THE Royal by rex resorts recently honoured its top performers at its Annual Staff Awards.
Over 20 employees, supervisors and managers were rewarded for service excellence in their respective departments. Tracey John of the L’Epicure Restaurant is the Employee of the Year, The Laundry is Department of the Year, Simon William of The Kitchen is Supervisor of the Year, and Reservations Manager Greta William is the Manager of the Year.
The Royal also recognized long-serving employees who have given years of yeoman service and contributed to the growth and success of the hotel through the years. Among the long-serving team members at The Royal is Personnel Manager, Valerie St. Remy, who has given 35 years of unbroken service to the hotel.
In his brief remarks, General Manager of The Royal, Richard Michelin, thanked the staff for their dedication and commitment to excellence in serving guests. Throughout 2015, The Royal maintained its Excellence rating on Trip Adviser as well as high ratings from Booking.com, for guest satisfaction. Michelin disclosed that The Royal now has more control over its marketing with the appointment of a marketing agency in Miami and a Marketing Manager in St. Lucia.
He told staff “As you can appreciate, the competition we face is not only in St. Lucia but worldwide, as every country is trying to capture a share of the tourist market. Hence, we have to be constantly striving to improve our product and our service.”
Michelin also challenged his staff to dream big and aspire to achieve beyond where they are now. He urged them to use the success stories in their midst as motivation – like The Royal’s Executive Housekeeper, Elizabeth Gabriel who started off as a room attendant, restaurant & bars Manager – Ferdinand Felicien, who started as a trainee waiter, and Marie Ann Johnny who rose from waitress to Guest Services Manager.
Director of Operations and Administration at Monroe College, Gus Small, was the guest speaker at the awards ceremony. An original member of the management team at what was then the St. Lucian Hotel, Small said it was nostalgic to be back in familiar surroundings. Speaking on the theme, ‘Just showing up’ Small told nominees and awardees: “The most important thing in getting wherever you want to go, is to show up. The longest journey begins with a single step…but you must show up.”
Small encouraged staff of The Royal to believe in themselves and do not allow detractors to demean their profession. He said: “Do not give anyone permission to make you feel inferior. Providing service is the most honourable thing, anyone can do. It’s not servitude, it’s service. The most important people to this country are you – people who provide service, so that we can keep the economy of our country rolling over. We owe you a debt of gratitude, and I want to thank you on behalf of all of St. Lucia.”