Eric Amundson
General Manager
Hired:
HOW DID YOU COME TO WORK WITH OUR COMPANY? TELL US YOUR STORY.
My interest in hospitality and hotels started really early in life. After high school, I spent six years the University of Nevada–Las Vegas earning my degrees in Hotel and Hospitality Management. I’ve worked in the field ever since.
My first few roles the hospitality industry included a F&B promoter at a small hotel/casino in Las Vegas. I moved up to Nightclub Promoter at the Mirage Hotel and Resort, spent a long, crazy year as a server in an Italian restaurant, and finally took on my first formal hotel line-level role as a Front Desk Agent at the 4-Star Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. During my time there, I was accepted in Mandalay’s management internship program. I figured everything I learned would help me get to my goal of becoming a hotel General Manager.
I moved up to the Seattle area in 2016 to look for new career opportunities. I knew I wanted to work for a company that offered on-the-job training, coaching and mentoring. I applied at 360°’s Hotel Nexus as the Director of Housekeeping and got the job. I spent a couple years there learning everything there is to know about hotel housekeeping service, which is something I think all hotel managers need to go through. The Nexus GM Peter Smiley spent time coaching me, and encouraged me to apply for an AGM role when it became open at 360°’s Hampton Inn & Suites. After that I moved laterally to the company’s Staybridge Suites to learn a new brand before being called into a task GM position for 2 properties.
Today I am proud to serve as the General Manager at the Hampton Inn & Suites. I’ve appreciated the chance to work at some of the other brands under our corporate umbrella, but am very excited to be here effecting change and progress at the Hampton Inn & Suites.
THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOUR JOB OR WORKING FOR
I love the room for advancement and the ability to voice my opinions. I feel I am empowered to make changes in order to push our company to achieve greatness in every way in the future
FAVORITE GUIDING PRINCIPLE
Everyone is born with the same body structure. What you do with it is entirely up to you.
MOST INTERESTING THING ABOUT YOU THAT’S NOT WORK-RELATED
You know that rule about never swimming right after you eat? Forget that—I once jumped into a pool only two minutes after eating a bucketload of ice cream. Looking back, not my smartest move.