OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN OVERSEAS MARKETING

MA. CRISTINA FORMOSO-DOLENDO DIRECTOR FOR MARKETING FOUR SEASONS HOTEL (SHENZHEN)

Currently the Director of Marketing of Four Seasons Hotel Shenzhen in China, Cristina Dolendo has honed her craft internationally for the past 26 of her 37 years in the hotel marketing industry.

Having graduated her high school from Assumption Convent ( Makati), Cristina developed her interest in the Communication Arts at the University of Ateneo de Manila. This led to what would become a lifetime of hotel marketing adventure. She began her journey first at the Regent of Manila as a PR Executive before transferring to the iconic Westin Philippine Plaza where the next 10 years saw her grow to become one of the most influential hotel PR Directors where she founded together with a group of famous editors - Bulong Pulungan. After 10 years in the Public Relations field, Cristina had the opportunity to move into Westin’s management internship program where for almost a year she learned the ropes of hotel operations before shifting gears to hotel Sales. The next phase of her career was focused on the art of negotiations. This opened the door for international exposure as she took her first foreign assignment opening at the Portman Hotel in Shanghai ( then at Shangrila). Subsequently she was promoted to Director of Marketing where she found her true calling. For in Marketing — the discipline of Sales, Public Relations, Revenue Management/Reservations and Catering/Conference Service — inspired Cristina’s love for challenges. After four and a half years of driving the hotel to its leadership position, she moved on to open what was then the first Philippine five-star hotel resort , Shangrila Mactan Island- where she learned resort marketing. Soon after, China beckoned once more, this time to join Peninsula’s Palace Hotel in Beijing. Four years later, she got the chance to learn regional sales by helming the Peninsula’s Regional Sales office in London for half a year. The opportunity to work with Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts, the world’s premier luxury hotel management company with over 100 properties globally, proved to be too great a temptation to resist. Soon after, Cristina was back in Asia to work with the Regent of Kuala Lumpur, then again to open a hotel in Shanghai the second time around with the company’s first China property in 2002. In 2004, she moved to Four Seasons Hotel Singapore to drive the market leadership of the property for the next eight years. In 2012, she was back on the road to China, opening the Four Seasons’ eighth property in Shenzhen, a vibrant young city awarded by UNESCO as a “City of Design” for its contemporary architectural wonders. After 17 years of history with the Four Seasons, Cristina has collected awards as “Best Marketing Hotel“for her work in Shanghai, Singapore and Shenzhen last year. Her role in mentoring talents has also earned for her awards of recognition in both the Singapore and Shenzhen hotels.

Looking back at the career path she has taken – Cristina says “it is true that you have to love what you do. The choice to make it a job or a craft , can sometimes make the difference between excelling or just getting by. The fact, that every day is always a new adventure in my line of work is what keeps me inspired, for in the hotel industry — no two days are ever the same! “