Tashfeen Ahmad
Marketing Communications Executive
Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden
The hotel industry is one of the essential components of the more comprehensive service industry, catering to customers who require overnight accommodation. It is closely associated with the travel and hospitality industries, although there are notable differences in scope. Behind the outstanding customer’s services, many significant roles keep the brand image according to the company’s needs. Of all those, Mr. Tashfeen Ahmad is a self-motivated individual and always willing to learn new things and develop his career in the hotel industry.
Mr. Tashfeen Ahmad looks after Marketing and Public Relations as the Marketing Communication Executive of Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden, the top well-known hotel in the world. Of course, he has a story, as everybody has. Let’s read on his journey:
The InCAP: Mr. Tashfeen, please share your career synopsis.
Tashfeen Ahmad: Being a self-motivated individual, I always had the will to learn new things from a very young age. As time went by, I developed myself and my career in such a way that I can grow myself more and strive to the best of my ability for the organization that I will work for. Currently, I am working at Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden, one of the top well-known hotels worldwide and in Bangladesh as well.
The hotel industry is a new sector for me, so I wanted to explore myself and see the various opportunities where I can learn about this industry and adapt myself according to the company’s needs. I look after Marketing and Public Relations (PR) as the “Marketing Communication Executive” of Radisson Blu Dhaka. As I have previously worked in marketing and sales of other companies, I have sufficient knowledge and experience of marketing and try to implement it to what will work for my hotel.
Mainstream media is essential to keep any company’s brand image. For the past two years, I have dealt with various TV Channels, Newspapers, Magazines, and Radio, as well as collaborating with different corporate companies for sponsorship/partnership. This platform, especially PR, has enhanced my career to a great extent and also made me more competent to follow up and try to make the brand image of Radisson Blu Dhaka more prominently over the other hotel competitors in the hotel industry market.
My past work experience includes:
- Marketing Executive in Parkway Hospitals Singapore (May 2015 – July 2015)
- Business Development Manager in Spade Digital (Nov 2016 – March 2017)
- Assistant Manager, International Marketing & Sales in CEMS-Global (Oct 2017 – March 2020)
- Assistant Manager, Sales in Goldsands Hotels & Resorts (April 2020 – Jan 2021)
Regarding education, I completed my BBA and MBA from North South University, one of the finest educational institutions in Bangladesh. Furthermore, before starting my career, I did my internship at one of the world’s top multinational companies, British American Tobacco Bangladesh (BATB), in 2014. Besides, I have done a few courses in Marketing, Brand Management, Digital Marketing, and Brand Management from the Institute of Business Administration (IBA).
To what extent does your motivation help you to thrive in your career?
Motivation is an essential aspect when it comes to a person’s career. My motivation comes from my family, who are my most significant source of inspiration and my strongest supporters as well. They have also taught me to stay motivated even when things do not go well according to a plan. Their dedication to working is what motivates me to be like them. They are self-motivated individuals.
Hence I try to imbibe their positivism into my life. I have learned from my father how to not give up on a tough client or a difficult deal. The essence is going through the grind to know what the other person wants. This excites me to take up greater challenges and risks without fearing failure or backing out. My mother is the source of calm confidence. Knowing exactly where to push hard and where to slow down is something I have imbibed from her. They remain my go-to people when I feel under the weather or less motivated.
Motivation is seeing the organization grow, which ultimately leads to personal achievement and success. So, when it comes to my career, there might be instances of failure or stagnation, but it does not demotivate me anyhow. On the other hand, I feel re-invigorated to perform even more. The taste of success after failure keeps the fire going within me, no matter the circumstances. This gratification of overcoming any obstacle is a great motivating factor for me.
We are attentive to know an overview of your organization’s communication department, such as your team size, strategy, and others you want to mention.
The marketing department is one of the most important departments connected to all a company’s departments. Our small dynamic team consists of four members, making us a very close unit as we all have different skill sets. First, there is our Senior Graphics Manager, who looks after all the creative and brand designs of Radisson Blu Dhaka. He creates the design and content for both our offline and online marketing.
Next is our Strategic Alliance Manager, who looks after corporate partnerships and sponsorships with different companies. Finally, another team member looks after the social media part of Radisson Blu Dhaka, which is Facebook and Instagram. And last but not least, I look after the mainstream media of Radisson, which includes TV channels, newspapers, magazines, radio etc.
Though the size of our team is small in number, the four of us are responsible for creating and building communication strategies for our hotel, which enables us to implement any kind of marketing campaign through different forms of media. Moreover, as we have to work very closely with the General Manager of Radisson Blu Dhaka, it is very important for us to maintain the brand image of our hotel and ensure we do not lose that competitive advantage over other hotels in the hotel industry of Bangladesh.
