Nov. 27, 2025

The Starfish Principle: How Hospitality Scales Through Agility, Autonomy & A Clear North Star - Matthew Bell, Mollie's

The Starfish Principle: How Hospitality Scales Through Agility, Autonomy & A Clear North Star - Matthew Bell, Mollie's

In this conversation, our guest experience correspondent, Danica Smith, speaks with Matthew Bell, Managing Director at Mollie's, and former Chief Hotel Operations Officer at citizenM, about what it really takes to scale a hospitality brand without losing its soul and energy. Matt explains the “starfish principle” behind great organizational design, showing how cross-functional, self-contained teams stay closer to the guest experience and make better decisions at speed. He also shares how clarity of vision and the right strategic frameworks create autonomy for creative, ambitious teams. 

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Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands