Stijn Oyen: On generosity with time, working across Europe, a Denzel Washington encounter and leadership advice.

Recording this episode with Stijn Oyen, Managing Director at
Design Hotels, felt less like a formal leadership conversation
and more like sitting across from someone who never lost his
original passion for hospitality.


What moved me most was how clearly his journey is rooted in craft
and humility. He started as a young aspiring chef, guided by a
mentor who saw leadership potential in him before he saw it
himself and that single moment of outside belief changed his
direction completely. It reminded me again how often careers turn
not on plans, but on people who see more in you than you
currently see in yourself.


One theme that stayed with me throughout the conversation was his
consistent focus on people, curiosity and generosity with time.
When we spoke about leadership today, he didn’t talk about
control or authority. He spoke about reading the room, staying
humble, asking questions and - very practically - being generous
with your time and attention. That line stuck with me because it
sounds simple, but in reality it’s rare.


I was also struck by how openly he described being pushed out of
his comfort zone when stepping into his current role. It wasn’t
presented as a heroic leap, but as a real risk both for him and
for Neil Jones, the leader who trusted him with the opportunity.
That connects strongly with another core belief we discussed:
careers grow when someone takes a risk on you and when you’re
willing to step into something before you feel fully ready.


On a more personal level, I loved the story he shared about
meeting Denzel Washington during the San Sebastián Film Festival.
What stayed with him wasn’t the celebrity moment - it was the
humanity of it. A long, unscripted conversation that ran over
schedule.


You can also feel how deeply hospitality still lives in him. Even
now, away from hotel operations, he talks about cooking, markets,
ingredients and food with visible emotion. The kitchen seems to
be his reset button.


I left the conversation with a few clear reflections: leadership
is not about having all the answers, growth rarely follows a
straight line and generosity with time, trust and opportunity may
be one of the most underrated leadership qualities we have.