The Business Response to HIV/AIDS: Impact and lesson learned

Key lesson: Support for HIV/AIDS community through core business activities
* Business description:
The Warsaw Marriott, part of the worldwide chain of Marriott International hotels, is a five star hotel located in central
Warsaw. Its facilities include 523 rooms and over 2500 sq metres of meeting space, with 16 function rooms able to
accommodate 700 persons for a meeting and 1,000 persons for a reception.
* Number of employees: 850

* Contact:

Jolanta lylus
Warsaw Marriott Hotel
AI. Jerozolimskie 65779
Warsaw
Poland
[phone]
[phone]
[email protected]

0 Tel:
* Fax:
* Email:

1. Motivation for action
The Marriott International has a commitment to assisting
the communities in which they operate, believing that
business enterprises should be active and prominent in
supporting community concerns. The Warsaw Marriott
identified HIV/AIDS as an issue that was not openly and
practically discussed in Poland and other countries in
Central and Eastern Europe, as a result of a lack of
knowledge of HIV/AIDS and discrimination against people
living with HIV/AIDS. They sought to serve as an example to
other businesses in Poland and to assist their staff and local
community in improving awareness of HIV/AIDS.
2. Business response to HIV/AIDS
Since 1994, the Warsaw Marriott has undertaken a number
of initiatives to assist in the promotion of HIV/AIDS
awareness to their own staff and supporting people living
with HIV/AIDS, largely in collaboration with the Polish
Foundation for Humanitarian AIDS "Res Humanae".
Significant activities undertaken include:
* In December 1998 the Warsaw Marriott hosted the 5th
Conference of People Living with HIV/AIDS and Family
and Society. This brought together a number of Polish
and East European medical and social professionals and
community leaders in the field of HIV/AIDS, offering
financial assistance through reduced rates and
complementary services.

* In August 1999 the Warsaw Marriott supported and
hosted the 9th International Conference for People
Living with HIV/AIDS. The conference was attended by
almost 500 delegates from over 60 countries, most of
whom were HIV positive. Again the hotel assisted the
conference by providing some complementary rooms,
reduced conference space rates, free equipment hire,
and reduced catering services costs. Hotel staff
underwent HIV/AIDS education training to increase their
awareness and sensitivity to these issues for the
conference, for their own information and for future
guests. The hotel has since made a commitment to
undertake a longer-term (5 year) HIV/AIDS education
programme to continue to train its full and part-time
staff.
* The General Manager undertakes advocacy work at
business events to encourage other business leaders and
executives to incorporate HIV/AIDS programmes and
initiatives into their firm's activities by illustrating how
and why business should be more active.
3. Results and lessons
The hotel sought to evaluate the effectiveness of the staff
training programme and the value of this investment by
surveying staff attitudes and knowledge of HIV/AIDS prior
to and after training. The majority of staff indicated that
they directly benefited, personally and professionally, as a

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THE BUSINESS RESPONSE TO HIV/AIDS: Impact and lessons learned

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