Pascal Duchauffour had been working as a concierge in San Francisco only for a few weeks when he lost everything he owned.
First, his apartment was ransacked. Then his first paycheque was stolen in a robbery on a bus.
Four weeks later, after returning to his native Paris in frustration, he received a call from his former boss at the Ritz-Carlton asking him why he left.
"I said listen, 'this is what happened. I can't do it. I just don't think it's right. I'm going to stay in Paris'," he says.
"He said, 'I'm going to give you one bit of advice, get on a plane and come back'. The next day I received a letter with the signatures of about 50 employees [of the Ritz-Carlton hotel]. The message was, 'Americans are not that bad. Give us another chance'," Mr Duchauffour says.
He returned to the United States and to the hotel, where he steadily rose through the ranks, moving from concierge to housekeeping, on to night manager then guest services and front office.
After that, he worked for Ritz-Carlton at several properties abroad. And today he is the luxury chain's vice president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
"I think our industry is known for creating a lot of opportunities," says Mr Duchauffour. "Our industry gives you the opportunity to learn. We do a lot of training and development."
And Mr Duchauffour is by no means the only person who has made much of the opportunities offered by the industry.
Hoss Vetry was a room-service manager before he applied for a position at the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco.
"I said to the lady at the time, 'I want to work for your hotel', and she said, 'we don't have any management positions'. I said 'I don't care - server, dishwasher, housekeeper - I want to work here'," he says.
In the end, he accepted a position as a room-service server.
"It was the best decision I made in my life. That was back in 1992, and I have been with the company now for 20 years," says Mr Vetry.
While working together on the night shift, Mr Vetry and Mr Duchauffour used to speculate about one day becoming general managers. Today, Mr Vetry is a cluster general manager for the Ritz-Carlton's two properties in Qatar.
Pep Lozano, the general manager of the soon-to-open Ritz-Carlton in Abu Dhabi, has a similar story. Hired as a banquet waiter in his native Barcelona in 1993, he too steadily climbed the ranks of the company.
"All the positions get posted, so you can always apply and make sure everybody is part of it. I always believe in working harder, and that's what will take you, and as well engaging with your customers and employees," he says.
Promoting people from within the hospitality industry has several benefits, these managers say. Starting from the bottom and learning the ropes earns credibility and respect.
"If your people know you have done what they are doing, they will follow you. They will respect you," says Mr Vetry.
But the Ritz-Carlton is not the only hotel company that offers employees the opportunity to rise from the lowest ranks.
Home-grown hospitality brands also promote from within. A number of people who started their careers with the Jumeirah Group 10 years ago as receptionists are now general managers, says Oleg Kafarov, the director of public affairs at Jumeirah Group.
Mr Kafarov started in marketing at the Burj Al Arab hotel but then went on to study at the Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management in Dubai, where he had hospitality courses.
"I never had any experience in housekeeping, but I now know where you should look in the guest room when you check in, whether the housekeeping is good or bad, what are the small details you have to notice," he says. "If you don't have that experience and you haven't tried it yourself, I don't believe that you can really appreciate the role and achieve results as a general manager."
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