One may find it difficult to believe that the youthful-looking man across the table has entered his seventh decade. His smile gently flexes faint wrinkles at the corners of his eyes beneath greyish hair that is neatly combed and aligned incongruously with his glowing skin. It's a face that seems free of worry, not one you'd associate with someone in charge of a multinational business.
Then again, David Kong is in the business of helping people relax, so perhaps his manner is appropriate. As the president and chief executive officer of one of the world's largest hotel chains, Best Western International, he oversees more than 4,000 properties in over 100 countries.
His voice is soft but fills the room with a sense of warmth that reflects an amiable personality. His energetic movements suggest healthy and active living while sharp gestures indicate a strong sense of determination.
"I'm 63 years old," he tells Asia Focus. "I've been married for 38 years and I'm now a proud grandparent."
It turns out we were hardly the first to mistake him for someone younger. He recalls an incident when he in his thirties and serving as the general manager for a hotel chain in Pennsylvania. A local reporter said he looked barely old enough to get a driving licence. "She thought I was 15," he says, smiling.
However, Mr Kong claims to have no special secret for his perpetually youthful looks besides regular exercise and prudent eating habits. He has a hotelier's passion for wine, which has led him to study oenology, and other food-related activities including cooking and visiting fine restaurants.
His deep affection for food and beverages stems from the early days of his life when he was growing up in Hong Kong. His parents used to work around the clock, so the only time he could see them would be on weekends when they had family meals together.
"My dad would take us to fancy restaurants in the hotels so I always remembered the hotel industry from being exposed to it," he recalls. "That perked up my interest in the industry."
Mr Kong left Hong Kong when he was 18 to pursue further studies at the Travel Industry Management School at the University of Hawaii, where the wonderful resorts provided him with ideal opportunities.
Starting as a busboy and a dishwasher, he moved up the hospitality ladder to management and executive levels by constantly seeking out sources of inspiration. He always looked up to higher-ranking people and asked his supervisors how he could improve himself.
Over the past four decades, Mr Kong has held leadership positions in various companies including Hyatt Hotels, Omni International, Hilton Hotels and KPMG consulting before he joined Best Western International 14 years ago.
"A lot of it is what you aspire to do," he says softly. "There is very little that you cannot do if you put your mind to it and work toward it."
Throughout the interview, Mr Kong reminds us about the power of well-chosen words. His lifetime of achievement is a testament to the impact that words can have as a spur for inspiration and motivation.
"Be the change you want to see in the world," he says, quoting from Mahatma Gandhi. It's a saying he says he has used to inspire and motivate himself throughout his life. "I find this quote very empowering. If you want to change the world, you need to start being that change."
The quotation inspires him in everything he does, whether it's at home, at work or in his personal life. For Best Western, he knows that he can make a difference and that he can be the change he wants to see in the entire organisation.
"That has inspired me to make the commitment to quality, it inspired me to want to be the leader in sales and marketing and to be well known for our e-commerce efforts," he says. The proof is in the performance — the company is earning record-high revenues and winning numerous awards, especially in the e-commerce field.
"This is because we all wanted to make a difference," says Mr Kong. "It's not only me but all the team members that work at the Best Western. They all want to make a difference. They all want to be the change they want to see."
He recalls another experience that shows how powerful a simple inspirational message can be. Five years ago, he attended a gala event in New York City to honour notable individuals in his field from around the world. One of them was a Lifetime Achievement Award granted by the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).
"I was thinking to myself that one day I want to stand on the stage and win that award, so I wrote it down on a piece of paper, put it in my office drawer and sometimes I take it out and look at it. And guess what? Last year I won that award," he says with a smile.
SETTING AN EXAMPLE
Holding such a lofty position, Mr Kong is aware of the importance of being a strong, effective leader. "You need to do many things right. It starts with integrity and setting the example for people. People want to see that I'm walking the talk, so it starts with me as a leader to lead by example."
PHOTO: Somchai Poomlard
He further acknowledges a major difference between leaders and managers. As a manager, one has to be a good planner, well organised and always on top of things, but as a leader the responsibility is much greater.
"Being a leader, you have to have the vision of what you want to accomplish and you need to get people to become excited about that vision of what it can be. Good leaders shine the light on what may seem impossible but is worth pursuing," he says.
"Being a leader, it's important to be able to not only envision the future yourself, but also to inspire other people to pursue that. Be the change you want to see in the world."
Having two children of his own, the surprising thing he found over the years is that management is not much different from parenting. Parents set the bar to a certain height for their children and they come up to that height. "If they set the bar this high," he says, gesturing with his hands in the air, "they will come close to it."
It's the same thing with job performance, he says — if you pursue things with a sense of urgency, you will see that people can actually come through. He said he is frequently amazed by what the company can achieve and how a lot of potential is often understated. Given the right environment, the right motivation and the right inspiration, he believes that Best Western can achieve much greater things.
Mr Kong also stresses the importance of collaborative decision-making as it leads to greater improvements. A person always has a blind spot that makes him to think about things in certain ways. Disagreement often leads to people discovering a broader horizon and multiplying the depths and dimension of the final decision.
"I have a long experience in the industry, but I'm not perfect and I'm fully aware of that," he says. "I like people to disagree with me because when we disagree, we have a chance to talk it through and we make better decisions, so I encourage people to disagree with me. I don't believe in dictating and I always believe that two minds are always better than one."
However, Mr Kong admits he can be a little impatient when it comes to making progress and improvements. Whenever and wherever he spots an opportunity, he always wants to pursue it as urgently as possible. "I push for results and if I see that something needs to be corrected, I don't want to take time to do that. I want it to be corrected right away."