How do you see the customer’s acceptability of Radisson Blu Dhaka?
In the hospitality industry of Bangladesh, Radisson Blu Dhaka Water Garden has made itself a name of having extensive and large-scale acceptability to the customers by providing world-class services. Being a five-star hotel in the port city, Radisson Blu Dhaka has a wide array of facilities in its luxurious premises with a tranquil view giving its respective guests a refreshing feeling of separation from the stress of everyday life.
Radisson Blu Dhaka is more than just a hotel. It is the destination where guests are understood and feel that this is a place where they can be at their best. When guests arrive at this hotel, they can sense the atmosphere and are welcomed by the hosts who help them to get the most out of their stay.
From your view, how different elements of communication differ from each other?
From my point of view, communication is essential to delivering the right message to customers or clients. They should know what the company is offering and how it can add value to those offerings. When it comes to Radisson Blu Dhaka, it uses different modes of communication to make the message reach to the people in the right way.
The modes of communication include press releases and advertisements in leading English and Bangla newspapers such as Daily Star, Prothom Alo, Dhaka Tribune, Samakal etc. in both online and offline modes; social media posts on Facebook and Instagram; billboards placed outside the hotel premises showcasing our offerings. Just like Radisson Blu Dhaka, many other businesses and companies worldwide also follow these different kinds of modes of communication.
Mr. Tashfeen, what challenges do you face while playing your role, and how do you overcome those?
Radisson is a well-known global brand that is recognized in more than 140 countries around the world. As part of the marketing team and being in this “Marketing Communications Executive” role for the past two years, I face certain challenges while engaging in different marketing activities.
Some of the challenges involve coordinating multiple channels of marketing strategies which also involves keeping up with new marketing trends in the market. It can be difficult to keep track of the changes and implement them properly. So, to make this less daunting, we brainstorm and find the channel on which our target audience can spend time and check our promotions, whether offline or online.
Another major challenge is managing and allocating budgets for marketing campaigns. Regarding using a budget, we, as the marketing team, are expected to be magicians. To get the best results, we strive hard to do the work with a little budget with the drive to achieve the best outcome.
The last challenge I faced in the first few months of joining Radisson was making myself known and building relationships with different media channels, such as connecting with all the TV channels, English & Bangla newspapers, magazines, radio channels, etc. It is important as a marketing person I get to know everyone from this media industry, not only for the sake of the company but also to establish and do my own branding as well. I believe self-branding is equally vital along with the company’s branding as well.
What is your significant achievement as of now?
Well, that’s a difficult one to remember! But then, when it comes to achievement, even minor things can also be counted as one achievement if they can add value to yourself and the company. If I reflect back on my career, I made very few little achievements in the companies I worked for before. If I take one significant achievement, I will say that the recognition for the work I got from my company as the Marketing Communications Executive would count as one.
Last year, the media coverage for all the events of Radisson Blu Dhaka was exceptionally high compared to previous years. I managed to get a good amount of exposure from television media coverage, and quite a few press releases were published in English and Bangla Newspapers. My senior management appreciated the hard work I put in building relationships with all the media channels and bringing the maximum coverage of Radisson Blu Dhaka more prominently than in previous years. That sense of recognition felt like a significant achievement for me and made me feel that I had made a difference, which goes with our slogan “Feel the Difference”. This made me feel proud and inspired me to work much harder and achieve better results for my company.
What advice would you give to future candidates who are interested in making their career in the communication department?
For a candidate to have a good career in communication, it is very important that people need to have good communication and problem-solving skills for any problem they face. This will help them to work more effectively and also help them to work better with their coworkers as well. As you go through your career and start making a name for yourself, people will pay attention to the way you speak. If you’re poised and professional, they’ll like that. If you’re nervous or unclear, they won’t. It’s that simple. Without good communication skills, it’s very difficult to succeed professionally—no matter what area of work you’re in.
A person should always have a positive mindset in his/her career. This will lead to more opportunities and more visibility within the organization. So, if you’re still not up for a promotion when you believe you should be, talk directly with your manager or HR. Advocate for yourself, and above all else, be passionate about your work. It will definitely show!
Skill Set:
- Hard Skills : Data Analysis & Analytics, Technology Proficiency, Project Management, People Management, Research, Social Media Marketing, Website Management
- Soft Skills: Adaptability, Collaboration, Communication, Teamwork, Work Ethic, Problem Solving, Negotiation, Critical Thinking, Stress Management
Prayer for The Human Civilization: I pray and wish for a better world for everyone to live peacefully and with happiness. All of us together can come forward and create a better world for ourselves and preserve the peace, love, happiness, and dignity of human civilization in this world.
The InCAP: Thanks a lot!
Tashfeen Ahmad: Always a pleasure! I wish The InCAP and its team great success.
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