Paola Rainieri de Diaz reached the top leadership position at the Association of Hotels and Tourism of the Dominican Republic, without any doubt the most powerful private tourism entity.
She has held important roles at Asonahores, as second Vice President and Treasurer, and is the second woman to be in charge, following her mother Haydee Kuret de Rainieri.
“We will work together for the benefit of our industry and our country, to remain as a recognized tourism model, admired and copied by many countries and above all, for the Caribbean islands and the Latin American countries”, she said on her opening speech on December 3rd.
Rainieri de Diaz is a Senior Vice President of Marketing, Public Relations and Communications at Grupo Puntacana, where she is responsible for marketing, positioning and branding, corporate communications and public relations.
In addition, she participates in the strategic planning initiatives to support corporate social responsibility and corporate culture strategies for the organization.
The representative of the Grupo Puntacana attended Ethel Walker School in Simsbury, Connecticut, and Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts, with a specialty in Public Relations and a focus on Hispanic Literature.
Since her graduation, she has continued her education through programs in Incae, Barna, Intras and the Technological Institute of Monterrey.
Also, she has been a member of the National Social Security Council (CNSS), representing the employer sector, and has served at the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAMDR) as a Corporate Social Responsibility Committee.
Who is Paola Rainieri de Diaz
To get more details about the woman who will serve as President of Asonahores for the 2018-2020 term, we seek an interview published on the Dominican magazine Bohio News.
How did your childhood go?
I treasure my childhood memories in Punta Cana.
Those first years we spent long seasons in Punta Cana Club, where I had a pet turtle, rode horses, the roads were marked with snails and the beach baths were endless.
I do not think you can ask for more.
What do you think is the continued success of Grupo Puntacana?
The success of Grupo Puntacana, and in my opinion of any company, lies in work, perseverance, and passion for what we do. There is no magic stick to achieve success.
How should the executive be in the hospitality industry?
Must have leadership and vocation of service to create a culture of service within the company. It must be organized, proactive and develop analytical thinking and a vision for the future.
What implications would the development in Bani have on a tourist area such as Punta Cana?
I prefer not to make comparisons between Puntacana and Corbanitos because they are very different projects, with different conditions.
The important thing is that the South will have a new source of sustenance, the creation of jobs, wealth and education.
This new project will have a direct impact on the lives of many Dominicans, in an area of great poverty, and this is precisely what excites us the most.
How important is the Group to the environmental and sustainability issue?
It is a vital issue for Grupo Puntacana, as well as the issue of education. We believe in sustainable development, which is capable of meeting current needs without compromising the resources of the following generations.
During the last 45 years, we have been pioneers of sustainable tourism, both in environmental practices and in our collaboration with the development of nearby communities, such as Verón.
The Puntacana Ecological Foundation and the Puntacana Foundation are the instruments that serve to protect and restore the natural resources of the region (flora and fauna), provide jobs, educational opportunities and a better quality of life for the inhabitants of the nearby communities.
We trust that these opportunities can break the poverty circles and offer them a more dignified life.
In what social action initiatives have you been involved?
You do social work by vocation or conviction.
My parents and grandparents have been great examples of the satisfaction you get to get involved in social initiatives that contribute to improving the quality of life of those around you.
I remember that when I was a child I used to visit with my paternal grandmother, children with tuberculosis, a cause for which she always fought.
My maternal grandmother sewed clothes for the girls of an orphanage in Puerto Plata, with which she contributed through the Love and Peace Charity Society. Both were great examples of love.
In 1979, when Hurricane David devastated the southern region of the country, my parents organized at home a small store of provisions that with the help of neighbors were packed and transported by truck to the most impacted areas.
With barely six years old I was a food packing house and I accompanied my parents and neighbors every Saturday in that truck.
These faces full of gratitude marked my life, and I understood the importance of social responsibility.
There are many ways to participate in social action initiatives, and you choose those platforms from which you can contribute a grain of sand. To be merciful is a duty, and we must give up where it hurts.
What does the example of your enterprising parents mean for you and your brothers?
They are our pride and parameter.
How have you managed to conjugate motherhood with your job functions?
They say that necessity is the mother of all things, and like every mother who works, which is the great majority, I do my best to maintain a balance: when I’m working I give everything, and when I’m with my children, I do same.
How has your life changed motherhood?
Motherhood completes you, makes you a better human being: less selfish, more patient and loving. Increase the ability to feel the pain of others and to empathize.
How do you visualize yourself five years from now?
I do not see that my life will change drastically in the next five years. However, at this moment the balance leans towards my family and it is to them that I want to spend more time.
Within the Puntacana Group, we have many and diverse plans for expansion and development in the short and medium term.
Being part of the team of the Group is always a challenge that I assume with enthusiasm and dedication.
What landscapes of the Dominican Republic steal your breath, in addition to Punta Cana?
Everything has its own charm. Los Corbanitos offers a memorable landscape of beautiful beaches and mountains in the background.
Barahona is our Amalfi Coast, and the road has dreamlike views.
Cabarete, with its endless kilometers of beach, is a jewel for those who walk and enjoy watching kitesurfers and surfers.
What attractive destination of the world do you have on the agenda to visit for the first time?
We have planned a trip to the D.F. and Cancun, in Mexico. Being inside the hotel sector it is incredible and unforgivable that I have not been able to visit Cancun before.
When you travel, what kind of tourist are you?
I am an observer. Although I rest physically, the mind continues to work. I spend it taking pictures of what strikes me and sending emails with notes of ideas that arise, improvements that could be applied, and so on.
In fact, this is how the idea of making the green wall of the Puntacana Group office building in Santo Domingo was born.
How is Paola Rainieri from Diaz in the kitchen?
Cooking is an activity that integrates the family, and that I enjoy in the role of “Sous-Chef” of my husband.