Mario Sequeira has spent 30 years working in the foodservice industry; and has been a foodservice design and management consultant for the last ten years.
“I joined FCSI eight years ago because I liked the idea of belonging to a professional organisation with a strict code of conduct,” he says. “When you fill in a tender application we are often required to provide our industry experience, relevant qualifications and membership to professional associations. With FCSI, I am part of a professional international organisation that requires me to update my skills and knowledge on an annual basis. ”
The spirit of hospitality
Sequeira thoroughly enjoys his role as a consultant as he has ‘the spirit of hospitality and serving others’ as an integral part of his personality. He always had a long-term ambition to operate his own business and with his spontaneous instinct to help others, the world of consulting was a perfect fit. Being a ‘people person’ and always striving to do his best to get the best outcomes for his client, has stood him in good stead and contributed to his success to date.
He believes that as chair, his primary task is to lift the profile of the FCSI brand in the Asia Pacific region and increase the understanding of the value of engaging an independent FCSI consultant. “Some professionals operate in the industry and their key performance indicator (KPI) is to sell. As independent FCSI consultants our KPI is to offer good advice and to get the best outcome for the client – we bring knowledge and experience to every task ,” he says.
Adding value
Looking ahead, he is keen to work with the professional and allied members to explore how best we can add value to our clients. “Some often ask, ‘I have paid my fees, now what do I get?’ However I would say, ‘You have paid your fees because you want to be a part of a global industry organisation, now what can you contribute to enhance the organisation and in turn your business” he says. “We have many amazing opportunities – and a few challenges – in the Asia Pacific region, one of the fastest growing regions in the world. My leadership role along with the rest of the APD board will be focused on making the best use of the latest and evolving technology while keeping the ‘personal touch’ and ‘guest experience’ as the central focus of all we do.”
He believes using local resources, mentoring the next generation with a good work ethic and value system as well as reducing waste in caring for our environment will be other key drivers that will motivate us successfully into the future.
“I eagerly look forward to hearing from FCSI members in APD and globally as we share, support and inspire and strive to make our world a better place for all.”
FHA 2018
Meanwhile, the Food & Hotel Asia show in Singapore last week saw, for the first time, an all FCSI professional member panel involved in judging the SCI Equipment Award. Clara Ming Pi FCSI, also a facilitator/chair for FHA’s conference track on Central Kitchens, was the head judge, designing the scoring sheet and summarising the final result from a total of five FCSI judges. The winners at the awards ceremony on 27 April were as follows:
Heavy Equipment Category:
GOLD: Granuldisk
SILVER: Adande
BRONZE: MKN, Rational (two bronze awards)
Light Equipment Category:
GOLD: Meiko
SILVER: Zerica SRL
BRONZE: Offcar
Photo: Mario Sequeira (on the right) with the FCSI team
