Reimagining Luxury Operations: Marriott’s Strategic Approach to Facilities Management

At Marriott International, a sophisticated facilities management strategy beats at the heart of its high-performance hotels. Built on high-quality data, advanced AI systems, and a sustainable design philosophy, the new approach is subtly shifting the company from reactive to predictive maintenance, positioning it for the future. Now, the luxury hotelier is optimizing energy, streamlining operations, and preventing equipment failures—all while navigating the unique aesthetic and experiential demands of a niche market.

To understand the origins of this vision, we spoke with a trio of Marriott's leaders for the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA) region: Gamal El Fakih Rodriguez, the Vice President of Operations for the Luxury, Premium, and Residences portfolio; Ramon Batista, the long-tenured Senior Director of Engineering & Facilities; and Tatiana Feged Rivadeneira, the Director of Sustainability. While each serves a very different role, all three share the belief that technology should serve a simple, human-centric purpose.

"Let technology take care of the processes so that humans can take care of humans. Our associates will have more time to take care of guests, tell the stories of their land, and make sure there is a personal connection," El Fakih says. Here, the goal is to create an experience so seamless that the mechanics behind it are invisible. "We don't want the guests to see the technology. We want the guests to feel the technology," Batista adds.

• Data at the heart: At Marriott CALA, this strategy is made possible with a proactive, data-driven approach to engineering. "We use systems that help us do predictive maintenance on the equipment. All that information together is what helps us know how the property is doing against the goal," Batista explains. Then, a centralized data platform aggregates everything from utility bills to meter readings, so the team can benchmark performance, prove the ROI of sustainability projects, and anticipate needs.

• AI as the brain: Meanwhile, Feged’s team uses AI to optimize operations, with tools that help kitchens reduce waste by providing specific data. "The software might tell the kitchen, 'You're producing too much scrambled egg on Thursday,' which allows for more accurate forecasting moving forward," she explains.

But a data-driven strategy is not enough, they admit. Here, the team gets candid about the contradictions in luxury hospitality and sustainability. Consider the "linen paradox," El Fakih says. "In a five-star hotel, we wash our linens every day. And I always ask the same question: Can you tell me a single ultra-high-net-worth individual that washes his bed linens every day at home?" he asks. "Nobody does that. But we still do it because it's a tradition. Sometimes, we have difficulties breaking these norms that the industry has been setting for years."

And across its new developments, Marriott emphasizes seamless integration with the local environment. Today, the company's global design team creates properties that honor the destination, adhering to standards like LEED v5 and selecting energy-efficient equipment. "We're not trying to change the area. That will even include the color of the concrete we use," Batista says. "We want to fade into the area without affecting the local ecosystem."

• Creative constraints: However, the most creative solutions often emerge when guest expectations push the team to find innovative solutions, Batista says. "Some people might love solar panels, but when it comes to luxury, you don't want to have a solar panel in a building that is in front of the beach. That helps us think of different ways on how we can achieve these goals without affecting guest comfort and the aesthetics of the hotel."

Such a human-centric goal also requires a training philosophy focused on purpose, Batista says. His philosophy on training for facilities teams involves "telling them the reason why we do it, to give them enough knowledge or empowerment that when somebody asks them, they can speak up to it." To illustrate, he offers a colorful anecdote. "In a hotel built over mangroves, a guest panicked after a raccoon ate her burger. But a staff member calmly explained, 'Don't forget that at the end of the day, we are the invaders here. It's not the raccoon invading our space. We are invading their natural space.' Afterwards, the guest completely calmed down."

Ultimately, the conversation circles back to its core: technology designed to serve a human purpose. For El Fakih, the most meaningful outcomes are those that create social impact. He closes by highlighting an initiative in many of Marriott’s markets in the Caribbean and Latin America, where labor practices were redefined to better reflect the realities of regional employees. "Today, almost every associate in our hotels has two days off. Our influence goes beyond job creation—we work alongside government to shape legislation. In my view, that kind of change is far more significant than any financial contribution we could make."