Edition – Dynamic Icons: Top Visionary Leaders to Follow

With over three decades of distinguished leadership in the hospitality industry, Vikas Sharma stands as a benchmark of operational excellence, strategic foresight, and people-centric leadership. Serving as Senior Vice President – Hospitality at Central Park Group – St. Jerome Hospitality, he brings a rare depth of cross-functional expertise shaped across some of the finest luxury, business, and leisure hotels.

Currently, Vikas Sharma leads operations at the Hard Rock Hotel Goa as Vice President – Operations, where his leadership continues to elevate service standards, operational efficiency, and guest experience. His professional journey spans critical domains including safety and security management, hygiene and risk management, market communication, contingency planning, procurement, quality assurance, budgetary control, and general administration—making him a holistic hospitality leader.

Renowned for building and guiding high-performing teams, he has played a pivotal role in designing procedures and service standards that drive business excellence. His strengths lie in process improvement, proactive operational planning, and the successful introduction of innovative concepts aligned with evolving guest expectations. Equally impactful is his expertise in customer relationship management (CRM), where he has implemented effective solutions to enhance customer delight, loyalty, and repeat business.

Featured in this edition of Dynamic Icons: Top Visionary Leaders to Follow, Vikas Sharma exemplifies the modern hospitality leader—one who blends operational rigor with strategic innovation, ensuring sustainable growth while delivering memorable guest experiences.

Welcome to Dynamic Icons: Top Visionary Leaders to Follow. It’s a pleasure to have you with us. To begin, could you please share the beginning of your career journey with our readers?

“My career journey began not with a grand plan, but with a quiet conviction to follow a path driven by passion and purpose. I come from a proud fifth-generation Defence family, where values such as discipline, integrity, resilience, and service to a greater cause were ingrained early in life. Growing up in that environment gave me a strong moral compass, but it also carried an unspoken expectation—to continue the family legacy in uniform. Instead, I chose a different uniform: one of service in hospitality.

I formally entered the hospitality industry in 1993 as a Hotel Operations Management Trainee at the iconic Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai. Those early years were truly transformational. Working across legendary restaurants, banquets, and service environments taught me that hospitality is not merely about luxury—it is about consistency, anticipation, humility, and people. The Taj culture shaped my professional DNA, instilling uncompromising standards and a deep respect for detail.

One of the most defining early milestones in my career was being part of the pre-opening team of India’s first Radisson Hotel in New Delhi. That experience exposed me to the complexity of building a hotel from the ground up—creating systems, building teams, shaping culture, and earning guest trust—all under intense timelines and scrutiny. It was here that I truly understood what leadership under pressure looks like.

From there, my journey expanded across some of the world’s most respected hospitality brands, including IHCL, InterContinental Hotels Group, Hilton, Radisson, DLF Hospitality, Asia Resorts, and later Hard Rock Hotel Goa. Each role broadened my perspective, strengthened my operational depth, and reinforced my belief that hospitality success lies in balancing commercial excellence with genuine human connection.

Over the past three decades, I have grown from hands-on operational leadership into enterprise-level roles, leading marquee hotels, luxury resorts, multi-property portfolios, and large-scale pre-openings. Every chapter has reinforced one core belief: sustainable success in hospitality is built on people—empowered teams, loyal guests, and values-led leadership.

Today, as Senior Vice President – Hospitality at Central Park, I bring together all these learnings to help redefine how hospitality integrates with luxury residential living—creating experiences that are not only premium, but purposeful and enduring.” – Vikas Sharma

Could you highlight the key offerings at Central Park and your focus within the organization?

“At Central Park, my role is centered on embedding world-class hospitality into the very fabric of luxury residential living—most notably through the St. Jerome vertical, which is a first-of-its-kind, hospitality-led residential concept. For me, the key offering is not a single product or standalone service; it is a holistic ecosystem designed around what I call anticipatory living.

At the heart of this ecosystem are several core pillars.

First is hospitality-grade service architecture. We adapt five-star hotel service principles to residential environments, ensuring residents experience warmth, consistency, and personalization every single day—not occasionally, but as a way of life.

Second is wellness-centric living. I strongly believe wellness must be seamlessly woven into daily routines, not treated as an add-on. This includes physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing, enabled through thoughtful design, curated partnerships, and meaningful programming.

Third is technology-enabled personalization. My focus is on building intelligent CRM systems that use data to enhance human connection—not replace it. Technology, in my view, should feel intuitive and empathetic, not transactional.

Fourth is operational excellence and governance. This includes robust SOPs, centralized procurement, stringent hygiene protocols, and transparent governance structures. These elements are critical for building long-term trust, consistency, and sustainability.

