Comments on: Heartful boutique?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 28 Jul 2012 00:06:19 +0000

your assertion ‘Conley and Marlow now hold key managerial positions at Esalen’, is false. Please understand that I was engaged by your CEO on a consulting contract in May 2011 to do an assessment of the Esalen Culture and some leadership development work. Our last workshop in that series was August 2011, and I have not been involved since then. I did this work at 50% of my usual fee because of my deep love and appreciation for Esalen, and all that it brings to the planet.Chip did not charge for his time at all, because of the special place that Esalen holds in his heart. Neither of us have, or have had any managerial position at Esalen. I wish you all the best of luck with your continuing evolution.
Warmly
Vanda

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 20:14:07 +0000

Yup, Esalen as crown jewel in the Joie de Vivre empire is a paranoid and sickening thought. Turning our “down at heels” (i.e., falling down around our ears) little Institute into a heartfelt boutique hotel with proper permitting, however, would take the powers of a deity and not merely a Donald Trump. Given that the incompetent and untrustworthy current management team at Esalen was going to sic some hotel chain influence on us anyway, JDV is not the worst. They have a local property, and, having been a “guest” of several of their properties, I will say this: JDV employees (down to the lowliest bell hops) approach their jobs with the type of enthusiasm that is elicited with fair pay, perky benefits, lack of micro-management, and being treated with human respect. Let’s give a Chip a fair shot. And by that I mean: let’s demand that Esalen employees be treated as well as JDV employees. Esalen will never be the crown jewel in JDV’s portfolio. Being on the Esalen Board is the crown jewel in Chip’s achievements. There is simply no comparison between a hotel chain, no matter how “heartful,” and an educational institution and ongoing experiment in community living with the world changing, culture shifting, mind blowing INFLUENCE of Esalen Institute. Allow Chip to live up to the crown the monkeys have bestowed.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:39:14 +0000

I am curious, to anyone who has been at staff meetings with chip and vanda – what they are actually saying their vision is – how open are they to the long term staff?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:14:14 +0000

Without attacking Chip or assuming his motives it’s reasonable to be aware that Esalen could be the crown jewel of his hotel group. Caution and concern are merited. The bigger issue that is raised is the vision, wisdom and desires of a board that would invite him to become a member. Taking business advice from him is one thing but inviting him to actually join the board sends a message on the priorities and vision–or lack of–of that board. More disturbing is if this actually does indicate the board’s direction. Heartful boutique hotels may be nice but do not represent the highest aspirations of human potential.