Noble CEO, Mit Shah, Named as one of Atlanta's Most Admired CEOs

This interview is part of the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s Most Admired CEO Awards, highlighting leaders who propel the performance of their organization and strengthen the fabric of the Atlanta community.

Never be the smartest person in the room.

That advice always resonated with Mit Shah, CEO of Atlanta-based hotel developer and private equity firm Noble Investment Group. By 1993 when Noble began, Shah was still in his 20s, but the humility of that advice was already ingrained in his business acumen.

During the early years of the company, it guided him through the 1998 economic downturn, then again a couple of years later during the dot-com collapse.

Then came the experiences of the Sept. 11 attacks.

"There was no playbook for this, Shah said, "but I found trust and faith in us."

By 7:30 a.m. the next morning, he remembers walking into Noble's offices and finding his team waiting — shocked and saddened, but ready to tackle the unknown.

"At that moment, I knew we had something special, and a great sense of purpose to help make it happen," Shah said.

In the weeks before our Most Admired event, the Chronicle wants to share reflections on leadership from some of this year's recipients. Over his career, Shah has grown Noble into a hospitality powerhouse and emerged as a national voice within the industry. Noble has invested in more than $5 billion in assets. It's counted among the city’s 10 largest private equity firms, according to data from the Chronicle.

The interview below has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

What decision have you made as a leader that required the most courage?

As I think back on all the critical decisions we have made, it feels like all of them required us to dig deep and answer whether it would be the best for all our stakeholders and the organization. The ones which were the most difficult had a human element involved. In 2011, we made the decision to sell our hotel management business, as we saw a growing importance of scale, investments in technology, accounting, and human resources take place in hotel operations – things that were non-core to our investment management business. However, that would mean several team members would now work for another company. Fast forward 11 years, our operating performance is driving outstanding investment returns, our investment management business has expanded by 500%, and those hotel management team members have achieved professional growth in an operating organization with great scale.

When you begin your work for the day, what is the one thing you almost always feel you must do first and why?

One of my very closest friends, Mark Elliott of Hodges, Ward, Elliott, who tragically passed away last year, taught me to always do the thing first that I want to do the least. I try and do that as often as I can because not only do I get it out of the way (whether it is 45 minutes on the treadmill or work-related), but more importantly so I can focus on all the other things that I enjoy.

How are macro-economic forces affecting hospitality?

Hotels and hospitality are cyclical, but consumer spending on travel and hotels has been three times all other types of spending since the 1950s. Leisure demand has proven to be highly durable and consistent across multiple cycles, especially in the past few years. We believe this is a secular opportunity. Over the past 12 months, Noble has invested over $1.5 billion in markets like Midtown Atlanta, Charleston, Savannah, Nashville, Tampa, Jacksonville Ponte-Vedra, Austin, and San Diego.

What is the most urgent issue that Atlanta business leadership faces?

Safety and infrastructure. Atlanta continues to create a highly coveted workforce that is educated and diverse. Companies want to come here. Families want to live here. We need our city protected from senseless crime and more accessible to get from one part of our metropolitan area to another. This is not news … but I am optimistic about our city’s leadership and hopeful that through common ground and stewardship the continued evolution of our city can and will allow Atlanta to remain a beacon of job growth, quality of life, and prosperity.

By Douglas Sams – Editor-in-chief, Atlanta Business Chronicle