Bayu Irawan, a rooms controller at The US Grant Hotel, was recently honored as the Guest Service Associate of the Year – a coup for the relative newcomer to San Diego’s hospitality industry amid a field of veteran professionals.

His warmth, enthusiasm and determination made him stand out to the judges of San Diego County Lodging Association’s 45th Annual Gold Key Awards, which recognized eight outstanding people in the hotel industry.

Irawan was hired for the front desk at the Grant in 2021. He was promoted to rooms controller a year later, a position that places him in charge of assignments for the 270 rooms in the hotel, liaising between the front desk and all other departments, plus preparing amenities for VIP guests.

“If you go to a just regular brand, usually they just give you service. But here in the luxury brand, we give personalized service,” said Irawan. Before a VIP guest arrives, he researches through an internal Marriott database to find out their preferences and if they are celebrating anything special. “The check in process is not only transactional, but also personal.”

Irawan has worked at other Marriott properties but breaking into the luxury level was a challenge.

He prepared by living in Mexico to learn Spanish. With an employee discount, he visited other luxury Marriott hotels to get a sense of the experience. On a weekend in Canada, he was shocked when a housekeeper he had never met addressed him by name. It is a service he tries to replicate for US Grant guests.

Even after being hired at the US Grant, he had to carefully fine tune how he spoke to guests and carried himself in the historic hotel, a challenge as English is his second language. “In the regular hotel, we can say ‘yeah, it’s fine.’ In here we have to say ‘yes, sir,’ ‘no madam,’” explained Irawan.

Formal forms of address can be taught. Irawan’s welcoming smile and genuine desire to make others happy are not something that can be trained. “From the time he began, he has never stopped the eagerness to delight a guest, to provide them an exceptional experience and a unique personal approach in his own Indonesian way,” his colleagues wrote for the awards ceremony.

Irawan views putting on the uniform as a way to step into the role of hospitality professional.

“I’m not like this every day after I check out my uniform. I’m being my real self. But your uniform is your stage,” he said.

Irawan grew up in Bali, one of Asia’s most popular tourist destinations. From a young age, he knew he wanted to work in hospitality – but in the U.S. While majoring in hospitality management, he won a coveted spot in an exchange study program to Miami in 2012. The fast-paced life was a culture shock and difficult when he did not speak English. Nothing dimmed his desire to stay.

“When I moved here, I didn’t want to go back. I know that I can try. It’s gonna be hard at the beginning, but it’s gonna be worth it,” he told himself. After Miami, he moved to Seattle in 2016 to experience snow. Once he learned he did not actually like the cold, he planned a move to California with its beaches and enshrined LGBTQ+ rights.

Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world and LGBTQ+ people face legal barriers. Irawan knew he could not live in hiding.

“I have a lot of choice being here. I can be who I am… I still visit. My family is still [in Indonesia]. But for me, this is my home,” Irawan said.

His culture, where hospitality is highly valued, stayed with him. His desire to please others is personal too, not only from his upbringing. “When I see a guest happy, that’s make me happy… That’s fulfilling,” he said.

He recounted a time when a guest arrived early then took him aside to say he had decided to propose to his girlfriend last minute. The couple’s room was not even ready, much less a setting for a romantic proposal. Asking for 10 minutes, Irawan rushed through the hotel, had housekeeping prepare the room, and set up the ring for the proposal. She said yes and the guest was grateful for Irawan’s quick actions to bring it about.

Irawan is highly loyal to the Marriott brand and hopes to one day be a director at a luxury property. A director nominated him for the Gold Key Award, showing his work ethic and diligence is being recognized by higher ups at the hotel.

Already, Irawan has achieved one of his major life goals to work at a luxury hotel in the US.

Every day at work and at play in San Diego, he is living the life he dreamed of since being a child.

Everything else that happens is a bonus.

CAPTION: Bayu Irawan (center) after winning the Gold Key Award for Guest Service Associate of the Year for his hospitality prowess at The US Grant Hotel. (Photo courtesy Jesse Arroyo, ArroyoPhotos.com)