A global network of hotel safety and security experts – the Safehotels Master Service Providers (MSP) – works with hotels to help them achieve Safehotels certification. Mauricio Tommasi is our MSP in Latin America

Mauricio Tommasi has hospitality in his blood. He started working in the industry in 1982 at age 15, with a job in his family’s hotel in Cancun, Mexico. And he has never stopped since.

For almost four decades, Mauricio has worked on the development and management of hotels and resorts, with his family’s hospitality business, and with international hotel brands. Trained as an architect, he has designed and built pioneering hotel concepts, including Mexico’s first eco-hotel and an ultra-luxury resort.

With his immense experience, acquired across so many different areas of the industry, Mauricio has unrivalled expertise in what it takes to create the perfect hotel – to the extent that he now teaches college students on how to develop a hotel from scratch to full operations.

For Mauricio, good design is the key to building a hotel business that functions efficiently and delivers the right guest experience, with safety and security that gives guests peace of mind.

A personal approach to hotel safety and security

As a Safehotels MSP, Mauricio draws on his vast expertise, working with hotels to help them improve their safety and security processes, and achieve certification. The role means covering the distance: last month, he made a round trip that included Uruguay, Brazil and Colombia, with trips to and from Mexico in between. “It is worth it. Nothing is as good as visiting the hotels, seeing them for yourself and speaking with the key hotel staff face to face.”

Certification: an extraordinary marketing tool

Mauricio identifies a number of reasons why hotels come to Safehotels: “The hotels we work value our expertise and independence. They want an extra pair of eyes to check that they comply with the highest safety and security standards, and make sure they are doing the right thing for their guests.”

Hotels understand the importance of certification in driving new. “When I talk to hotel owners and managers, they understand that getting independently certified shows guests, and bookers, that their physical assets and operations are safe and secure. This is essential if you want to open new markets, specifically the United States, or drive up revenues from corporate bookings.”

However Mauricio feels that hotels do not always make enough noise about their certification: “Hotels that get certified have an extraordinary marketing tool that can help them reduce their insurance costs. It’s a powerful differentiator from their competitors. They should shout about it – and let the world know they offer a safe and secure environment, as part of a wonderful guest experience.”