Vaishakh Surendran
Founder, Veritas Hospitality Advisors · Hotel Owner Advisor
Hotelier with 25+ years of operational leadership across India, the Maldives, Kuwait and the United States — including General Manager roles since 2015 under Accor, Wyndham, ITC and independent flags. Founder of Veritas Hospitality Advisors: India's dedicated hotel owner advisory practice, working exclusively on the owner's side of the table.
Advisory Practice
Founder & Principal Advisor
2024 – Present
Veritas Hospitality Advisors · Pan-India
- Independent hotel owner advisory — working exclusively for hotel owners, never for operators or brands
- Commercial performance reviews: revenue positioning, OTA mix, yield management gaps, department-level P&L
- Operational governance: owner reporting cadence, KPI frameworks, staff accountability structures
- Current active engagement: Sanskreti The Heritage, Kochi (eco-island heritage resort, Vembanad backwaters)
- Advisory structured around one engagement per destination — full attention, no conflicts
Hotel Operations — General Manager & Senior Leadership
General Manager
Sep 2024 – Jun 2025
Lyfe Hotels & Resorts, Bhubaneswar · 110 rooms
- Led the property to occupancy of up to 85% with healthy ADR, ₹32 crore annual revenue and 42% GOP, with a 300-strong team
- Recognised as Best General Manager in Odisha 2024–25 and Odisha Best Employer 2025
- Named among CMO Asia's Most Influential General Managers 2025
- Awarded IGBC Green Crusader designation, World Earth Day 2025
85% Occ
₹32 Cr Rev
42% GOP
Best GM Odisha
General Manager (Pre-opening)
Jan 2024 – Jun 2024
Ramada Chennai Kattankulathur · Wyndham · 180 rooms
- Pre-opening leadership for a brownfield project (the project was subsequently stopped)
General Manager
Sep 2022 – Jan 2024
Mercure Chennai Sriperumbudur · Accor · 100 rooms
- Grew revenue from ₹18 crore to ₹24 crore (+33%) at 40% GOP
- Introduced EVs as part of the GOP improvement plan
- Achieved a 100% brand audit score and the highest employee engagement score among the brand's properties
₹24 Cr Rev
40% GOP
100% Brand Audit
#1 Engagement
Owner's Representative (Remote)
2021 – 2022
Two hotels (80 and 60 rooms) · Texas, USA
- Owner-side representation for two Texas hotels, delivered remotely from India
General Manager
Jun 2017 – Jan 2020
Fortune Hotels (ITC Hotels group) · Trivandrum and Vellore · 80 rooms each
- Fortune Vellore (Apr 2019 – Jan 2020): ₹22 crore revenue at 35% GOP; Fortune Hotels award for the highest sales across the brand, Q2 2019
- Fortune Trivandrum (Jun 2017 – Apr 2019): ₹20 crore revenue at 30% GOP; grew rooms and F&B business
General Manager
Aug 2016 – May 2017
Brunton Boatyard, Kochi · CGH Earth · 30 rooms
- Heritage hotel with UHNI guests; also oversaw David Hall (art gallery and pizzeria) and Chittoor Kottaram
General Manager · Hotel Manager
Sep 2013 – Jul 2016
Keys Hotels · Trivandrum (100 rooms) and Chennai (30 rooms)
- GM, Keys Trivandrum (Oct 2015 – Jul 2016): ₹18 crore revenue at 35% GOP; grew F&B business significantly
- Hotel Manager, Keys Chennai (Sep 2013 – Oct 2015): ₹9 crore revenue at 32% GOP; Kingfisher recognition for the highest beverage sales; TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence, 2015
Front Office Leadership
Jan 2006 – Sep 2013
Taj Kumarakom · Radisson Blu Kuwait · Alila Maldives · Alila Goa
- Front Office Manager, Alila Goa (2011–13) and Alila Maldives (2010): UHNI and HNI guests
- Assistant Front Office Manager, Radisson Blu Kuwait (2007–10): high-security arrangements for US government delegations, with formal commendations
- Assistant Front Office Manager, Taj Kumarakom (2006–07): Taj Award for Empowerment, 2006–07
Management Trainee to Night Manager
Oct 2001 – Jan 2006
The Leela · Mumbai, Goa and Kovalam
- Management Trainee, The Leela Mumbai (2001–02), promoted to Assistant Manager
- Duty Manager, The Leela Goa (2002–05) and Night Manager, The Leela Kovalam (2005–06): UHNI and international charter guests
Veritas Advisory Approach
- Owner-side only — no operator engagements, no brand affiliations, no referral relationships
- One active engagement per destination — guaranteed full attention
- Deliverables: owner reporting cadence, commercial performance review, KPI benchmarks, governance structure
- Founded on 25 years of seeing the owner's gap from inside hotel operations