Araw Hospitality’s Raffy Ladao on Being a Better Leader Amid the Pandemic

With the hospitality industry struggling to stay afloat, Araw Chief Astounder Raffy Ladao shares all the lessons learned during the pandemic.

When the pandemic hit last year, it changed how life used to be for everyone. Face masks and sanitizers became a norm. Families and friends had to stay apart for weeks and months on end. Businesses, whatever industry they’re from, had to either shutter their doors or find ways to stay afloat.

All industries were hit by the pandemic, but it’s easy enough to surmise that the hospitality industry was one of the worst—if not the worst, hit. Borders closing meant people suddenly couldn’t travel. Airports, hotels, resorts, and tourist destinations, which were always centers of life, activity, and happy memories, were suddenly quiet and empty.

However, despite all the challenges and heartbreaks of the pandemic, life kept going. Time kept going. And so, everyone had to keep going, too.

Here’s one such tale of a man who kept going despite the hardships the hospitality industry faced. Araw Hospitality COO Raffy Ladao shares his reflections and what he has learned, as he strives to keep business going in the middle of a pandemic.