CEO Profile: Nay Palad’s General Manager Vincent Lampert
The general manager of Nay Palad Hideaway, Vincent Lampert, believes that to be an effective leader, one must inspire others through deeds and acts of appreciation
SITTING DOWN with Vince Lampert, one would realize that the man has many stories to tell in his relatively short time heading the Nay Palad Hideaway team as general manager. Lampert is candid as he recounts how he got the dream position with an even dreamier office—the idyllic beachfront property of Nay Palad Hideaway in quiet, peaceful Siargao—and it is far from an ordinary story.
Vince Lampert has called the Philippines home for 19 years now, half of his life so far. “I had been working for Dedon for 18 years, in its factory in Cebu, and had gone through all the steps from the start,” he says. He has worked in Dedon through all its different departments and carried out a diverse range of responsibilities. He has been Dedon’s quality assurance inspector and production coordinator, production and quality manager, supply chain manager, research and development manager, technical director, and then president and managing director for the company in the last 10 years. “I left the company December 2018 and put up my own company as a consultant. Then, I came across Bobby (Dekeysker), the owner of this place and the owner of Dedon before, and he asked me to join him and work for the resort. So, with no background on how to operate a resort, I jumped into the challenge! See, for me, it’s all about the people and I know how to work with people,” Lampert says with a grin.
When asked how it has been so far, working in Nay Palad Hideaway for about a year now, Lampert is enthusiastic and grateful. “It’s great! For me, it’s an amazing experience, from doing luxury furniture to handling a luxury barefoot resort. It has been a challenging first two months but luckily, I adapted pretty fast. The team welcomed me, as well, and so it was very easy to come here and join the family.” What he loves most about the work that he does in the Hideaway is being with the people, the locals especially. “Working with them, hand in hand, day to day. Keeping up the concept (and simultaneously) making it better every day. There is a continuous improvement process, to make sure the guests would want to come back here.”
For Lampert, Dedon and Nay Palad are similar in the way that the foundation of both companies are about family and about the culture, and in particular, the local culture. “The two of them are very much family-oriented companies. It’s a pleasure to work in such an environment. Here, we want to create a better place for everyone that works in the Hideaway. Here, we don’t call them employees, rank and file, or workers—they are partners. They are the ones making it happen. The place is here, yes, but without the people, the place is nothing.”
A leader, regardless of what industry or nature of business, needs to lead by example.
A quote by Stephen Covey, educator and author of the award-winning book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, goes: “What you do has far greater impact than what you say.” This is a principle that Lampert clearly lives by; one could observe that he is definitely hands on with all the details in the resort, big and small, showing his team that he is just as invested in making the experience of the guests exemplary and seamless.
In the Hideaway, Lampert says that there is no such thing as a typical day. “Every day is different here and that’s what I like about it. There’s no routine and no day is repeating. That’s the fun about being here, working with the team and making things happen,” he shares. The days can be very long, with the Nay Palad team starting as early as 6 a.m. and finishing at 10 p.m. or 12 midnight. While this may be, the days are always interesting and challenging, and Lampert finds great satisfaction and joy in this.
His advice to young professionals who aspire to work in hospitality and to get into this line of work would be, first and most importantly, to like people. “You have to be open, open-minded, and positive,” Lampert explains. “Few will agree that the biggest asset you need to have is the right attitude, and the mindset to make things happen. You have to be willing, and that willingness will make things move and get better. Fix your mind on a goal, and go and work towards it, beginning with the end in mind. If you want to go somewhere, you have to know where you want to go first.”
When he’s not on the floor or getting his hands dirty in the resort, Lampert tries to relax and make sure to spend time with his family. “I love to spend time with my little boy, Hugo, who is three years old now. Then, if I have a chance to play soccer or to unwind with some friends, that is good. I just try to take a chance to relax and to get out of work and to think of something else,” he smiles. His favorite place in the world is definitely the Philippines, which is the reason he chose to stay. He considers Siargao Island to be the best island in the country ever since moving to the quiet surfing capital. For him, Siargao is very peaceful and a great place to work in and to thrive, surrounded by nature and people who are the kindest and most down-to-earth you could ever meet.