Sofitel boss to champion female leadership as luxury French brand turns 60

The Paris-born businesswoman will focus on highlighting Sofitel’s unique French identity in her new role and she knows what she’s talking about, having been appointed Sofitel’s chief executive officer in January 2023 after seven years heading up its digital department. Prior to this, she worked for the French government, leading former Prime Minister Manuel Valls’ economic and digital bureau. 

“This diamond jubilee is about re-clarifying our identity”

In her new role, Bailly will oversee Sofitel, Sofitel Legend, MGallery, as well as the Emblems brand, focusing on the development of them all in Europe as well as its markets in Asia and Central America. 

She tells me that, as chief executive officer, her success in three years’ time will be measured by her ability to re-create a distinctive culture that brings together each member of the company – and this starts with the people around her. 
 
“CSR is not just about food waste, carbon neutrality and plastic. That ‘S’ stands for social – it’s also about people,” says Bailly. “I want to be a pioneer in the luxury hospitality industry, and addressing the gender imbalance in this industry is one of my main goals.”

Leading by example

Bailly doesn’t just walk the walk when it comes to this mission; she charges it. Once she became chief executive officer, she established clear diversity KPIs for Sofitel owners, putting bonus incentives in place to increase their number of female general managers. At the time, that figure sat at 26% – today, it has jumped to 29%. By the end of 2024, it’s hoped it will have reached 32%.

“It’s clearly still a challenge; we’ve inherited a legacy that makes it difficult,” says Bailly. “It’s been a man’s world for a long time, especially in the business roles, and especially in the luxury segment.” 

“It’s been a man’s world for a long time, especially in the business roles, and especially in the luxury segment.”  

“Having a woman in charge is rare, but things are changing. When I joined Accor as chief digital officer, I was in charge of digital, IT, data and guest loyalty programme, which was all a metrics function. The other women, at the time, were mainly in communications and HR. But seven years later, we’ve had a lot more women in charge of development, P&L, and commercials.” 
 
Bailly adds that social barriers, including self-doubt and outdated stereotypes, also impact the ratio of male-to-female leaders in luxury hospitality. 
 
“We have our own biases,” she admits. “Some women believe it’s not possible, and then there are also toxic prejudices, like, ‘She has no private life, no partner or friends, and she spends all of her life working’.” 
 
Bailly believes that one of the best ways to challenge such misperceptions is to lead by example. “Four years ago, I was pregnant with my second daughter and I was at the ExCom level, and some women gently said to me, ‘Thank you’, because they saw that I was still in a leading position in the company. If I can do it, everyone can do it.” 

Bailly also shrugs off the naysayers when she adds how her success as a boss is demonstrated in results. She now hopes to empower other women to pursue leadership roles in luxury hospitality.

“People might look at you in a different way at the beginning when they see you as a female boss, but once you have the results – the figures and the feedback from your teams – and the feedback from your owners, who are your best clients, then you are invincible.”
 
But invincibility, to Maud, doesn’t mean being superhuman. As a proud mother to two young daughters, she believes it is crucial that employees can express vulnerability at work too.

“It is toxic to say everything is under control when it’s not,” she insists. “Being a mum and a wife helps me be a better leader; to be more vulnerable, to be more human. Even just saying, ‘I need to leave early, because I have a dental appointment for my girl’, is important. You help other women, and men, to show you can have a balanced life.”

Sofitel’s ‘New Era’ 

Bailly may be flexible on her work-life balance, but when it comes to the product, there’s no room for 50/50. 
 
Accor has been tidying up its collection since the early 2000s, renovating several of its Sofitel hotels to ensure they adhere to the brand’s high standards, and cutting ties with others who have failed to do so. 
 
Bailly is committed to maintain this consistency in quality, travelling all around the world to meet with general managers and perform inspections. For those properties that have fallen short of Sofitel’s five-star expectations, also known as ‘detractors’, there are three options: ‘to renovate, rebrand, or de-brand’. 
 
“It isn’t an easy exercise,” Bailly admits. “We are an asset-light company. My first clients are my owners.” The hotels that are deemed ‘detractors’ but wish to remain in the Accor family are asked to ‘rebrand’, which means they can join one of its premium or midscale brands. If this is not possible, they are required to exit the group altogether.

However, for Bailly, renovation is always the preferred option. “It means we keep elevating the network and killing any kind of discrepancy between the promise and the reality,” she explains. “It’s an opportunity for a new era for each property.” 
 
Sofitel has seen a wave of renovations across its global portfolio in recent times, its Philadelphia property debuting a £5 million makeover of its lobby and F&B department earlier this year. Its owner is now also looking to renovate all 306 guest rooms and suites, which were last updated in 2020. Meanwhile, a full renovation of Sofitel Bangkok Sukhumvit was unveiled in November 2023. 

“We are an asset-light company. My first clients are my owners”

The work is far from over, however. Currently, 26% of the brand is undergoing renovation, with Sofitel New York set to embark on a ‘comprehensive refurbishment’ this autumn, which will see the entire property upgraded over a year.
 
The final phase of the renovation of Sofitel London St. James is also underway, with the revamped lobby to debut by the end of 2024. Selected suites will also be getting a full makeover, with a completion date set for spring 2025. 

Supply and Demand 

Sofitel’s renovation strategy is largely influenced by consumer travel trends, which have changed significantly since the pandemic due to the rise of remote working. 
 
Prior to 2020, the brand’s breakdown of leisure to corporate guests was roughly split down the middle. Bailly now estimates that just 35% of Sofitel’s clientele comes from business, with this increased leisure category driven by intergenerational family bookings. 
 
“More people are staying at our hotels with their grandparents, parents, nieces, nephews, and cousins, which has led to a boom in the bookings of suites,” she explains. “Families are now looking for bigger spaces but they don’t necessarily want to book a rental house, because they don’t want to cook or clean on holiday.” 

“Families are now looking for bigger spaces” 

This trend means that Sofitel will be investing further in its offerings of suites, apartments and even branded residences, as part of its goal to ‘increase the leisure weight’ of the brand. 
 
“Each time we are reviewing a new project, our design department and technical services department is looking at the percentage of suites and villas,” Bailly explains. “It’s all about consistency.” 

French essence 

One thing that will never change about Sofitel, however, is its strong French identity. 

Bailly is adamant thought that all properties must merge their Francophone roots with the local culture; a principle that has underlined the luxury brand’s mission from the beginning.
 
“I’m lucky enough to be in charge of the ‘Frenchest’ luxury brand in Accor,” Bailly says with a grin. “No matter where you stay with us, you will enjoy the best of a baguette or croissant, the best French wines, the best bed in our famous Sofitel MyBeds. It’s a mix of the know-how and the love of France, while also deeply embedding the local culture.” 

She acknowledges this ’Je ne sais quoi’ is hard to sum up in words, which is why, she nods to stunning diamond necklace of intertwining circles – Sofitel’s iconic logo – that she’s wearing in honour of the event.

“This represents the magical encounters between people and cultures and ideas. This is what Sofitel stands for.”