VRWS Leadership Interview of the Day
In approaching the 11th edition of the Vacation Rental World Summit, we’re releasing a series of interviews to leaders, key players and highly motivated people in our industry whose companies make a deep impact in our space and will be present at VRWS.
The aim is to get you some insight into these leaders and the company they founded, manage or work for, as well as getting some behind the scenes on their thinking, their motivation and their drive.
VERONICA RIVAS
- What do you do for a living and which part of your job do you enjoy the most?
I work as Senior Director for Global Development for Homes and Villas by Marriott Bonvoy, part of Marriott International. The highlights of my job include collaborating with a diverse team and having the opportunity to travel worldwide, meeting new partners and expanding the footprint of Homes & Villas.
- How does your company innovate or adapt to the evolving needs of the vacation rental space?
When Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy entered the market, we already had an innovative approach. We recognized a gap for professionally curated, high-quality premium and luxury short-term rentals, and that’s where we focused our efforts. We embrace an innovative mindset and are constantly exploring ways to meet travelers’ needs. For instance, we introduced Curated Collections, showcasing hand-picked homes from around the world, to align with consumer travel trends and inspire our guests. More recently, we launched our GenAI search functionality, allowing guests to discover new destinations and expand their search capabilities in a more natural, unrestricted manner when planning a vacation.
- How do you view the various predictions about AI’s impact on society, ranging from dystopian scenarios to transformative advancements, and how does your company approach or integrate AI technology?
At Marriott, we view AI as an opportunity rather than a challenge. We recently introduced our GenAI search functionality, which helps travelers find the perfect home and destination using natural language to describe their desired vacation needs. This tool interprets preferences to curate a list of properties from the 160,000 available on the Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy platform. Travelers can provide as much or as little detail as they wish through this user-friendly search functionality, reducing the stress of selecting a vacation property. The results suggest destinations and identify specific properties that meet the search criteria, or offer close alternatives. Additionally, the results include useful information such as weather and activities based on the criteria, like hiking, sightseeing, or dining. This makes it easier for guests to find suitable options and discover new destinations they might not have considered.
- What would you like to achieve by attending the Vacation Rental World Summit 2024 in Porto with your company?
The last 5 years have been a bit of roller coaster for the short term rental industry and now it feels like we are entering the new normal so I would like to get a sense from my peers and partners on what they are thinking about for the next 5 years – what excites them, what worries them – it would be great for us to collectively think about the future of the industry.
- What are your passions, including any hobbies or sports, that you enjoy discussing and sharing with others outside the professional setting?
As cliché as it sounds, I love to travel, and really enjoy planning trips – from where to stay, which restaurants to go to, what to see and do etc. In another life I could’ve been a travel agent!
You’ll have the opportunity to meet Veronica and HVMB team at VRWS in Porto
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