,” said Maho Group President and Chief Executive Officer Saro Spadaro in his customary direct manner at the group’s “Maho Gives Thanks” celebration in the recently reopened Sonesta Maho Beach Resort, Casino and Spa on Tuesday evening.
Spadaro told invitees that goal-oriented organisations fix roofs, rebuild infrastructure and make a difference in the lives of the people after Hurricane Irma and Maria in September 2017.
“Process-oriented organisations, on the other hand, focus on optimising the process to ensure it is as close to ‘perfection’ as possible and, sometimes, to ensure no one can be blamed if the objective is not reached. The result is that the process becomes the goal in itself,” he said.
Given the devastation faced at Maho, “we had to be practical. Even with the benefit of the [St. Maarten Training Foundation – Ed.] academy, we had to restore the resorts sooner rather than later. Speed of reconstruction had to be balanced with financial efficiency and measurable results. That’s why we chose to open in phases.
“Our soft openings weren’t perfect, but we achieved our goals. I can see no reason why such an approach would not be suitable for other major projects in St. Maarten; for example, the airport,” said Spadaro.
“I am forever an optimist, so I offer you the following thoughts: Let’s hope and let’s work hard to ensure this will not happen to us in our beautiful country. Let’s strive to achieve goals that are clearly defined and never be confused by the process to achieve them. Efficiency and effectiveness should not be the exclusive domain of private-sector-led initiatives,” he said.
The Maho Group marked its celebration by also “looking back and recognising the incredibly difficult times, and the subsequent difficult decisions for which we now give thanks,” said Spadaro.
Like any large business operating in a relatively small community, The Maho Group is an economic engine within St. Maarten’s single pillar-economy.
“This engine directly and indirectly creates and supports jobs in virtually every sector of our economy, from tourism-related services to the banking industry, from construction supplies to government, from shipping to the airline industry, and even the airport itself. So, in fact, this gratitude is really about the strength of community.”
The Maho Group has taken on significant risk, and without any outside financial assistance has invested tens of millions of dollars, as well as entered into loans for tens of millions more; loans that will have to be repaid, in full, over the coming years, said Spadaro.
With Sonesta Maho being rebuilt and operating again, a major and critical step has been accomplished for the Maho family and for St. Maarten, said Spadaro. “However, we now must keep our country crime-free, economically viable, and we must invest the resources needed to market our destination. That’s not something Maho can accomplish alone. The Maho family did its part; now we must do the rest together as a community.”
Never an option
Following the hurricanes, layoff of all Sonesta Maho’s 870 employees and Sonesta Great Bay’s 270 employees at that time while focus was placed on rebuilding the resorts “was never an option! This was one of those difficult decisions.
“Our choice to attempt to meet the goals of building back quickly and at the same time alleviating the pain of our employees, did not mean – contrary to what some believed – that we kept employees to avoid paying cessantia. That’s simply false! Laying off employees and paying cessantia was not the right thing for the Maho Family. However, covering the salaries of all our staff without the benefit of any income for a year and a half was also not financially possible.”
The Maho Group is the largest employer after government, with approximately 900 staff members. Spadaro said that considering that the average household is made up of at least three persons, Maho’s level of employment supports directly more than 2,700 people.
He singled out resort guests who donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to help staff in the aftermath and those who returned as soon as they could and stayed at Sonesta Ocean Point and Royal Islander.
Crisis bred creativity
The Maho Group realised that every other resort or tourism service provider was in the same or similar situation. An alternative was needed and crisis bred creativity, said Spadaro.
Faced with this difficult situation, resort executive Keith Graham and Spadaro invented what is today commonly known as the emergency income support training programme that is run by the St. Maarten Training Foundation (SMTF).
The “academy” is a powerful tool that essentially created unemployment benefits in the form of a stipend for the employees of the tourism industry, while providing effective training and certification that would allow students to sharpen their skills or learn new ones.
The programme set the prerequisite for participating employers that they not lay off the staff they would send to the academy. “I am proud to say that this solution, born from adversity and need, worked spectacularly well.”
A total of 1,566 students have enrolled since the start of the programme. To date, 628 students have graduated in 11 different courses, US $5,085,506 has been distributed as stipends and $522,849 was paid in rent to NIPA and Hillside Christian Schools Asha Stevens Campus for the use of its facilities.
The funds for the academy were made available via the St. Maarten Recovery Trust Fund.
Heroes
In the days and weeks after the storm, and every day since, the Maho community has felt safe thanks “to the valiant efforts of our police force and the Dutch military personnel to whom we provided food and shelter after Irma.”
Spadaro singled out Police Major John Boyrard for his tireless and humble efforts. “John, together with our director of construction, Attilio Piazza, and I were amongst the first to drive to Philipsburg a few hours after the worst of the storm had passed. We had to cut our way through trees and sailboat masts with a chainsaw.
“On the way to Philipsburg, I witnessed John jump into a wrecked sailboat to save an elderly woman while we tried to help from the shore. That’s one of the memories that will forever stay with me,” Spadaro said.
Before any military evacuation had started, Maho’s programme to evacuate its guests, along with guests of Great Bay Beach Resort and those of several other hotels, was already in full swing. “Our evacuation programme was orderly and humane. Not one of the individuals in our care was forced to wait in long lines under the sun,” Spadaro said.
The evacuation was made possible with “the vital help” from travel and airline company Sunwing that “sent as many flights as we needed in order to evacuate every one of our guests. This orderly evacuation would not have been possible without the trust and support of the Dutch military personnel who were in charge of airport operations at the time.”
In true St. Maarten community togetherness, Spadaro shared that former minister Mike Ferrier, retired banker Jan Beaujon and retired French-side tourism vice president Romeo Fleming had pitched in to drive buses filled with guests on the airport ramp.
“These fine gentlemen were our drivers, recruited on the spot because Romeo had no drivers and they were the only drivers we could find. We are very grateful for their contribution to the evacuation effort. And, of course, they were told that they were recruited because of their excellent driving skills.”
Samaritan’s Purse
Gratitude was also expressed to international humanitarian aid organisation Samaritan’s Purse, which distributed 10,258 tarps, 12,973 blankets and 50,450 litres of water, among other items.
Regrettably, 21 months after Irma, you can still see some of those same blue tarps when driving around the island. “Something’s wrong with that picture, don’t you think?” said Spadaro.
“From my experience, I can confidently say that Samaritan’s Purse was more efficient and effective in distributing emergency supplies and saving the people of St. Maarten than any other aid agency following the storm and in the months thereafter.”
Spadaro said there is a lesson to be learned from Samaritan’s Purse. “I hope all the organisations involved in the reconstruction effort in Philipsburg, Washington D.C., The Hague and elsewhere, take note and borrow a page” from that organisation’s playbook of ‘How to Handle disaster relief and reconstruction aid in the right way’! In other words, no fancy acronyms, no red tape, just lots of goodwill and effort from smart, enthusiastic and goal-oriented people.”
The Maho Group also thanked and acknowledged K1 Britannia Foundation for its “selfless acts and determination to make a difference in the lives of the people they care for.” After the storm, the group had to rely on the strength of its local volunteers and the limited resources available. It worked together with government and other agencies to set up and manage shelters, distribute and secure food and water supplies, and set up an international volunteer programme to facilitate volunteers.
