Roland Berger’s Richard Stolz champions stellar traveller expertise, human touch key to stay ahead
He explores the market shifts, traveller developments, and the way forward for tourism within the Middle East.
As the Middle East continues to emerge as a worldwide journey hub, the area’s tourism sector is navigating speedy modifications in traveller expectations, supply market dynamics, and competitors. For companies on this trade, staying related requires not solely operational excellence but additionally strategic foresight and flexibility.
Richard Stolz, Partner for Tourism, Travel, & Leisure at Roland Berger, provides his invaluable insights, drawn from his greater than 14 years of strategic consulting expertise. He has labored throughout a various vary of industries, together with tourism, journey, transport, airways & aviation, leisure, hospitality, leisure, training, and healthcare, serving to companies develop.
Based in Dubai, Stolz’s practical expertise spans company technique, enterprise improvement, progress, market entry, market evaluation, mission administration, enterprise transformation, and organisational effectiveness. He additionally recurrently shares his trade views by authored columns, media commentary, and interviews, contributing to main publications and shaping conversations round world tourism and associated industries.
Navigating the Middle East’s tourism market shifts
In an interview with Stolz, he shared his views on the evolving dynamics of the Middle East’s journey and tourism trade and what companies should give attention to to stay aggressive within the area.
When requested how the journey trade within the Middle East is evolving, Stolz famous a relentless enhance in customer numbers, particularly in main hubs akin to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. He highlighted the rising significance of supply market quantity, together with the CIS, the Indian Subcontinent, and Mainland China.
“All key players in the tourism and travel value chain are needed to provide a stellar traveller experience,” Stolz mentioned. This consists of airports, airways, floor transport, accommodations, and DMCs, amongst others.
On the subject of adapting to shifting supply markets and evolving traveller expectations, Stolz emphasised the necessity for companies to tailor their choices, akin to meals and beverage choices, multilingual signage, and making certain the supply of tour guides fluent in languages like Mandarin. Additionally, DMCs ought to contemplate providing packaged excursions immediately ‘on the doorstep’ in key supply markets.
Addressing the continuing expertise problem within the area’s tourism and hospitality sector, Stolz confused that so as to appeal to, develop, and retain expert expertise in a aggressive hospitality and tourism labour market, firms should present work-life steadiness. “Offer attractive talent development and training schemes,” he added. He additionally recommended strengthening collaborations with main tourism and hospitality colleges globally and within the Middle East to guarantee entry to one of the best and motivated professionals.
Whilst innovation continues to redefine the trade, Stolz believes that agility have to be matched with a give attention to individuals and protecting the human touch in an organisation. “The element of building real and motivated teams is still key,” he famous.
Looking to the long run, Stolz expects a number of developments to form the area’s tourism panorama. He pointed to longer common lengths of stay, with locations akin to Dubai and Abu Dhabi being more and more seen as viable choices for long-term residing moderately than simply for holidays. He additionally highlighted the rising variety of rising locations throughout Saudi Arabia, that are set to improve the GCC’s general tourism providing.
Recognising excellence in tourism
As a decide for the TDM Travel Trade Excellence Awards 2025 – Middle East, Stolz will likely be inserting robust emphasis on recognising entities that persistently ship best-in-class traveller experiences and people who set the benchmark for excellence and proceed to elevate trade requirements.