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Sue Fairweather: “One Percenters” is about the little things

Interview with the Executive General Manager of ULTIQA Hotels & Resorts

Sue Fairweather, Executive General Manager (EGM) of ULTIQA Hotels & Resorts believes success in this industry is about “One Percenters”.

She explains it’s about “doing the little things every single day, over and over again, it’s not about the big events but the small accumulation, the consistency of all the daily little things that make a difference”.

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AccomNews caught up with Sue at ULTIQA’s Freshwater Point Resort in Broadbeach, Gold Coast, where I was greeted by a beaming Sue, who says she thrives at work. This is an impressive leader who is very proud of her long and varied career and achievements which stem from a long history in Queensland’s Management Rights (MR) sector.

 

Sue Fairweather

What attracted you to the MR industry?

I came into the industry due to ill health and being diagnosed with an incurable disease and told I would never work again in the corporate world. I’d never not worked so I looked for a business that I could do from home. I discovered management rights and purchased my first business in Brisbane while I was in hospital in 2009.

I loved it. That’s management rights, not hospital!

Every day is different with many challenges, but I continue to love what I do. I proved the doctors wrong and have been working ever since. I still have challenges, but we all do and it’s about how we face them.

You were born in Sydney and your father was an extraordinarily colourful character, from a young age you travelled the world and even lived on a far-off tropical island! But you chose to settle in Queensland?

I love Queensland, I am at my happiest close to the ocean and living on the coast.

Signature

You’ve had close ties to the management rights industry for many years?

Yes. After I purchased my first management rights business, I also became a consultant/licencing trainer. I have a passion to find businesses with potential to grow and develop and I’ve never purchased a business that I could not leave in better financial shape than when I bought it.

Tell us about your career journey to your current role?

I was fortunate to be in the IT Industry when it was booming in the 1990s. This was a fast paced, and ever-changing environment but I always worked hard, never watched the clock and went ‘over and above’ to achieve success – this was recognised. I had wonderful mentors, was given many opportunities and several promotions followed.

After I purchased my first management rights business on the Brisbane River, I was approached by developers to set up more complexes, and then sell their management rights and train new managers.

I went on to purchase my first holiday management rights on the Sunshine Coast while managing multiple businesses back in Brisbane. Then in 2018 I worked on a large project for 12 months also in Brisbane.

In 2009 I met Mark Henry (the current CEO of ULTIQA) at Resident Letting Agent training on the Gold Coast and we became friends. In 2019, over a coffee, he asked if I was interested in managing a resort for ULTIQA on the Gold Coast.

I replied that although I was not a ‘Gold Coast Girl’, I was happy to help for a while, that was February 2019, and I am still on the Gold Coast now.

I accepted the full-time role managing ULTIQA Hotels & Resorts in 2020 after my boss Michael became very sick and sadly passed away.

Signature, ULTIQA Hotels

Sue commenced her role as EGM during the pandemic, it must have been a challenge.

A huge one. We didn’t know what was coming our way, so we just turned up each day to deal with each twist and turn. It truly showed what people were made of. There were extraordinary pressures and stressors across all facets of life and the true attitude and nature of many people came to the fore. People learned a lot about themselves.

When I was asked to move into the EGM role, I simply considered it to be a way for me to help others.  It was a pandemic, so we all had to do whatever it took. 

Why ULTIQA?

ULTIQA is a unique company with the best people in the industry. Mark Henry is wonderful to work for and when he offered me the EGM role, he supported my vision for ULTIQA’s Hotels & Resorts going forward.

Here, I feel we can all make a difference every single day. 

Signature, ULTIQA Hotels

ULTIQA has been developing and expanding?

Yes. We have a new building, ULTIQA Signature at Broadbeach that we have settled on late December 2022. We will be officially open in the next month and we are working through the teething problems with a new building set up at the moment.

It’s been exciting for me to work on a building before it opens, and to set up systems and processes based on our experience to ensure the building will be managed in the most efficient way possible.

What still excites you?

It is an absolute joy to mentor and guide less experienced staff and managers. The industry is complex and multi-faceted, and it excites me to share my knowledge and experience with others.  I am happy to give my time to anyone who genuinely needs help and assistance, in and out of ULTIQA.

What has been your biggest challenge?

We all lose our way and purpose at times. I was not blessed with my own children, although I tried for a very long time with IVF. To accept that I would never have my own children was very difficult and to find my way back from that was extremely hard.

Although I’ve always loved to work, it was a challenge to find my path again but then I found my ULTIQA family and a new purpose.

Signature, ULTIQA Hotels

What makes a good leader and what are you most proud of?

I believe a good leader is one who has integrity, is passionate about what they do, can inspire others, has the confidence to make difficult decisions, has an open mind and is able to embrace failure. 

I am most proud of the team I get to lead every day. They are brilliant, talented and make me look great.

When you stay at a hotel what impresses you most?

The staff. Friendly, happy, engaging staff are the face of a hotel or resort.

What do you like to find in a guestroom?

I am a clean freak! It doesn’t matter how old the property is, cleanliness must always be paramount.

It is always the little things that make the difference and show somebody cares.

Signature, ULTIQA Hotels

Who inspired you?

My Dad! Sadly, he passed away when I was 30 but he instilled in me to always work hard. He would say, no matter what you do give it 100 percent, always.

What is the best advice you’ve been given?

I have a few …

The most important one for me is the ‘One Percenters’, the little things that make a difference.

But also, to always walk into a room with a smile on your face because nobody can get angry when you are smiling at them. A warm and engaging smile makes people smile back.

Finally, if you love what you do, do it more, don’t count the hours count the blessings, the joy, the laughs, and the amazing people you get to share a large part of your life with. 

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