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Major: Hospitality and Tourism Management
Job Title: Senior Conference Services Manager
Company: Highgate Hotels
Company Description: Highgate is the industry-leading hotel management, investment, technology and development firm, with a diverse portfolio of hotels across North America, the Caribbean, Latin America and Europe.
Did you have any initial career goals when you entered Isenberg? Were there any key moments or influences (a guest speaker, course, or extracurricular) during your time at Isenberg that changed or confirmed your career goals?
It didn’t take long for me to develop the goal of wanting to work in hotel operations right out of college for a few years and then transition into a non-operations focused department such as revenue or sales. I knew this was a good goal to have as a young professional entering the industry because so many of the executives or alumni I would connect with through Isenberg who were in the hotel industry got their start in a similar fashion.
Can you share a favorite work assignment that could help a student understand more about what you do?
In short, as the Senior Conference Services Manager, I serve as the liaison between all of our group clients (any group that has 10 hotel rooms or more at one time) and all of the departments of the hotel. It is up to me to work with the client pre-arrival to find out what their needs are and then work with the operations teams (front office, housekeeping, food & beverage, engineering, etc.) to ensure we not only meet the group’s needs but exceed them. I love that I am able to have touch points with all of the departments in the hotel when working on a group.
Now that you’re in this position, what aspects have surprised you that you didn’t anticipate before starting?
Before joining the sales team, I did not fully realize how much of an integral part that department plays in hotels revenue generation. The sales teams in hotels are responsible for bringing in tens of thousands of dollars of room revenue, which often dictates revenue selling strategies across other business segments such as transient and OTA.
What inspires you about the work you are doing in your industry?
I feel a lot of satisfaction when hearing from my groups that have had positive experiences in the hotel. I love knowing that the work I get to do in my role can have such a significant impact on our clients.
What are some daily challenges you experience in your role?
Ensuring constant and clear communication across the various departments when groups have a lot of changes or moving parts can be a challenge. I am often checking in with the other departments and sending updates to keep everyone up to date. We also hold weekly Group Resume Meetings to review all groups that are arriving or in house for the next 14 days. A personal challenge of mine when I first started in the role was having to develop the trust in other departments to execute things pertaining to their team for my groups after I would share all the details. Unfortunately, I cannot be in more than one place at one time so I have to rely on my colleagues to get things done when it pertains to their specific department.
Is there anything you wish you had done differently while a student at Isenberg?
I wish I had taken advantage of an international study program before committing to roles that required me to be on campus for both fall and spring semester.
Networking is extremely important but can be intimidating to undergraduates. What tips do you have for getting started engaging with alum or upperclassmen?
I would recommend attending any networking or career-focused events that are happening on campus with Isenberg. There are so many events throughout the year that allow students and alumni to engage with each other. These events typically make it easier to start a conversation with either an alumni or upperclassman. Before the event, put together a relevant question or two that you could use as a conversation starter. Additionally, reaching out to people on LinkedIn can be very valuable. I can share from the perspective of an alumni that I like when students reach out to me on LinkedIn, so do not fear hitting the connect button or sending a message!
