Mike Roziere, Hotel Manager

A rewarding career

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE) 

"I've been very lucky in my career path. Certainly my advice to anyone coming in is you just have to be prepared. It's a lot of hard work. It's not an easy career.

"There's a lot of hard work, but there's a lot of hard work in most careers. So certainly you have to be prepared for that."

Images from my workplace

Where I work

Victoria Hotel and Conference Centre is what I'd call a classic good news story. We're a local company, Manitoba owned and operated. We started as one hotel back in the late 1970s and expanded through the 1990s to four hotels. The company purchased the Winnipeg property in 2002 and all the ownership still resides in Manitoba.

It's a company that is still growing, so all of the properties that that are owned and operated by Genesis are full-service hotels with an emphasis to grow in the future. If the opportunity comes along then there'll be further growth in the company.

Making decisions

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"I have twelve department managers that work for me in various departments. They all directly report to me on their department. I report to a Vice President who is based out of Brandon. He visits the property sometimes weekly, sometimes monthly, but he basically is through the hotel at various times.

"But in this company, my boss and the ownership really leave us, at the hotel level, to run the hotel. We are left to make sure the hotel works. We really don't see a lot of immediate supervision at all. We're here to run the hotel and make the decisions."

Hands on hospitality

Hotels are very unique operations in the way we deal with the public. From the moment I walk out of my office door I'm talking to our clients. I interact with guests as well as staff all the time.

While we have employees who do very specific tasks, my role is certainly hands-on when it comes to the social part of the job. I'm out front talking to guests, especially our regular clients, before, during and after their stay.

Nothing but opportunity

One of the major misconceptions about our industry is that there are only entry-level positions; that you can't make a career out of it. This is the most common assumption and it is not correct.

Some young people think of hotel jobs as just something you do while you're in school. But there's quite a lot of opportunity in the hospitality sector, especially for people with a good attitude and work ethic. There's nothing but opportunity.

Relationships

There are a number of hotels doing a great job in their markets and throughout the world. Several outstanding examples are right here in the City of Winnipeg.

The key to a great operation is staff and training. It's all about the relationships we create in those places. Many guests choose a hotel because they like the people who work there. It may not be even the greatest hotel, feature-wise, but it's the relationships.

This is the human aspect of hospitality.

Farm family

I'm the youngest of a Catholic family of 12 children. I was raised on a farm near Oak Lake, which is about 30 miles west of Brandon. It's a very small town.

Growing up on a farm gave me a strong work ethic. I'd say I had a pretty fantastic childhood despite sometimes limited means. I think my parents did a great job.

Dutch and Canadian heritage

My parents met during World War II. My dad served briefly in Holland during the liberation of the Netherlands. That's how he met my mom, who was Dutch. She left Holland to join my father in Canada immediately following the war.

Dad worked as a carpenter and Mom took care of the family. They were both very hard working people; Dad with his trade and Mom raising 12 children and taking care of the household.

Mom's influence

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"My mother was my influence. She never really directed me in any one way other than to have a strong personal motivation, to make sure that as kids, we all attended a post-secondary education.

"She never told us what to take, but certainly was very strong that we continued our education outside of high school."

My family

My wife and I have been married for nine years. We met while going to school. Shortly after college, she got a job with the Manitoba Agriculture Credit Corp., which is now a Manitoba Agriculture Services. She was originally based out of Brandon.

Then we moved to Winnipeg four years ago and she was able to transfer from Brandon to Winnipeg. We have one son who is almost eight.

A passion for fishing

My passion is fishing and the outdoors, probably because of growing up on the farm, but also because I enjoy being outdoors. I used to hunt quite a bit but now it's mostly fishing, sprinkled in with a bit of golf.

The Red River is as world-class as you can get as far as fishing goes and it's right in our own backyard. The Winnipeg River is only forty-five minutes away as well.

