Making Room for Others - Carl Long - Defining Hospitality

In this episode, Dan sits down with longtime industry counterpart Carl Long for a conversation twenty years in the making. They dig into how relationships compound like interest, why hospitality has resisted disruption from AI, and the vocational program Carl helped build at Richardson High School that's giving students a debt free path into the industry. It is a candid, reflective talk about risk, trust, and what actually keeps people in this business for the long haul. About the Guest: Carl Long is CEO of PMI and PMI Tribal Services, with more than two decades of experience in hospitality purchasing and project management spanning India, Latin America, and major hotel, casino, and senior living projects across the US. He sits on the board of the Indian Gaming Association, serves on the AHLA Design and Construction Committee, and is the past president of ISHP. He is also breaking ground on his own hotel development this year, adding developer to an already impressive resume. Chapters: 00:00 Spy Joke and Mission 00:46 Meet Carl Long 02:07 Project Years and Perspective 04:32 Defining Hospitality 05:57 Building Their Own Hotel 07:28 Balancing Kindness and Deadlines 10:50 Relationships Over Transactions 17:38 Trust Erosion and Overdocumentation 28:58 Disruption AI and Last Mile 36:20 AI Meets Reality 38:12 People Over Process 38:49 Hospitality Career Lab 39:58 Richardson High Program 42:28 Building A Hotel Lobby 45:13 Opportunity Without Debt 47:21 Connection Beats Remote 53:59 CapEx And Renovation Cycle 01:05:19 Future Of Relational Hospitality Quote of the Show: "Those relationships, they have to start somewhere. It comes over time, it comes over effort, and when you do that, relationships are what make great projects easy to move ahead." - Carl Long Building a hotel, brand, or guest experience? Reach out to Dan on LinkedIn or hit reply on the Substack to share what you’re working on. Links: Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/@defininghospitality?sub_confirmation=1 Substack: https://www.defininghospitality.live/ Guest’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carl-long-pmi/ Guests Website: https://pmiconnect.com/ Dan Ryan LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thedailydanryan/ 🏨✨ Defining Hospitality is Sponsored by Berman Falk https://www.bermanfalk.com/ - Check out their impact page! 🌍🌱 https://www.bermanfalk.com/impact/ Ways to Tune In: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0A2XOJvb6mGqEPYJ5bilPX Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/defining-hospitality-podcast/id1573596386 Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZGVmaW5pbmdob3NwaXRhbGl0eS5saXZlL2ZlZWQueG1s Amazon Music: ​​https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/8c904932-90fa-41c3-813e-1cb8f3c42419 Transistor: https://www.defininghospitality.live/