QHA-Review_July_digital
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FEATURE<br />
WHERE LIFE TAKES YOU<br />
WITH THE MERGING OF THE ACCOMMODATION ASSOCIATION OF AUSTRALIA (AAOA)<br />
AND TOURISM ACCOMMODATION AUSTRALIA (TAA) FINALLY HERE, WE SAT DOWN<br />
WITH ONE OF THE KEY INSTIGATORS BEHIND IT ALL.<br />
<strong>QHA</strong> REVIEW | 22<br />
As the CEO of both the TAA and the new peak<br />
industry body – Accommodation Australia, Michael<br />
Johnson sure has a lot of things on his plate, but said<br />
he is quite thrilled with his new position, and that it was<br />
very humbling to get through the process.<br />
“The first opportunity to join the association came up<br />
about four years ago. I had just finished doing the<br />
redevelopment of Parkroyal out of Parramatta, so I<br />
thought it was such a great chance after so many<br />
years in the industry. I had been associated with the<br />
Australian Hotels Association (AHA) before, as an<br />
executive and on the New South Wales board, so the<br />
opportunity to actually take the CEO role for TAA was<br />
just a great transition for me.<br />
“These roles give you the opportunity to really benefit<br />
the industry as a whole. You get to have all of these<br />
connections to members and find out what is keeping<br />
them awake at night so you can make a difference.<br />
I have to say, it was a bit of an initiation by fire, that’s<br />
for sure, because I’d only been in the job for about six<br />
months when we got hit by a pandemic and started<br />
closing things up,” he said.<br />
As someone who has over 35 years of experience<br />
managing 5-star business hotels, resorts and tourist<br />
attractions across two countries, you could say<br />
Michael sports an in-depth understanding of the<br />
hospitality industry. Hailing from Sydney, his invaluable<br />
international insights, industry knowledge and skills<br />
have helped give the Australian accommodation<br />
industry the best possible representation at all levels of<br />
government.<br />
Preceeding all of that, however, Michael said his<br />
beginnings with the industry goes right back to the<br />
Southern Pacific Hotel Corporation in the 70s and 80s,<br />
where he started as a trainee washing dishes who had<br />
no idea where his life could possibly take him.<br />
“I effectively worked my way through the hotel<br />
departments, and it was after I’d been there for a few<br />
years that the general manager asked what I intended<br />
to do when I got out of there. I said I would probably<br />
have to go back to work, but then he said ‘Why don’t<br />
you call this work? I haven’t worked a day since I’ve<br />
been here, I’m just loving it.’ So he put me through<br />
an official traineeship, and I came out of it as a duty<br />
manager and then worked my way from food and<br />
beverage manager up to the general manager.<br />
“I was managing hotels in my early 30s. I did that<br />
for many years, and look, I was blessed. I managed<br />
some great hotels, from corporate venues to resorts in<br />
Brisbane City and right across Queensland. I managed<br />
Travelodge and Royal on the Park for a short period of<br />
time in addition to the Dockside Park Royal back in the<br />
early 90s. I also crossed the ditch a lot and managed<br />
hotels in Christchurch, New Zealand too,” he said.<br />
For Michael, and many others in the accommodation<br />
industry, it has been a long personal ambition<br />
to see one united voice speaking for Australia’s<br />
accommodation sector. The excitement has been<br />
palpable for the amalgamation of AAoA and TAA.<br />
A merger between the major national industry bodies<br />
has been attempted multiple times over the years,<br />
which is why, after years of organisation, finally<br />
having a peak industry body representing Australia’s<br />
economically important accommodation sector has<br />
been met with a collective sigh of relief. Michael said<br />
that the progression has been fantastic, and he still<br />
pinches himself that the amalgamation has finally been<br />
achieved.