And then there's Lake of the Woods if you want to just go and experience the outdoor environment. You don't have to go very far and there's not a lot of boating traffic.

No down time

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"It's very different to renovate a property that is open as opposed to opening a new property from scratch. You don't have to worry about dust, you don't have to worry about noise complaints. You don't have to worry about all of that.

"In a hotel, the door is never shut. We don't have a down time where we can say we're going to renovate through the night because that‘s when our guests our sleeping.'"

Balance a challenge

Striking a balance is a challenge with any job. For me, it's mostly the time commitment. I have to balance that with raising a young son who's at that age where he would like dad to be around.

My wife has a regular 8-5 job so our schedules don't always meet. This is just the reality of my life at this time in my career.

Afternoon golf

I have a lot of flexibility scheduling my breaks. Depending on the season, I may be able to take a break and go out on the boat.

Unless it is very busy, there are opportunities for a game golf or a fishing trip. A nice perk is that recreation is sometimes part of the job when you work in tourism and hospitality.

Positive stress

My day can be very fast paced. There are many things happening in the hotel at any given time - from banquets and conferences to smaller functions and regular clients. A hotel is a very dynamic workplace so you have to enjoy doing a number of different things at once.

And there certainly is stress, but it's positive stress. Most of our guests are here to enjoy themselves so we keep things upbeat and positive. We're here to put on events and make people comfortable and happy.

Evenings and weekends

Working in a hotel, my schedule is different than most 9-5 jobs. I'm often at work on Saturdays, not first thing in the morning but around 9am or 10 in the morning. It really depends on what's going on at the hotel.

The end of my workday varies. I usually go home between 6 and 8pm, depending on whether there are large functions on at the hotel or it's a quiet time. Sometimes I'll stay and help with the dinner or banquet functions. I'm there until the dinner is out.

I can't really say that I work late evenings, but it's not uncommon to be here until eight or nine o'clock.

Detail guy

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"As the General Manager, you are the detail guy as well. You have to create the standard, and make sure that standard is being followed. And you have to instil it in others so they are looking to constantly improve the standards.

"You certainly have to be very good with details. At different times you are also the problem solver; you have to think on your feet. You have different guests that need different things done that you're maybe not equipped to do."

A positive attitude

One of the personal qualities I bring to the job is my positive attitude and work ethic. I need to maintain a sense of humour in this line of work. I need to be positive, no matter what happens.

The staff look to me to be positive. But I have to back that up with a whole bunch of hard work. I was raised with those kinds of values and that has helped me in my work.

Continuous learning

The number one thing is people skills. You need to be able to motivate, train and interact with staff. And you have to be personable and friendly.

You also need to have excellent verbal and written communication skills in order to communicate and give direction clearly and concisely. The staff and your own superiors expect it.

Mobile technology

Technology is essential to my job, especially mobile technology like PDAs, laptops, Blackberries and cell phones. All of our Point of Sale, or POS software, is computerized and integrated. That means our front desk, restaurant, banquet department and the time-clock are integrated into one system which helps to minimize mistakes and aid in easy operation.

All of the managers have Blackberries and we all use computers to write and respond to emails. Email is the preferred mode of communication for many of our guests.

Element of play

The hotel is very social and that adds an element of play to my job. Through the years I've come to know certain clients very well and professional friendships have developed. I can laugh and joke and interact with them a lot and that's an advantage of working in this industry - I have a good time.

But I can also do that with a regular guest or someone who eats in the restaurant but the long term relationships are usually more relaxed.

Timing and luck

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"There were about 120 people enrolled in the Business Administration Program. We graduated with just under a hundred at the end of the two year program.

"When I look back at that time I don't think there was anybody who said "I'm going to take Business Administration because when I get out I'm going to be --". It wasn't really like that.

"We felt confident that the program would give us an advantage in whatever we chose to do." 