Finally, there is people and culture. I place immense importance on building highly trained service teams who think like hosts, not staff—teams that are empowered, accountable, and emotionally invested in delivering meaningful experiences.

Ultimately, the true offering is peace of mind. It is about creating an environment where residents feel understood, anticipated, and genuinely cared for. This is hospitality that doesn’t announce itself loudly, but is felt quietly, consistently, and intuitively—every single day.” – Vikas Sharma

What are your long-term goals, and where do you envision yourself in the coming years?

“My long-term goal is to play a meaningful role in shaping the future of hospitality and experiential living—not just through iconic buildings or powerful brands, but through the standards we set, the cultures we build, and the leadership legacy we leave behind.

In the coming years, I see myself continuing to design and scale hospitality ecosystems that are human-first, technology-enabled rather than technology-driven, ethical, sustainable, and wellness-focused, and most importantly, scalable without losing their soul. For me, growth should never come at the cost of authenticity or emotional connection.

I am especially passionate about redefining residential hospitality in India. I believe luxury today is evolving—it is no longer about opulence alone, but about trust, intuitive service, emotional reassurance, and consistency. Creating environments where people feel genuinely cared for is what excites me most.

Beyond roles and titles, my deeper aspiration is to mentor future leaders, build strong leadership pipelines, and contribute to institutions that are stronger, more resilient, and more people-centric than when I found them. If I can help shape leaders who lead with integrity, empathy, and clarity, that would be a true measure of success.

For me, success will always be measured not just by financial outcomes, but by the quality of people developed, the cultures created, and the long-term value delivered to all stakeholders.” – Vikas Sharma

Who has been the most significant source of inspiration in your life?

“My greatest source of inspiration has always been my family—especially the values passed down through generations of military service. Growing up in a Defence household instilled in me discipline, humility, resilience, and a deep sense of responsibility. Those principles have stayed with me and naturally shaped my leadership style throughout my career.

Professionally, I’ve been inspired by leaders who led quietly but decisively—individuals who earned respect not through position or authority, but through consistency, fairness, and integrity. I’ve also drawn immense inspiration from the frontline hospitality professionals I’ve worked alongside over the years. Their dedication, often unseen and uncelebrated, constantly reinforces my belief that true leadership exists at every level of an organization.

On a personal level, my wife, Suchita, has been my strongest pillar of support for over two decades. She has anchored our family with grace and strength while I navigated the demanding realities of hospitality leadership. I’ve learned that inspiration often comes from those who stand beside you quietly, offering unwavering support, while you lead from the front.” – Vikas Sharma

Notable Recognitions & Accreditations

Over the years, Vikas Sharma’s professional contributions have been recognized by several respected industry platforms, reflecting his consistent leadership, operational excellence, and impact within the hospitality sector. His notable recognitions include being honored as India’s Best – Vice President Operations by Trinity World in 2018, and being named among the Top Twelve Hoteliers in India at the Safari India National Awards. He has also received the Best General Manager accolade from Safari India and the National Award for Best Marketing Strategy for his work at The Chancery Pavilion.

Further acknowledgements include the Best Management – Training & Development Award at the Hospitality India Awards, along with features in Trending 2025 and Sol Luxury Magazine – Prestige Profiles 2025, highlighting his influence and standing in the luxury hospitality space. Vikas is also an alumnus of the prestigious Taj Management Development Programme at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, which further underpins his strong leadership foundation.

While these accolades mark important professional milestones, he regards them not as endpoints, but as affirmations of collaborative effort, strong organizational culture, and sustained excellence in execution.

What were the most challenging obstacles you’ve encountered in your career?

“Hospitality is an industry where unpredictability is the only constant, and some of the most challenging obstacles I’ve faced stem from that very reality. High-pressure pre-openings with extremely tight timelines, managing large and diverse teams across multiple geographies, and meeting consistently high stakeholder expectations have all tested my resilience and adaptability.

The COVID-19 pandemic, however, stands out as the most defining challenge of my career. It tested every aspect of leadership—operational, emotional, and ethical. Managing manpower uncertainty, financial pressures, and health and safety concerns simultaneously required absolute transparency, empathy, and decisive action. During that period, preserving trust—both with teams on the ground and with ownership—became the single most important leadership responsibility.

Another ongoing challenge has been finding the right balance between operational rigor and human sensitivity. Hospitality leaders constantly walk a fine line between commercial outcomes and people wellbeing. Learning when to push, when to pause, and when to truly listen has been a continuous evolution for me.

Each obstacle has reinforced a simple but powerful truth: resilient leadership is forged in moments of uncertainty, not in comfort.” – Vikas Sharma