Ascott, the lodging business unit of CapitaLand Investment, has launched Ascott Accelerate, a structured talent programme designed to catapult high-potential associates into leadership roles across more than 300 new properties slated to open in the coming years.
Wong Kar Ling, chief strategy officer and managing director, Southeast Asia at Ascott, who is also co-chair of the Ascott Learning Council, told TTG Asia said the company has to ramp up talent development to support its target of achieving over S$500 million (US$391.5 million) in fee-related earnings by 2028. This goal will materialise through the opening of more than 300 new properties by 2028, resulting in the creation of more than 12,000 new jobs, including over 1,500 property leadership roles.
Ascott Accelerate features three progressive career development tracks: Aim, which builds foundational leadership skills essential for supervisors; Advance, which focuses on management capabilities for heads of departments; and Aspire, which grooms future residence managers and general managers.
Aspire is the first track to launch under the programme, with courses beginning on July 1 for around 30 associates selected from across South-east Asia, where Ascott is set to see its fastest portfolio growth.
These associates are determined to be ready for their next career progression by their country operation leader and the country head in human resources.
Associates must meet specific criteria, including serving a minimum number of years with the company, attainment of an above-average performance rating, and possessing the right personality for leadership roles.
At the same time, Ascott has allowed country leaders to exercise their own judgement in their selection, “as they know their people best”.
Wong shared that the first batch of Aspire trainees is being paired with mentors from the company’s country leadership team. The trainees will follow an e-learning module covering all aspects of management, mark monthly learning milestones through expert sharing sessions, and complete the year-long course with a graduation ceremony.
Wong explained that the programme is hybrid – combining online lessons with face-to-face interaction with mentors – to make it easier for associates to learn while fulfilling their day job.
The Aim track will launch next year with potentially 30 to 40 participants.
Eventually, all three tracks will be conducted concurrently, but Aim and Advance tracks will “be decentralised from headquarters and driven by regional teams”.
Wong said an equal amount of thought goes into retaining talents.
“We have to understand our associate’s aspiration and what we, as an organisation, can provide. The success of our programme is not determined by the number of candidates we put through it, but by how fast we can place them into leadership roles. This drives retention,” explained Wong, stating that training without opportunity to progress is pointless.
She added that employees also appreciate the opportunity to expand their skill sets and grow across different departments, as Ascott does not “box our people in”.
“The Ascott brand tagline is, Stay your way, where our ambition is to provide a home away from home for our guests. This applies internally too. We want our people to grow their way,” Wong said.
Ascott Accelerate is just one of many talent development programmes offered as part of the Ascott Global Academy for Excellence, a comprehensive training platform designed to build a future-ready workforce for the company. Wong shared that team members are engaged in regular Ascott Global Exchange Programme and Ascott Learning Festivals. There are also specific task forces that associates can volunteer to join.
