Running a hotel in Zanzibar is like dancing non-stop. You can't stop. You can fall, but you have to get up and dance again.

I introduced Adéla to the world of hospitality in a rather unconventional way – we just had coffee in the gym. And the next day she flew to Africa to become the director of a resort that I helped complete, open and launch. It was a carefully chosen bet, but not on experience, but more on mindset. Because in Zanzibar, the winner is not the person with the best hospitality experience, but the one who is not afraid to improvise, to find ways where others see dead ends, and to accept the fact that planning here is more of an illusion than a reality.

Competency model? The mindset of an enthusiastic, resilient and empathetic adventurer with a penchant for hospitality, I would say.

We opened the resort with a great group of enthusiastic amateurs in 2016 and Adéla arrived at the end of 2018. She planned to stay for two years. She stayed for six and is still dancing – as she says about her management style. Not only has the resort continued to grow, but she has also gradually conquered the local community and learned to balance between the European sense of performance and the Zanzibar “pole pole”.

What does her workday look like, how does she handle the challenges of running a hotel in an exotic location, and what personal sacrifices did she have to make? Find out all about it in the following interview.

1. What were your first steps when you took on the role of director of the department? How did you prepare for this role?

As you know, I didn't have much experience in the hotel industry, so honestly my biggest preparation was that I ate everything I could in the Czech Republic and skipped every party, because I had the feeling in my head that I would never eat well again and that for 2 years (that was my initial plan) I would only hang out with hotel guests and colleagues at work. I listened to some advice from people who had already worked in Zanzibar - one of them was to show "who I am" right from the start and definitely not carry my suitcases and bag myself and let my colleagues carry and do everything. I really didn't follow this advice, it's not my style and never will be.

And my first steps after arriving at the resort were to observe. To observe how it all works, how the processes are implemented, what I like and what I don't...to come up with ideas in my head for improvement, optimization. I think it's not smart to come to a new place and immediately throw everything away and criticize and show off, because you never know at first glance what the reason was and whether something else had been tried before and didn't work. And everyone has different tastes.

The resort was "handed over" to me within three weeks, so I wrote notes about everything I could and I think it was only after about a year that I began to understand a little bit about how things were.

2. I will never forget your statement, running a hotel is a dance for me, I must never stop dancing. What are the main differences in doing business in Zanzibar, an island with a Muslim majority, compared to what you were used to from your previous experiences?

That's still true and I still dance. It's often czardáš, rarely it's a ploužák.

I'm glad I'm no longer dancing alone like I did in the beginning, but I now have partners for that.

The main difference in doing business between Europe and Zanzibar is that here in Zanzibar people live in the present and this also affects this spectrum. And there is also a great pride in themselves and in what they do. In Europe we are still dealing with what will happen in a month, in a week, what if I don't respond to this client right away, I will lose him... there is pressure to perform. An example could be that when we were waiting for an offer from one supplier for a relatively long time, I wrote a slightly threatening email saying that if we don't have an offer "on the table" within a week, we will find another supplier - from the Czech Republic I was used to having an offer on the table within 20 minutes and even with an apology, here in Zanzibar I got a reply that no one would talk to them like that and they didn't want to work with us. Just to clarify, it was a business that would bring the supplier tens of thousands of dollars a month. That opened my eyes a lot.

3. Could you describe what a typical working day at the resort looks like? What are your daily priorities and routines?

Someone asked me this question once before and I couldn't really answer it, because here every day looks the same and different at the same time.

At our resort, it's more of a micromanagement and we solve a lot of things daily via Whatsapp and Whatsapp groups, I believe that it must sound like nonsense to some, but it's often not enough to tell someone something, but if it's written somewhere, it's even more likely to be done. So my working day starts with me getting up quite early in the morning and during my morning exercise I send out a few messages with ideas that came to me during the night and what I discovered after walking around the hotel (I try to limit it, but it doesn't work for me many times), at 8 am I'm in the office, where I spend money for the daily operation (money for drivers, suppliers, etc.), during breakfast I greet the guests and then I jump on emails and the merry-go-round of uninvited visits from the government and a plan to improve the hotel starts spinning - the hotel owner likes to move everything forward, so we have more than enough plans. In the meantime, I know that my colleagues from management will take care of the guests, hotel maintenance and FB.

4. How do you rest and regenerate after a hard day? Do you have any specific rituals or activities that help you maintain balance?

