Strong Relationships, Strong Team: Wyndham's CMO Lisa Checchio on Maintaining Connections

In a keynote presentation at the Women Leading Travel & Hospitality Roundtable in New York City on March 1, Lisa Checchio, chief marketing officer of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, spoke on her experience in the travel industry post-COVID-19 pandemic. Sally Holtgrieve, senior editor of WLT&H, acted as the moderator.

Gaining experience from a young age at her family’s business, Checchio went on to pursue her passion for travel.

“I didn't know if it was meant to be or if I was just paying attention, I was just lucky," recalled Checchio. "Every opportunity I had led to my next opportunity.”

Her early career with her family made Checchio gain an appreciation for personal work connections. Passion for the industry has pushed her to where she's at Wyndham today, and she believes work relationships are essential to promoting a positive work environment.

Holtgrieve asked how Checchio goes about finding the right culture fit for the company and her team when hiring.

“I hire for hustle,” Checchio said. “That’s No. 1 for me. I think you can’t fake hustle.”

Candidates who are self-driven and self-sufficient are key in today’s world. Connecting online involves expressing your personality outside of work. Checchio said she hires for the whole person.

Work life and personal life is intertwined now, according to Checchio.

“How do you keep your work family and personal family relationships strong?” asked Holtgrieve.

You have the ability to choose your work family, Checchio said in response. By having a strong relationship with her team and not asking them to do something she wouldn’t do for them, it makes the team stronger.

Checchio's secret to maintaining a positive attitude during the pandemic was to remind herself that everyone in the industry is as passionate as her, and everyone was experiencing the hardships faced by remote workers during the pandemic.

The darkest days of the pandemic was when she had the most pride in what she does, Checchio expressed.

“The reason we’re in this industry is because we're optimistic, resilient and we love everything about it,” said Checchio.