Accor promises to “pioneer the art of responsible hospitality”

by: Mark Caswell | June 5, 2024

WORLDWIDE: Accor has unveiled its new purpose statement following a company-wide consultation process involving nearly 10,000 people.

The statement reads “Pioneering the Art of Responsible Hospitality, Connecting Cultures, with Heartfelt Care”, and has been built around the following four key pillars:

  • The art of hospitality: Accor’s commitment to creating a culture of excellence through empowering its Heartists (employees) to challenge the status quo and find new ways to offer authentic guest experiences.
  • Responsible hospitality: reflecting the group’s commitment to making every stay a positive contribution to society and the environment, and reflecting Accor’s long- standing desire to set the industry standard for responsible hospitality.
  • Connecting cultures: representing Accor’s commitment to turn everyday into an intercultural journey while preserving and nourishing local identities.
  • Heartfelt care: encapsulating Accor’s commitment to fostering empathy and wellbeing in the workplace and embedding a fair chance, social elevator culture across the Group.

Accor said that the purpose statement establishes “a formal framework which sets out and holds us accountable to these values”, adding that the commitments made in each pillar “are built upon concrete actions and assessed through KPIs”.

The creation of the purpose statement followed a company-wide consultation process including Purpose taskforce and Ethics Committee workshops, and input from executive committee members, “Heartists” and external stakeholders, with more than 50,000 quotes gathered from nearly 10,000 people.

Recent Accor initiatives reported by Sustainable Hotel News include the launch of the group’s Disability Inclusion Self-Assessment Hotel Toolkit, the creation of a new Employee Value Proposition, and the signing of the United Nations-founded CEO Water Mandate, which seeks to mobilize business leaders to advance water stewardship.

Accor signs CEO Water Mandate to make changes to hotel operations

Commenting on the news Sébastien Bazin, chairman & CEO of Accor, said: “At Accor, we are explorers by nature, we are masters of hospitality, we are responsible actors who connect cultures, and above all we are Heartists.

“The purpose statement we have unveiled today is a culmination of years of Purpose-led hospitality and is the next natural step for us as we seek to pioneer the responsible travel of tomorrow.

“This framework will provide further inspiration to drive purposeful actions and performances in the best meaningful way.”

Image supplied by Accor