Key skills

Technical Skills

- mobile technology
- basic computer skills

People Skills

- effective communicator
- friendly and outgoing personality
- social networking

Business Skills

- customer satisfaction and service
- time management
- spreadsheet and document software
- event organization and planning

While you're in school

You should focus on accounting and math skills while you're still in school. These need to be strong because as a manager you have to look after financial statements, schedules and transactions.

We're like any other business. We have to make money to operate. And a manager is in charge of a lot of employees who are making careers out of this. It's all about people skills, the volunteer work and community outreach. These are all key to entering the hospitality industry.

Mentorship

Other than my mom, the most important influence on my career is my boss. When I look back on my professional life, I feel that he gave me more opportunity at a young age than anyone else.

That's really why I became a General Manager as young as I did. My boss is a very smart business man and he's provided me with great advice throughout my career.

Greatest accomplishment

For two and a half years I was the General Manager of the Keystone Centre, which is a large multi-purpose facility. It's actually one of the biggest facilities in North America of its kind.

I was given the opportunity to manage out of a group of about a 140 applicants from across Canada. Out of all those applicants, I was selected to run the facility for about two and half years.

Career goals

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"My goal in my career right now is that this company would grow and to move into more of what I would deem a head office position.

"I think we probably need about another three or four hotels in our chain, which isn't out of the question in a fairly short period of time."

Continuous learning

This year I have enrolled in the in some programming courses. Continuous learning and training never end in this field. I'm constantly looking at new opportunities and new processes of improvement.

Computer and technology skills are certainly coming into play more and more because many of our clients are business people and require it during their visit.

Professional volunteering

I sit on the Board of Directors for Manitoba Tourism and Education Council, which is the provincial affiliate of the Education Council for Tourism. I also chair the board of that organization.

In addition to the chairing experience, membership in the council offers a lot of other benefits, like training courses in the hospitality industry.

Community volunteering

In addition to membership in industry and professional associations, I am very interested in taking a more active role in my community. I was on the Assiniboine Community College Alumni Board and I have worked with the Cancer Society, the Arthritis Society and a variety of different organizations in the region.

The hotel is a member of the Assiniboine Chamber of Commerce, but I'd like to be a more active member as an individual in the Chamber. One of my goals is to be more involved in this part of the community and in this part of the city.

Industry forecast

I think there's nothing but opportunity in our market for good operators and career-minded staff. Right now, there are not enough good people to fill the positions that are available.

But I think the good operators are going to figure out how to get good people and the not so good ones are going to struggle.

Job market info

The links below take you to federal and regional government information on employment, education, salary ranges and long range prospects for this career.

The official title for Mike's occupation is Accommodation Service Managers and its NOC* code is 0632.

Manitoba Job Futures

Who Hires - Manitoba Labour Market Information

*Each occupation has an official name and unique number called the 'National Occupation Classification' code or 'NOC'.

Education

High School 

Useful High School Subjects*

- English (Communication)
- Business
- Math
- A second language

*Source: Job Futures.ca 

For those out of school, Adult Learning Centres can help you get or upgrade your high school diploma, including adding subjects that are required for work or further education. All Manitobans are normally entitled to 4 free courses.

After high school 

Red River College

Hospitality and Tourism Management Program
Tourism Management

Assiniboine Community College - Brandon

Hospitality Administration Program

Manitoba Tourism Education Council (MTEC)

emerit Tourism Training

Essential Skills

The most important Essential Skills* for Hotel Managers are:

- Oral communication
- Problem solving
- Decision making
- Job task planning and organizing
- Significant use of memory
- Finding information
- Working with others

*For more information on Essential Skills and their importance to this occupation, go to: Essential Skills NOC 0632

Professional resources

Manitoba Tourism Education Counsel (MTEC)
MTEC provides resources and training for Manitoba tourism professionals

Manitoba Hotel Association
The MHA is a professional organization that promotes the hospitality sector in Manitoba

Tourism Industry Association of Canada
TIA is a national organization that promotes the interests of the Canadian tourism sector.

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