Name: Sandy Swider
Title: Vice President, Global Citizenship
Company: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
My primary responsibilities: “Focusing and communicating our effort. Making sure we have the right talent focused on the right issues. It is a lot about corralling the troops and getting people’s brains in the game.”
Company’s most significant environmental accomplishment so far: “The launch of Element—the first hotel brand requiring LEED certification.”
What I like most about what I do: “Getting the opportunity to work with so many talented people.”
What advice I would give to someone considering starting a sustainability initiative: “It is important to have someone advocating for it. There are a complicated set of issues and everyone has their own opinion. You need to do it from a base of authenticity. You need to make it as simple as possible and offer the right resources.”
WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.—When a company has 1,000 hotels, it is not easy getting everyone in synch when it comes to corporate social responsibility (CSR). As vice president, global citizenship for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, it is Sandy Swider’s job to do just that. In a little less than a year in her position, Swider is making significant progress—thanks to her leadership and the work of tens of thousands of Starwood associates in 100 countries.
Swider, who has worked for Starwood since 1995, oversees the company’s efforts in environmental sustainability, government relations, community outreach and philanthropy. She is based in Starwood’s headquarters in White Plains, N.Y. The Penn State University graduate, who has a degree in hotel management, is supported by a team of three employees—one focused on the environment, one on community outreach, and one on all areas of CSR. At the division level, there are also employees charged with leading environmental and social initiatives.
Starwood has stepped up its commitment to CSR in the past couple of years. The company has a steering council which meets quarterly that includes representation from every discipline and division. The company also has a steering committee that meets monthly.
Focus on Growing Element Brand
Swider says Starwood’s central project in terms of sustainability has been the launch of its Element brand. An extended-stay product, the brand currently has representation in the following markets: Lone Tree, Colo.; Hanover, Md.; Lexington, Mass.; Las Vegas; Ewing, N.J.; Houston; and Irving, Texas. What makes Element unique is its open, nature-inspired space, emphasis on water and energy conservation, and focus on minimizing waste. The Lexington, Mass. property, in particular, has been used by Starwood as a site for testing green products and technologies. For example, a charging station for electric and hybrid vehicles was tested at that property and is now standard at all Element hotels.
“[Element’s design] is bright and inviting,” Swider said. “It’s communal and embodies the idea of sustainability. It is a great lab for us to test things.”
For its 1,000 hotels, Starwood has created an online Sustainability Resource Center. Launched a year ago, it includes an Environmental Initiative Assessment Survey and Initiative Tracking Tool. The Survey asks hotel operators to submit utility data on a regular basis and the Tracking Tool focuses more on regulation compliance. Educational resources are also available on the intranet site.
“They are working great,” Swider says of the Survey and Tracking Tool. “The first round [for the Survey] was rough but we are seeing the data get cleaner year over year.”
Swider said Starwood is currently in the process of establishing goals for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.
First Steps Toward Sustainability
When asked what new sustainability initiatives Starwood plans to introduce this year, Swider said the company will focus on strengthening its existing programs. “This is a very foundational time for us,” she says. In fact, in its Environmental Sustainability Policy statement, Starwood acknowledges that, in many ways, it, like the global community it serves, is only in the early stages of developing and implementing the many changes that will be necessary to achieve its sustainability goals.
Like most of its competitors, Starwood is not yet recommending one particular green lodging certification program over another—Element being the exception with its commitment to the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) program.
“We encourage hotels to pursue other certifications,” Swider said. “We think any source of certification is an opportunity for credibility.”
Starwood, like other companies in the lodging industry its size, has made a commitment to building a team in the corporate office to lead CSR efforts. This is important, Swider says. “You need someone at the executive level to prioritize and be a cheerleader.”
For now, Swider has her work cut out for her; laying the groundwork for a successful sustainability program is a formidable task in such a large company.
“This is my proudest moment,” Swider says. “Starwood is truly committed to this.”
