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Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, Orlando, FL - Company

Gold Stevie Award Winner 2012, Click to Enter The 2014 American Business Awards

Company: Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation, Orlando, FL
Entry Submitted By: Lynne Hildebrand
Company Description: Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corporation is a leading global pure-play vacation ownership company, offering a diverse portfolio of quality products, programs and management expertise with 58 resorts and approximately 415,000 Owners and Members and nearly 10,000 associates. Its brands include Marriott Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Destination Club and Grand Residences by Marriott.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Company of the Year - Hospitality & Leisure

Nomination Title: Marriott Vacations Worldwide

Tell the story about what this nominated organization has achieved since January 1, 2014 (up to 650 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms.

Marriott Vacations Worldwide (MVW) became an independent, public company in November 2011. Today, we are a recognized global leader in vacation ownership sales, resort management and specialized services, financing, and rental inventory management.

We manage every aspect of our business in support of our mission -- to deliver unforgettable experiences that make vacation dreams come true.

To fulfill our mission, we support four overarching business objectives – (1) associate well-being; (2) customer satisfaction; (3) innovation and efficient processes; and, (4) financial performance … all in equal measure.

Our 2014 top accomplishments include:

(1) Associate well-being:

Aon Hewitt administers our annual Engagement Survey. Based on 2014 survey participation by 96% of our associates, 84% of our associates are engaged, fully five percentage points higher than the Aon Hewitt Global Best Employer Benchmark.

MVW was named an Aon Hewitt Best Employer in the U.S., France, Spain, Thailand and the UAE in recognition of our commitment to create competitive advantage through our people.

To support growth among our associates, we regularly enhance the company’s learning library of more than 5,000 resources. In 2014, we significantly enriched our learning assets with the Stevie Gold Award-winning sales training program, The Balanced Approach. Our Resort Operations team developed two new, training programs -- a comprehensive job-specific learning program, “The Operations Playbook”, and “Creating Unforgettable Moments”, a training to maximize personalized guest interactions – both to rave reviews.

89% of our associates agree “there are opportunities within the company for me to advance ….”

93% of our associates agree “this company inspires me to do my best work every day.”

More than 40% of our new hires were referred by associates, a tribute to the fulfilling employment experience we endeavor to provide our associates.

(2) Customer Satisfaction:

In 2014, our customer satisfaction was 90.4% among nearly 220,000 survey respondents who rated their satisfaction an 8, 9 or 10, on a 10-point scale. More than half of our resorts had guest satisfaction ratings of 90% or higher.
A key driver of customer satisfaction is our points-based product form, Marriott Vacation Club Destinations™ and our Owners’ access to the Explorer Collection, including cruises, exclusive tours, and more. We introduced 64 new Explorer Collection offerings during 2014. Explorer Collection demand increased 20% year-over-year.

Our Operations team began the roll-out clubTHRIVE, a unique, wellness-centered program for our guests. Participant feedback has been exceptional – “Excellent.” “Enjoyed everything.”

Through use of a sophisticated analytical tool, Asgard, we introduced operational enhancements, including upgraded maintenance and inspection processes, managing more than 140,000 enhanced inspections for villa cleanliness and “everything in working order” (EIWO). Our villa cleanliness satisfaction was 92.4%, an all-time high, and our EIWO ratings improved 1.3 percentage points year-over-year.

(3) Innovation and process efficiency:

Our Board of Directors approved three new development projects in key markets, supporting the company’s continued growth.

We piloted a call transfer program with Marriott International (MI) to invite MI’s leisure guests to tour our resorts. Given this very successful pilot, MI agreed to the expansion of the program to six reservations centers in late 2014.
We significantly enhanced our trial product offering, Encore, by making it available across our system of resorts rather than its previous single-site value proposition, improving program performance by more than 50%.

An MVW cross-functional team, including finance, law and development experts, completed the company’s first-ever asset light deal structure, thereby optimizing the company’s financial resources.

(4) Impressive financial performance:

In 2014, total adjusted company development margin was 22% (a three-fold improvement over 2011), adjusted EBITDA was $200 million, and the company’s adjusted free cash flow was $284 million, all within, or better than, the guidance we had provided the public. The company’s share price has quadrupled since November 2011.

Our Spirit to Serve

We have recently released MVW’s 2014 Corporate Social Responsibility Report, The Business of Caring, which showcases our associates’ proven philanthropy and spirit to serve. It accompanies our award entry.

In bullet-list form, briefly summarize up to ten (10) of the chief accomplishments of this organization since the beginning of 2014 (up to 150 words).

• 84% of our associates are engaged, surpassing the Aon Hewitt 2014 Global Best Employer Benchmark by five percentage points;
• MVW was named an Aon Hewitt Best Employer in the U.S., France, Spain, Thailand and the UAE;
• Customer satisfaction was 90.4% among 219,000+ survey respondents;
• Drove measurable increases in customer satisfaction through 64 new vacation experiences (Explorer Collection), new onsite wellness program, clubTHRIVE, and enhanced resort operations processes (140,000+ detailed inspections);
• Received MVW’s Board of Directors’ approval for three new development projects (California, Miami Beach, the Big Island of Hawaii);
• Closed on the company’s first asset light deal structure;
• In 2014, adjusted company development margin was 22% (a three-fold improvement over 2011);
• Delivered $284M in adjusted free cash flow (+$145M over 2013);
• MVW’s share price has quadrupled since November 2011.
• MVW released its first-ever Corporate Social Responsibility Report, The Business of Caring, showcasing MVW’s longstanding commitment to philanthropy and sustainable practices.

Of the following measures of success, which ONE do you want the judges to most appreciate about your organization's story of achievement since the beginning of 2014?

Customer Service