Personally, sports help me a lot, my mom thinks I'm crazy and I do sports because of "chasing my figure", but I clear my head the most. A new ritual has now become a 30-minute walk before work in the morning, when I leave my phone at home. If someone were to talk about me, I don't know if they would ever choose the word "balance", I don't have any specific ritual, I would like to learn to "switch off sometimes", but I like things under control and work is more or less a hobby for me.

5. Where do you draw inspiration for innovation and change in the resort? Are there any specific sources or experiences that help you in your creative process?

From the competition and on vacation. My day off activity is more or less visiting nearby hotels and also, when I'm on vacation, I like to be inspired, I like to eat, so I always bring ideas back from vacation. We have an unwritten habit with the owner that when he's on vacation, he sends me from the hotels what he likes and what he doesn't. And I won't lie, sometimes Google and AI don't help us either. I like to be inspired, but we don't have that many options here, so we kind of have to adapt everything to our own image or create it.

6. What kind of relationship do you have with the local community? How does the resort collaborate with or support local residents and their businesses?

This is a bit of a long shot. Our resort is located in a small village where I would say that half of them are on our side and the other half would still like to “fight” with us a little. Anyway, we have currently built two food stalls in the village so that they can offer local products, our gardeners and drivers are directly from this village and we have a new activity “Mamas of Africa”, where our guests can visit mothers and taste local food and even make a local typical bread called “chapati” with them. Otherwise, we have a small charity project Better Together, where together with our guests we collect finances and material donations every month for a given project or person and we support the training of graduates after school – we currently have 7 “trainees” in our team, which are graduates after school who are apprenticed with us for three months and if we are satisfied with them, we give them a certificate or offer them a job at the end.

Last year we had Eye Day thanks to Policar Opticians from the Czech Republic – they were kind enough to donate prescription glasses to us and we invited an optician to measure and distribute them to the local community. We currently have another batch of glasses on the way.

7. What are the key qualities or skills you look for in your employees at the resort?

When I have an interview, I usually surprise everyone, because it is customary for them to bring me a stack of CVs, certificates (see above) and recommendations, but I don't look at that and focus on my own feelings and how the person communicates with me. Even after my experience recruiting people from the Czech Republic, I know that "paper can withstand anything" and the reality can be different. I always like to try out the given employee for a week and then we make a decision. Of the qualities I demand the most, loyalty and honesty/openness - everyone can make mistakes, everyone makes mistakes, but if someone hides something from me or doesn't inform me, I am not able to help. I also like it when I see that my colleagues understand why we are there and when we have common goals and values.

8. How do you manage and motivate your team?

In Zanzibar, the “sugar and whip” style worked well for me. As I mentioned above, the locals are very proud, so I have never had to be too strict, but if I need to correct someone for something, we never part in a bad mood and end the entire debate with a joke or praise for something else.

9. How have you adapted to cultural differences and what strategies do you use to ensure that the resort respects local customs and traditions?

Zanzibar is magical in that they celebrate all sorts of traditions and holidays and I think it's the place that has the most public holidays and days off in a year. There's a public holiday when it's Ramadhan, Christmas, Easter, maybe even on the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Anyway, the most important holiday here is Ramadhan, so during that time we always change the regime and colleagues can go home earlier so they can be with their families in time for sunset in the evening.

10. What environmental challenges did you face while operating a resort in Zanzibar and what steps did you take to minimize the impact on the local ecosystem?

Unfortunately, waste collection in Zanzibar is completely unorganized and waste sorting is almost impossible. However, we try to reduce plastic as much as possible, so our guests receive water in glass bottles and we are currently trying to relieve the local electricity supply, which is overloaded, by installing solar panels.

11. How do you ensure that resort guests have a unique and memorable stay? Do you have any special services or offerings that set the resort apart from the competition?

I would like to think that our resort exudes a sense of friendliness and humanity, we strive to make our guests feel at home and that nothing is a problem. During their stay, guests can enjoy a private cinema on the pier, head to our outdoor beach bar, sample a Swahili breakfast and local spiced coffee and tea, and more.

12. What are your plans for future development or expansion of the resort? Are there any specific goals or projects you are currently working on, I know that you and the investor managed to build a pier and a lagoon, I know about the gym from Instagram and I know that there are photovoltaics on the roofs, what else are you planning?

I see you have an overview. The latest almost completed project is photovoltaics, which we are happy about, because the government decided to increase the price of electricity by 30-50% overnight, so it didn't affect us much. I deliberately say that it is an almost completed project, because of course it leads us to expand the panels, which we want to solve as soon as possible. We are happy about the lagoon, it took us a long time to get a license, we are currently planning to improve it in the spring. And regarding future plans, last year we bought land next door, where we plan to expand the hotel and provide the types of rooms that we think we are currently missing + an outdoor gym, a small spice farm and a Masai playground for children. The gym, what you saw is my personal project, which we opened with my boyfriend and another couple.

13. How did you deal with any unexpected crises or problems that arose during your time in Zanzibar?

You are forced to improvise quite often here, even though I have been here for 6 years and have been present at a lot of situations, it still happens that something surprises me. I have to take everything in perspective, maybe with a little humor. Things here often defy common sense and what we are used to in Europe, for example. On the other hand, you can "play" with every situation, negotiate, push the limits. But I definitely had to learn to be a little "cool", because I often have to deal with situations where a colleague has a sick child or worse... a colleague I trusted is stealing from me, attacks on animals and so on.

14. What marketing strategies have proven to be most effective in attracting new guests to your resort?

In my opinion, our resort is a bit specific, in that there is no formula for it. I don't think that Instagram or the website works for our clients, most of our clients are "recommended by friends" and that's through booking - guests come to us because they read a review here and there. Direct communication with travel agencies and clients works very well for us, and the fact that we are open and don't pretend to be what we are not, on the contrary, can only pleasantly surprise our clients.

15. How do you communicate and collaborate with the investor? What are their requirements or expectations?

I dare say that over the past few years we have become partners and are actually in daily contact. I can ask for advice at any time and conversely, it is welcome if I don't like something and we open a discussion and find a solution together. It is great to work for someone who likes to create, puts his heart into everything and doesn't just deal with numbers. The owner's attention is mainly focused on maintaining the resort and making sure it always looks like new, and I believe that it shows here.

16. What personal sacrifices have you had to make to succeed in your position and how do you deal with these challenges?

I lost my privacy, I live in a hotel, so everyone knows when I eat, what I eat, when I'm sick, when I'm not, when I've had an extra drink, and so on. And actually, I'm available almost 24 hours a day, but I probably did that to myself, but unfortunately, I think that's why we're doing well and things are at least somewhat under control.

17. Are there any figures in the hospitality world who particularly inspire you or have influenced your career? Well, apart from Chris Hemsworth, of course?

Hmm, that's probably the hardest question, I'm sitting here thinking about who my role model is. I'm thinking about who I look up to the most, but I don't really have a specific person.

I am actually very close to people in sports who don't give up, don't whine, and work hard. What always motivates me the most is the memory of my grandmother, who wrote in my diary that there is no shame in falling, but there is no shame in not trying to get up.

18. What forms of recognition influence your approach to work?

Hopefully the owner won't read this, although he certainly knows. I hate to say it, but what motivates me the most is when someone tells me that it could have been better, doesn't appreciate me, or that something isn't working, won't work. So I immediately think, "Wait, I'll show you."

When I talk to Adéla about her work, I am always fascinated by how naturally she was able to break away from the procedures that were strictly aligned with me and create her own management style. In Zanzibar, you never play by standard rules; they are only good for the beginning, but only then do you see the difference – and that is precisely its magic. Of Zanzibar, not the process, of course.

I know the owner of the resort and I know that his standards are not about compromise. He expects top quality and long-term sustainability, but at the same time gives freedom to people who can think in context and look for solutions where others only see obstacles.

For me, Adéla is not just a hotel manager. She is someone who has managed to build a home in a place where many people only stay for a short time. She has learned to work with the mentality of the locals, to balance European and African approaches to management, and most importantly, not to let herself be crushed by the pressure of everyday improvisations. And what motivates her the most? Not praise, but rather challenges – when someone says something won’t work. Then her inner competitiveness turns on: “Wait a minute, I’ll show you.”

I fondly remember the time when we opened the resort, because the atmosphere in the company was full of energy, ideas and creativity. And despite all the challenges and obstacles, I feel that the creative spirit remained there with Adéla. Perhaps that is why the resort continues to grow and attract guests who are looking for something more than just luxury accommodation - they want to experience a piece of the adventure that is felt here at every turn.

MP